A SWING IN THE KITCHEN - keeping the grandchildren amused!

When my grandchildren began arriving nearly 12 years ago I installed a swing in the kitchen. I figured that even if it was too wet to go out, at least this would amuse the children.

I bought the swing

(swings, because I bought a baby swing as well - not pictured)  from Ikea. I can't remember what I paid for them, but it wasn't a lot. I also bought 2 quick-release caribeners so the swing can be erected in seconds - the staples stay in the ceiling, of course.

 The staples stay in the ceiling.

Here's Alfie about to launch

And here he is in full flight - last summer

Whee!

There's obvious danger here, of course, so there are strict rules which apply when the swing is being used: No food preparation while the swing is in use, obviously; one child on the swing and one waiting for their turn; and adult supervision at all times -and the swing comes down when the kitchen returns to its primary function!

I'm quite surprised that they still all love the swing - even our sophisticated 11-year-old likes to take her turn!

What others have said...

"Thank you for a fascinating day during which you managed to remove  a lot of the mystery about making bread and also managed to ensure that we all went home with quantities of wonderful examples of the bread maker's art." Sue 

"Very much enjoyed Sunday and look forward to the next session." Jim

"Loved the course on Sunday and am looking forward to the next one very much!!!

Many thanks." Julia

(Students on day one of Hornblotton course, 5/5/13)

"Thanks, an enjoyable 2 days, entertaining and informative." Amanda

"Excellent!" Jim 


"Outstanding! ...I have had an absolutely fantastic two days. Learnt a great deal and have been more than motivated to do more home baking.

Very many thanks." Simon 

"Excellent course Paul. Many thanks again. Whoever would have thought I would be able to make all of this! Best wishes," Roger

(Hornblotton 'Breadmaking made easy' course, 5th and 12th May 2013)

"Very fun session - kids and mummy enjoyed it lots"

"Ophelia and I enjoyed it very much. Good messy play (cooking). Thank you!!"

"Alfie and Stuart - very messy fun...tasty too!

"Felicity and mum had a fab time. Thank you."

"Fab session, will definitely try this again with my little one"

Brock house (Session on 15/5/13)

"The feedback and comments from yesterday’s session were fantastic, thank you so much!!"

Lynne Johnston

Family Support Worker

Brock House Childrens Centre 

(Session on 22/5/13)

Dear Ruth and Paul, 

I just wanted to say on behalf of the school and Governors, thank you again for yesterday's session. It was wonderful to see such quality and inclusive family learning for our children.

Mrs C. E. Hepher

Headteacher 

Priorswood Primary School

(Session on 22/5/13)


17/10/11
Here's a thank you card I received from the students on a Breadmaking made Easy course I ran  at Burnham on Sea SS&L, in October, 2011

BREADMAKING MADE EASY WORKSHOP at High Ham

(Planned for Saturday 7th December 2013.)

As a result of a course I ran on two consecutive Sundays at Hornblotton in early May, I've been asked to conduct a one day workshop at High Ham.

Because there will be students on the workshop who also attended the Hornblotton course, I shall try and vary the breads on offer.

As my planning for this workshop develops, I'll post it up here - so, more to come! :)

Just emailed these suggestions to the organiser:

As for a programme - both the Chelseas and the focaccia lend themselves to variations. We could do calzones instead (or as a choice) instead of pizza - plus a sweet calzone. Cheese, broccoli and potato pasties always go down well. Sweet and savoury canapes spring to mind. Have a look around and see what you'd like to make.

5:2 DIET RATATOUILLE PIE (VEGAN) made with bread dough

20 minutes at 220C - more pics below

Bread dough (717 calories):
200g strong white bread flour (676 cals)
1 stock cube (crumbled) (14 cals)
1 teaspoon curry powder (5 cals) (optional)
10g fresh yeast or 5g dried yeast (22 cals)
125g lukewarm water

Method:

1. Measure the water and stir in the yeast until it is dissolved. Place the flour, stock cube and curry powder into a mixing bowl, mix the dry ingredients and pour in the yeast liquid.

2. Have a little water to hand to add if necessary, remember, it is better for your dough to be wetter (slack) rather than drier (tight). Begin to mix by stirring the ingredients together with a knife, cutting through the dough as it forms. When it gets too stiff for the knife, use your hand to squeeze the mixture together. As it forms into a solid mass, keep turning it over and pressing it down to pick up the flour at the bottom of the bowl – but make sure it stays soft. Don’t be afraid to add more water to keep it soft! When all the flour has been mixed in, wipe the bowl around with the dough, turn it out onto the worktop and begin to knead.

