Zizi's Adventures - Real Food, Real Stories

Brioche Bread

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I rarely bake yeast dough pastries, although I love them. I only try to eat as less white flour (all-purpose flour) pastry cakes as I can. My all time favourites: the ribboned carnival doughnuts, my grandma’s sweet braided bread and the cinnamon rolls. All these pastries are light because of the all-purpose flour. If we bake them from whole wheat flour… well, the experience is not the same. So every once in awhile I let myself to be tempted…

And I encourage you to do it too! This coming weekend indulge yourself and your loved ones with this beautiful sesame seeds brioche bread. Is there anything better than having a slice of lukewarm brioche spreaded with creamy butter and homemade jam for breakfast? What do you think?

The first time I saw Peter’s video about making this brioche, I fell in love with this bread. Let’s just say I didn’t hesitate too long to bake it.

Brioche Bread

Ingredients

– 250 ml lukewarm water
– 3 and 1/2 tablespoons lukewarm milk
– 8 g dried yeast
– 4 tablespoons cane sugar
– 490 g plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted
– 40 g butter, cubed
– 2 organic eggs
– 2 teaspoons salt
– sesame seeds

Method

In a small bowl combine water, milk, dried yeast and sugar. Allow yeast to proof (until it gets foamy).

In a big bowl combine flour, butter and salt. With your fingers rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add foamy yeast, one egg and mix everything with your hands until you get a sticky dough. Lay the dough on a floured board and knead for 5 minutes. If it’s necessary add a little more flour to it but not too much or the bread will be tougher. Shape the dough into a ball, place back into the bowl, cover with a clean cloth and let it rise for 30-40 minutes or until it has doubled in bulk.

Punch down the risen dough and turn out onto the floured board. Knead again for a few minutes and shape it to fit in a loaf pan (25 cm / 9,75 inch long). Cover with the kitchen towl and let it rise again until 30-40 minutes (doubles in size).

Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180C (360F).

In a small bowl beat the egg and brush a generous amount over the brioche. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake at 180C (360F) for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool before slicing.

Pearl Barley And Roasted Almond Patties

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I love making and eating nut roasts and vegetarian patties. I have cooked and baked several types. The base for most of them is any kind of grain, spices, herbs, nuts and vegetables.

Great-tasting vegetarian patties are easy to make and more healthfully prepared when you use your own wholesome ingredients. Patties tend to be delicious things you make for a picnic or for a grill party or just for a simple lunch or dinner with a big bowl of salad and yum sauce.

Pearl barley is nutritious and chewy (although its outer husk and bran layers have been removed not like with hulled barley). I didn’t have to use an egg to “stick” the ingredients together so these cute little patties are vegan.

Pearl Barley and Roasted Almond Patties

Ingredients (makes about 20 but it depends on the patties’ size)

– 200 g pearl barley
– 150 g potatoes, peeled and cubed
– 80 g almond, roasted and chopped
– 1 onion, chopped
– 2 cloves garlic, chopped
– 1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
– salt, pepper
– whole wheat breadcrumbs
– olive oil for cooking

Method

Roast the almonds in a dry non-stick pan for 6-8 minutes, chop them and set aside to cool.

Cook the pearl barley according to the instructions on the packet (usually 2 times more water than barley, a little bit of salt, boil in a pot, reduce heat and simmer for about 15-20 minutes). Set aside to cool.

In a small pan cook the potato until tender. Drain and mash it with a fork. Set aside to cool.

In a bowl mix together: roasted almonds, chopped onion, garlic and parsley. Add mashed potato and cooked barley. Season with salt and pepper and mix until everything combined.

Form pingpong ball sized balls from the mixture, flatten them with your palm or a spoon. Transfer the patties to a place of breadcrumbs and press them firmly to coat on both sides (this breadcrumb coating becomes golden and crisp when they’re baked or cooked). Place the formed patties on a tray. Heat 3-4 teaspoons olive oil in a pan, add patties and cook for about 7-10 minutes until golden brown. Flip the patties and cook them on their other side until golden. Cook the remaining patties too. (Instead of cooking you can also bake them on a baking sheet in the oven at 170-180C ~ 338-356F for about 25-30 minutes. Don’t forget to sprinkle them with olive oil and turn the patties to their other sides at half time!)

Beetroot Tart Tatin With Parsley Vinaigrette

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Tarte Tatin is an upside-down tart in which the fruit (usually apples) are caramelized in butter and sugar before the tart is baked. Did you know that first it was created by an accident? The Hotel Tatin in Lamotte-Beuvron, France, was run by two sisters, Stéphanie and Caroline Tatin. Stéphanie did most of the cooking. One day she started to make a traditional apple pie but left the apples cooking in butter and sugar for too long. Smelling the burning, she tried to rescue the dish by putting the pastry base on top of the pan of apples, quickly finishing the cooking by putting the whole pan in the oven. After turning out the upside down tart, she was surprised to find how much the hotel guests appreciated the dessert. This is how the classic tart tatin was born.

Of course you can make tart tatin from other fruits and vegetables too. Beetroot is a rich source of potent antioxidants and nutrients, including magnesium, sodium, potassium and vitamin C. It has an earthy flavor that goes well with the tangy parsley vinaigrette.

Recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Veg Every Day.

