I'm really rubbish at cooking and baking. I have tried a few times before at making things but for some reason it has never come out well. This time though I decided to have another go and it's working out pretty well. The idea being to make more things from scratch that normally come all wrapped up. It's better getting flour in a paper bag than bread in a plastic one. I might try and do a little video of the things I have started making but for now I shall do the typey word thing.
Yummy Simple Bread
I have always found anything with a dough to be messy and sticky and I don't like it, but this has been fun to do and not very sticky at all. I have made wholemeal, white and a mix of both and they have all come out great. Super simple.
Get a bowl and weigh out 500g of strong bread flour, add 7g yeast and a teaspoon of salt. I use a metal spoon to get them all mixed together properly.
When they are well mixed up, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, one tablespoon of honey and 300ml of warm water. Use the spoon to mix it all together. I try to give it a bit of a squash with the spoon too and get all the loose flour to stick in the dough, really squish any sticky looking bit of the dough in to the flour. It makes the next part less sticky on the hands.
Sprinkle flour all over the worktop and get your dough out of the bowl. Now you knead the dough for at least 5 minutes. It will still have some stickiness but just roll it about in the flour and it will dry out a bit. Lay the dough out in a loaf tin and leave it in a warm place for about an hour.
When it has risen up, put it in the oven at 180c/356f for 30 minutes. Turn it out and cool on a wire rack.
Yum num.
Basic Pasta
Pasta is another thing I had tried to make before with varying results, but I made this today and it was damn tasty. I just used a rolling pin but I am planning on finding a pasta machine second hand. I have spotted a few already on Shpock, one in my home town for £15 and 5 or 6 of them quite a drive away at £5 each........damn it!
Get out the trusty bowl and add 140g of plane white flour and half a teaspoon of salt. Mix them together then add one beaten egg and 2 tablespoons of water. Mix together until it starts to look like a dough. Flour the work surface and knead the dough for 2-3 minutes. Then you can use your pasta machine if you have one to roll and cut as you like, or you can roll out the dough with a rolling pin and a knife to make noodles, tagliatelle, lasagna, ravioli or whatever else you like.
If you are boiling up your pasta, just drop it in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. It cooks super fast.
I like to make a sauce too. I use canned, chopped tomatoes but plan on experimenting with making these myself from fresh. I put them in a pan with a little cornflour and add some butter, some herbs (whichever I have and feel like using at the time), some salt and pepper and then sometimes some cheese too. No science to it really, just play around with it.
I have been trying to get pastry right as well but that still hasn't come out great. I shall keep having a go and see if I can improve on it. So I should be getting on with making pies and quiche and I also have plans for making some yummy pizza.
Let's get cooking.
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