3. Knead by flattening the dough out, folding it over and flattening it again. If the dough is too sticky, instead of putting extra flour on your worktop, place some in the bowl, put the dough back in and turn it round to coat it all over. That way you keep the flour under control and you won’t be tempted to add too much. Knead until the dough becomes smooth – and then stop before you get fed up!

4. Leave to prove for about an hour on your worktop, covered with a dry tea towel. Or place in an oiled plastic bag – all day if necessary - until you are ready for step 5. Or go straight to step 5.

5. When you are ready to proceed, don't knock the dough back, just divide into 2/3rds and 1/3rd.  Roll out the larger piece of dough about 4cm larger than your  pie dish and place it over the dish, carefully pushing into the sides all round. Roll out the smaller piece to the size of the dish, and place on a floured piece of baking parchment. 

6. Cover both with a tea towel and leave to prove on your worktop until the dough is risen and puffy, then fill the pie dish with the ratatouille filling (using a slotted spoon - you don't want too much liquid). Using the baking parchment, upturn the other piece of dough over the pie dish and filling and trim the edges.

7. Leave a few minutes for the dough to recover, then bake at 220C for about 20 minutes, turning the pie if necessary to ensure an even bake.

Filling (430 calories):
250g celery - 20 cals
100g onion – 31 cals
115g cabbage – 15 cals
64g carrot -19 cals
100g cauliflower – 31 cals
200 mushrooms – 15 cals
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed - 10 cals
50g sun dried tomatoes - 90 cals
800g tinned tomatoes - 152 cals 
10g bouillon powder – 24 cals
1 dessertspoon mushroom sauce - 15 cals
1 teaspoon curry powder - 8 cals
1 teaspoon mixed herbs 
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Simmer the chopped vegetables in a little water until soft, then add the tinned, chopped tomatoes and flavourings. Reduce the liquid by simmering for 30 minutes. Adjust the flavourings, then using a slotted spoon, place the filling in the pie.

This pie will give 4 generous servings - each containing less than 287 calories!  

I'm always blown away by just how encasing some good ingredients in bread dough massively enhances the flavour of those ingredients - whether it is  a simple mushroom en croute, or a lovely vegetable pie such as this!

The dough is already rising

Now with the filling

Trimming almost complete. For reasons I don't fully understand, there is no need to cut slits in the top of a pie made with a bread dough

The trimmings were used to make a couple of spicy grissini (with a kink so they can be turned over if need be)

The bottom was lined with a piece of baking parchment

9th June 2013

My latest attempt:

I made the dough with curry powder, bouillon powder, tomato puree and chopped s-d-tomatoes

The filling was again a rich vegetable sauce

The trimmings made two tasty grissini

There are 3 good servings in this pie - four with a few veg. I just have curried wedges with it.

5:2 DIET LASAGNE - LAYERED WITH POTATO (VEGAN)

(For those who aren't sure what the 5:2 diet is - here's some information)

I couldn't get any more on the plate - I was absolutely full up when I'd finished!

I didn't know quite what to call this dish. It's layered up with a bolognaise-type vegetable sauce and potatoes, with vegan flavourings instead of a cheese sauce*.

Basically, this is a lasagne/moussaka type meal using thinly sliced potatoes to layer the dish. I've made this over the years, generally to use up left-over bolognaise sauce - and it is awesome!
Makes 2 portions - one each for my two day's fasting this week.

Ingredients:
150g onion
100g cabbage
50g carrots
100g cauliflower
200g celery
150g mushrooms
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 teaspoons stock powder
Good pinch of dried oregano
Black pepper to taste

Plus:
200g very thinly sliced potatoes (you can overlap the potatoes if you've got too many - or leave them out)
10g Free and Easy cheese sauce powder
5g nutritional yeast

Method:
Chop all the vegetables quite small and simmer them in a little water, until soft. Add the seasoning.

Slice the potatoes very thinly and cook for several minutes until soft.

Layer the dish in three layers - so divide the potatoes into 3 small piles. 

Spoon just under a third of the sauce into a baking dish and cover with 1/3rd of the potatoes. Cover the potatoes with cheese sauce powder and nutritional yeast (nooch). Then alternate with sauce, potatoes and the cheese sauce powder and nooch - finishing with a little liquid over the dry ingredients - just to moisten them.

Either bake for 30 minutes or microwave for 10 minutes - full power for 2 minutes, 8 minutes on 30% power (or equivalent).