Beetroot Tart Tatin With Parsley Vinaigrette

Ingredients (serves 2)

For the tart tatin
– 250 g rough puff pastry
– 350 g beetroot, cut into 1 cm thick slices
– 20-30 g butter (vegans should use olive oil)
– 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
– 2 teaspoons apple vinegar
– 2 teaspoons cane sugar
– salt, black pepper

For the parsley vinaigrette
– 1 small bunch parsley, chopped
– 1 small onion, chopped
– 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
– 1 tablespoon apple vinegar
– 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
– pinch of cane sugar

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C (356F). Roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface (5 mm thick). Take and ovenproof frying pan (or tarte tatin dish) about 20-24 cm in diameter, place it upside dow on the pastry and cut around it. Set aside.

In a small bowl mix together the vinaigrette’s ingredients and stir to combine.

Melt the butter with the sunflower oil in the frying pan, add apple vinegar, cane sugar, salt and pepper. Add the sliced beetroot and toss i the juices. Cover the pan with foil, transfer to the oven and bake for about 30-40 minutes at 170-180C (338-356F) until the beetroot are tender.

Take the pan out from the oven and lay the cut pastry over the beetroot, patting it down and tucking in the edges down the side of the pan. Return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes until the pastry top is golden brown and puffed up. Leave it to cool, then turn it out by putting the plate over the top and inverting it. Trickle the vinaigrette over the tarte tatin and serve.

Vegan Corn Blueberry Muffins

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I have never mixed fresh corn and blueberry before. But I can tell you… I missed a lot. Imagine little sweet indigo-coloured berries and little sweetish yellow corn kernels in soft, moist muffins with a bit of crispness from the cornmeal.
You got it?

I bet you say “wow”! I said the same when I first tasted these muffins. We enjoyed the first batch as an afternoon and evening treat (all 12 of them!). They are also great for breakfast too.

The next morning I woke up at 6 am just to bake another batch to take it for a 2 years old birthday party. Needless to say, everybody loved it.

I found the recipe on Emily’s blog. Don’t miss it!

Vegan Corn Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients (makes 12 muffins)

– 1 tablespoons ground flax seed
– 3 tablespoons water
– 1 cup cornmeal
– 1 cup white spelt flour
– 1 tablespoon baking powder
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– 1 cup oatmilk (you can use rice- or soymilk too)
– 1 tablespoon apple vinegar
– 1/3 cup raw cane sugar
– 1/4 cup coconut oil (you can use sunflower oil too)
– 1 vanilla bean, split and seeded
– 1 cup blueberries
– 1 cup fresh corn

Method

In a small bowl mix together the ground flax seed with the water to make a “flax egg” – let the mixture sit for a 6-8 minutes until thickened. Preheat the oven to 180C (356F). Remove the husks from the corn. Stand the cob upright on its base and use a sharp knife to shave off the kernels into a bowl. Line a 12 hole muffin tray with paper cases.

In a bowl mix together the dry ingredients: cornmeal, white spelt flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl mix the wet ingredients: oatmilk, apple vinegar (this makes vegan buttermilk), cane sugar, coconut oil and vanilla. Pour in the flax egg. Add the wet ingredients to the dry one and stir until everything combined. Fold fresh corn and blueberries into the batter.

Spoon the mixture into the cases, filling them about two thirds full, dividing the batter evenly. Bake at 180C (356F) for about 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven when a cocktail stick just comes out of the muffins cleanly.

Yum!

Milk Pie Baking With My Grandmother

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Grandmothers are precious gems, aren’t they? They always have a few secret recipes. If we ask them patiently, they tend to share their recipes with us… then we, food bloggers share the recipes with the whole world. 🙂

My only grandmother (who is still alive) celebrated her 89th birthday last week. Unfortunatelly it wasn’t a very happy birthday because she had to spend it in a hospital. She is out now, very slowly getting better but she is still weak, it is difficult for her to walk and she has very strong pain in her waist. Fingers crossed she is getting stronger and better day by day.

Last weekend I went to visit my family and baked my ginger carrot cake (with orange mascarpone frosting) for my grandma. She loved it. I was happy to see a smile on her face.

I baked this milk pie with my grandma during the summer. It was really fun to take photos of her every step. This milk pie is actually a thick pancake baked in the oven. It is not too sweet but moist and soft. You can eat it on its own but we usually spread any kind of homemade jam on top (this time plum jam).

I love this milk pie so much! I bet you will love it too!

Milk Pie

Ingredients

– 1 liter milk
– 2 organic eggs
– 410 g all-purpose flour, sifted
– 3 teaspoon sugar
– 1 teaspoon salt
– sunflower oil
– jam

Method

In a bowl beat the eggs with the sugar and salt. Slowly add the 1/3 part of the milk and 1/3 part of the flour. With a wooden spoon combine the batter until smooth then add the remaining milk and flour. Mix the batter until you get smooth thickish pancake batter. Leave it to rest for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 170C (338F). Spread sunflower oil on a baking sheet (36*36 cm or 14,17*14,17 inch).

Pour batter into the prepared sheet and bake for about 15-20 minutes at 170C (338F) until the top is golden brown. Let it cool for 5-8 minutes then cut slices and spread any kind of homemade jam on top. It is best to eat lukewarm!

Spreading plum jam on top…