Tuesday 16th September 2014
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| And here's the pic |
Making one of these for my coffee morning tomorrow.
Ingredients:
200g strong flour (1/3rd wholemeal)
15g cocoa powder (about a dessertspoon and a half)
2 dessertspoons sugar
50g dates - chopped into quarters
60g dark chocolate - chopped roughly
25g walnuts - chopped into quarters
25g flaked almonds
100g sultanas - soaked for 30 minutes in hot water - use the water for the yeast liquid, but make sure it has cooled sufficiently
100ml yeast liquid made with 20g fresh yeast and 80g of the soaking water
50g olive oil (I used Lidl's Extra Virgin, which is all we have - but any olive oil is fine)
Method:
As below, except I added all the ingredients before mixing - with the sultanas now weighing 137g.
Mix into a dough and knead gently, as you don't want to smear the fruit, then go to
step 6 below.
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| These were made in one of my Adults with learning disability classes. A couple of them included flaked walnuts. And there's a bit more cocoa powder in the darker ones. |
Ingredients:
200g strong white
flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 dessertspoon
cocoa powder
125ml lukewarm
liquid
1 dessertspoon
fresh yeast
2 tbs olive oil
Plus:
100g good dark
chocolate, chopped roughly
50g chopped prunes
Method:
1. Measure the water and stir in the
fresh yeast to dissolve. Place the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl, pour in
the yeast liquid and add the olive oil.
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. 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
stretching the dough out, folding it over, stretching it out and so on and so
forth. Do this until it is smooth – and 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 until you are ready for step 5.
5. When you are
ready to proceed, place the dough on the worktop and press out into a flattish
square. Place the chocolate and prunes on top of the dough and fold the dough
over. Gently knead the dough to spread them evenly throughout.
6. Shape the loaf
by pulling up the dough at the sides with your fingertips and pushing it down
in the middle; do that all round the dough. This will have the effect of
smoothing the underneath of the dough. Then turn it over and shape it into a
round. Place it on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment.
7. Leave to prove
until it has risen appreciably. Then bake at 220C, 425F or gas mark 7 for
between 15-20 minutes. It is done when it is browned underneath. If your oven
is browning the top of the loaf too fast, cover with foil or baking parchment.
Variation:
Try adding other
dried fruits at step five, such as dates or apricots.
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