Recently I have become interested in using yeast in recipes. Yeast, the baking ingredient shrouded in mystery, feared by many, used by few. My interest in yeast started when I was in Belgium and found a block of fresh yeast (something I have been told existed in my grandmothers time but sadly I have never seen on local store shelves). In Belgium I tried my hand at cinnamon rolls. They exceeded my expectations and thus my fear of yeast started to subside.
Fast forward back to sunny South Africa where I found a bread recipe that looked idiot proof enough. I had a bit of trouble combining the flour with the wet ingredients, but that was just because my mixing bowl is a bit undersized. The yeast performed well, the dough rose even better than I expected (although the day was exceptionally hot).
The only criticism I have is that the bread was a little bland to my taste. Next time I'll add a bit more salt to the recipe and perhaps more honey. As you can see I didn't have a round dish, the oval one worked just fine though! The egg wash on my bread look a bit spotty because I don't have a proper egg brush either (the life of a student..!).
Buttermilk Clusters
- 750g Bread flour
- 0.5 Tablespoon salt
- 2.5 Teaspoons dry yeast
- 1 Tablespoon warm water
- 2 Cups buttermilk
- 1 Tablespoon honey
Extra: 1 egg for glaze, oats or bran for topping
- Combine water and yeast, leave for 10 minutes (bubbles will form).
- Combine flour and salt.
- Pour yeast mixture, buttermilk and honey into the flour mixture.
- Knead dough for 10 minutes.
- Cover dough and let it rise until it is double in size, or 90 minutes.
- Divide dough in 12-18 pieces, shape then into balls and place into a round 30cm dish close together.
- Cover dough and let it rise for 45 minutes.
- Brush dough with egg wash and sprinkle with topping
- Bake for 30min at 200 degrees celcius. When the bread is done it will sound hollow when knocked on.
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