Calorie count:
242 for the sauce
144 for the potatoes
25 for the sauce powder and nooch
410 in total

But since this is for two meals, that's 205 for each meal, leaving 295 (or 395 for a bloke) to spare.

(On the day made this, I chose to spend my calories on a small glass of beer, ditto some red wine - and still had enough calories spare for a small piece of chocolate cake! [Calorie counting to come!])

Note:
Free and Easy (dairy free) cheese sauce powder I bought in Sainsbury's supermarket. Engervita nutritional yeast is available in most health food shops.

I shall check out using grated vegan cheese - it'll be more calories, but, since this is pretty low calorie anyway, it might be a decent alternative.

*Or: You may want to use this vegan cheese sauce at 125 calories - but, don't forget, this makes two meals

5:2 DIET - CHEESE SAUCE, VEGAN AND 125 CALORIES!

Here's a simple 'cheese sauce' - low in calories and so easy to make!

(Use it with this lasagne layered with potato.)

You'll need:
Free and Easy cheese flavour sauce mix - available in the 'Free from' section of Sainsbury's;
Nutritional yeast - from your local health food shop;
Bouillon powder - widely available

Directions:
4 heaped teaspoons of the sauce mix
300ml water
1 teaspoon (5g) bouillon powder
2 dessertspoons (10g) nutritional yeast (nooch)

Mix a little of the water into the powder in a saucepan and stir into a paste - add the rest of the water. Place over a low heat and allow to simmer, stirring frequently. When the sauce thickens, stir in the flavourings.

And that's it!

Calorie count: The sauce - 78 cals; bouillon powder - 12 cals; nooch - 35 cals.
Total - 125 calories

I'm off to buy a cauliflower - can't wait to make a tasty, vegan, cauliflower cheese! :)

WHOLEMEAL SOURDOUGH

Wednesday 29th May 2013

My daughter is off home tomorrow - and I want her to take a loaf with her, so I needed to make another loaf. Since she'll be going in the morning, I need to make the loaf today.

10.30am - refreshed starter with 100g each white flour and water

1.30pm - sponge, 300g starter + 300g wholemeal flour and 300g water.

(My usual bread is made up of 550g wholemeal and 150g white - so adding 300g of starter means that all the white flour has been added and I only need to add more wholemeal.)

7.30pm - the sponge is very active and I added the remaining 250g of wholemeal, plus 8g of salt, 50g of toasted sesame and sunflower seeds.

9.30pm - the dough has risen sufficiently, I think:

And 40 minutes later the bread is done:

Tried to make the cuts a little deeper - and I still don't think I left it to prove long enough. 

The crumb was very similar to the first loaf I made, below, and the bread was very tasty. So much so that my 11 year old granddaughter chose to have this for her lunch (today, Friday) rather than the commercial white sliced she usually opted for. Result!

Still don't think I've got the loaf exactly as I want it, for it does feel a little heavy - but, practice makes perfect and all that!

Monday 27th May 2013

The finished loaf and the crumb - with a background of our (my 3 grandchildren and I) sourdough starter experiment

One of the reasons I haven't persevered with sourdough in the past is that, using a flavoursome wholemeal (Doves Organic), I haven't had the increase in flavour that comes with making sourdough using white flour. However, I thought I'd have another go, now that I'm more confident with this new starter of mine.

I need some bread for lunch tomorrow - so, later than I wished, at 9.30 tonight, I refreshed the starter with 100g each white flour and water, and left it out on the worktop.

My sourdough-loving friend, Dennis, recommends Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's method for making sourdough - and I also consulted Andrew Whitley ('Bread Matters'), and Dan Lepard (The Hand-made Loaf) on the subject.

All agreed on refreshing the starter, and on making a 'sponge' (sort of a half-way house between the starter and the dough) the day before baking the loaf. However, I decided to do my own thing after discarding HFW's method for producing a loaf with a hydration of 56% (when I aim for about 70%) and also AW's and DL's instructions for being too unbelievably complex!

I'm looking to make a loaf using 700g of flour - with 70% hydration, that requires 490g water. Since the above bakers all include all the remaining liquid in their sponges, I thought I'd follow suit - except that I decided to hold back 40g of water since I wasn't sure just exactly how wet my sourdough would be.

Sponge ingredients:
200g starter (100g white flour and 100g water)
300g flour (50g white and 250g wholemeal)
350g water

This was mixed in my food storer and left, with a lid on, on the worktop. Time 0.40am on Tuesday.

