tinytearoom

Basic Hearth Bread – Making my first loaf of bread

July 30th

Written by: tinytearoom

I always put making bread from scratch into the too hard basket. The thought of standing there and kneading dough for 30 minutes really put me off, not to mention the long rising times and the age old dispute about sourdough vs fresh yeast vs dry yeast. It was just easier to go to my local artisan bakery and buy a loaf for a few dollars. It only takes about 30 minutes to walk there and back. That all changed a few months ago when I discovered CityHippyFarmGirl. She made gorgeous luscious loaves and it inspired me to begin my own sourdough starter. I did some research and settled on a recipe from one of my favourite food writers. I purchased organic rye flour and organic bread flour and followed the recipe as closely as possible. It failed on the fifth day. It stopped bubbling and emitted a vomit-like odour. I threw the entire thing in the bin and decided that I don’t eat bread often enough to justify maintaining a starter. Then my friend Richard recently began Project Sourdough. It made me think that perhaps I needed to build my confidence. Starting with sourdough was probably too ambitious for someone that had little experience. I started to flick through Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Bread Bible. Her chatty and friendly

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Caramel Macadamia Cheesecake

July 9th

Written by: tinytearoom

I’ve been missing-in-action for the past couple of months. It’s been a rather stressful time for me. I had many existential questions and made some serious adjustments in terms of my career. Unfortunately food blogging took a backseat whilst my mind was cluttered by indecision, worry and doubt. During this rather turbulent time I questioned whether I should continue to blog. Self-doubt is just as crippling as a broken leg. It is also the mother of creativity. So I’m going to keep trying and like a very good friend told me about putting ourselves out there, “It flexes the fear muscle.” I found this recipe a while ago and have always wanted to give it a try, but I was too afraid of failing. I had never made cheesecake before and this was four recipes in one. It looked like Mt Everest to me. I decided in a moment of clarity, “What the hell”. It turned out fantastic and I can’t believe I thought this was so difficult. It was easy but the kitchenlook like a hurricane had passed through it.The cheesecake was a breeze and didn’t crack. The brittle was divine and I’m definitely making this as a snack by itself. However with the amount of sugar in this recipe I had to brush my teeth straight after and

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Mini Sticky Date Loaf with Golden Syrup Butter

April 26th

Written by: tinytearoom

I get so excited when I come across a recipe that works very well. It’s almost kiddy like. Similar to when a child gets hold of a new toy and spends days walking around with it like it’s a security blanket. This recipe for a sticky date loaf worked perfectly for me. I want to scream it from the rooftops or print it on a flyer and drop it into people’s mailbox. I’ve tried several sticky date pudding recipes before and they have been delicious, but there is something special about this one. It is an easy recipe that can be mixed in one pot. It is soft, moist and isn’t overly sweet. The gorgeous flavour of the dates really shines through. I am an absolute lover of butterscotch syrup on sticky date pudding, it makes it all the more luscious. However this golden syrup butter really compliments the sticky date loaf and lightens it up too. Mini Sticky Date Loaf with Golden Syrup Butter Recipe adapted from Quick Smart Cook Makes 4 small loaves or 1 standard loaf Sticky Date Loaf 250g pitted dates 1 cup water 60g unsalted butter 180g caster sugar 2 tablespoons golden syrup 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 eggs, beaten 180g plain flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ cup walnuts, chopped Golden Syrup Butter 125g

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