At half past nine in the morning, with two willing grandchildren to help me, I added the remaining 300g of flour and mixed into a dough. I only added a teaspoon - 5g - of water just to bring the crumbs of flour together in the bowl. 

The consistency of the dough was pretty much just as I wanted - soft and squishy, but not too sticky. We all had a good knead - out of pleasure as much as anything, then I shaped the dough into a boule, covered it and left it. I was hoping to have bread for lunch, but, as I've just realised, I'm fasting today, I'm not too bothered for myself. However, my daughter would appreciate some for her lunch!

Final calculation:
700g flour to 455g water = 65% hydration.

My granddaughter took loads of pics, so I'll post them when I get a chance. 

Full recipe:
Sponge ingredients:
200g starter (100g flour and 100g water)
300g flour (50g white and 250g wholemeal)
350g water

To which was added:
300g wholemeal
8g salt
5g water

Unfortunately, when my grandchildren  were making their lunch, the rising loaf took a knock and I decided to abort that attempt. Since I had to go out, I simply put the dough back into the food storer to keep until I could get around to it.

In the evening, after dinner, I shaped the loaf again, and placed it in a large, round stainless steel dish. 

I'd noticed on the earlier attempt that the loaf was spreading out a fair way, so I thought this would keep it under control.

 2 hours later, when I thought it was ready, I slashed the loaf and put it in the oven - for 45 minutes at 220C.

Couldn't decide which  

...was the best photo...

...so I included all three!

The loaf feels a little heavy - and the crumb has a very close texture, so I'm thinking I could have left it to prove for another half hour or so. However, I'm not a fan of large holes in my bread, so I'm very happy with this.

Despite the fact that I'm fasting, I did eat that slice of bread - 46g and 100 calories. I'm delighted to report that, although there is very little sourdough smell to the loaf, the flavour is distinctly - pleasingly - sour!

I think I may - finally - have cracked it!

BREADMAKING WITH MY GRANDCHILDREN

Thursday 30th May 2013
I'd forgotten all about this post!

We've had the grandchildren here all week, and made several batches of rolls which I wasn't bothered about posting about - but these I have to share with you.

My daughter (their Auntie Emma) is 6 months pregnant, and the kids are fascinated - especially Alfie, who's now 7. (Just to tell you how interested he is in pregnancy - he's absolutely gutted that his two older sisters are allowed to watch ''One born every minute', and he isn't!)

I'd demonstrated how to shape a tadpole or a mouse with a bread dough, and Alfie, I thought, was following suit...

...albeit going a bit overboard with the tail! 

"What's that, then, Alfie?" I asked, expecting him to say 'mouse', or 'tadpole'. "It's an umbilical cord, granddad," he replied, matter-of-factly.

But he hadn't finished with it - here's his final shaping, with an unusually coloured flower (we had no green food colouring):

On the left is Alfie's final version of an umblical cord - at the top is a reindeer dropping (which will be painted with chocolate spread after baking). And the two rolls on the right are pain au chocolat.

And this is what can happen if you take your eye off the ball!

I have an oft-repeated saying - "If you can't make a mess when you're breadmaking, when can you make a mess?"
 Not sure I had this in mind!

Monday 9th April 2012.
Alfie again made some spicy fruit buns with me for them to take home with them.

We made 16 - smaller ones than last time. You'll need to ask my wife where the missing one is!

The cake is a gluten-free parkin for my son who has a wheat allergy. 

Sunday 8th April.

The grandchildren had a had a young friend visit them today, Elsbeth, who'd never made bread before. So it was decided we should rectify this situation and make some bread while she had the chance.The choices were pain au chocolat, jam doughnuts, iced buns or fancy dinner rolls and shapes - they chose fancy shapes that can be turned into iced buns. 

So Olivia, Alfie and Elsbeth lined up at the worktop and here's how it turned out:

A sweetened dough made with 1 mug of flour - dividing it into smaller pieces

Olivia's rolling out her dough 

There's Alfie mugging up to the camera

More dividing and shaping

Yet more...

Now there are some real shapes

Finishing touches

Clipping a hedgehog's spikes

A whirl

I think this is going to be Olivia's reindeer poo

All the finished bread - proving

Olivia's (at the top) and Alfie's bread. Elsbeth had to take her rolls home to finish them off. We'll ice these in the morning.

Whilst the bread was proving and baking, the youngsters all helped to clear away (with Olivia explaining to Elsbeth that this was the worst part of breadmaking! :) ). Still, she did it willingly enough.

I had to go over everything with a cloth and a brush, but at least they did the most of it.