Baking With Juliet Sear

 

My first memories of baking are with my Auntie Carol. She was a brilliant cake decorator and would make us really special birthday cakes each year. I remember going to her house and getting fresh duck or goose eggs and her showing me how she baked my chocolate birthday cake with them. I think that was my first discovery of baking, I wouldn’t have imagined I’d have ended up making all sorts of illusion and birthday cakes like aunty carol! She even made our wedding cake!

 

I love making people happy and bringing people together, I’m such a feeder. When we were first married, I used to make three course meals for my husband until he asked me to stop as he was putting on weight! Today, my biggest love is baking bread for my family. I love to bake loaves for my family to entice them into the kitchen or make really special cakes for friends and family. 

 

 

Bread is my weakness, I love to bake it because I love the smell that fills the kitchen, and the fact that it brings whoever is at home swarming to the kitchen for a slice of still warm bread with good quality butter and flaky salt.

 

You'll need... 

 

Large bowl and spoon or stand mixer with a dough hook

 

2lb loaf tin, greased well with butter or oil

 

Ingredients...

 

300g strong white bread flour

 

300g mixed grain bread flour

 

1 sachet of yeast or time saver yeast

 

420g warm water

 

2 tbsp olive oil

 

12g fine sea salt

 

1. Combine the two flours in a bowl and mix with the salt and yeast - take care not to put the yeast directly onto the salt. Add the warm water and oil until a rough, scraggy dough is formed. 

 

2. Transfer to a dusted work surface to stretch and knead the dough for 10-15 minutes; or use a stand mixer, mixing on low until the dough has come together, and turn up the speed to knead for 5-7 minutes until springy and bouncy. Leave to rise in an oiled bowl until doubled in size. 

 

3. Grease a bread tin with oil or butter (or line with baking parchment if you prefer) 

 

4. Knock out the air by punching into the centre of the risen dough, tip out and briefly knead, then shape into a rough rectangle on the surface about the size of an A4 sheet of paper. With the dough on the surface in portrait, shape by folding one third of the dough from the top into the middle, then pick up the bottom third and place on top, like an envelope fold. Make a quarter turn so you have a long length in from of you like a wide sausage and tightly roll up from the bottom to give you a coiled cylinder of dough, place this seam side down into the prepared tin. Leave to rise again. 

 

5. Preheat the oven to 200C fan. Once heated, add a tray of water in the bottom of the oven to create steam and bake the bread for about 35-40 minutes until dark golden, risen and cooked through. Allow to cool in the tin for about 5-10 mins then it will be easy to shake out of the tin! Try to resist slicing for at least 20 mins.

 

These are the most nostalgic bake from my childhood. I loved going home from school via our local bakery and having these as a treat. The soft crumbly texture is so light and not too sweet. You can have them plain, dipped in chocolate or sandwiched with fillings, a versatile piped cookie that will delight everyone! 

 

For the biscuits... 

 

250g softened unsalted butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

50g icing sugar

220g plain flour

60g cornflour

½ tsp salt

 

Filling Ingredients (optional)...

 

100g unsalted butter, softened

200g icing sugar, plus extra for dusting

½ tsp vanilla extract

Strawberry jam for spreading

 

Approximately 150g dark, milk and or white chocolate, melted

 

1. Preheat the oven to 170C fan

 

2. Line two to three baking sheets with non-stick baking parchment paper

 

3. Using a 5cm round cutter as a guide, draw circles on each sheet of paper, spaced well apart. Alternatively, you can draw circles or different shapes by hand. Turn the paper over so the pen or pencils marks are underneath. 

 

4. For the biscuits: Place the butter, vanilla and icing sugar into a bowl and beat until pale and fluffy. Sieve in the flour, cornflour and salt together and beat until thoroughly mixed but be careful not to over-mix.

 

5. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large open star nozzle. Pipe swirled rounds inside the circular or shaped guides on the baking sheets. Chill for roughly 30 minutes. 

 

6. Remove the trays from the fridge and bake in the centre of the preheated oven for approximately 13—15 minutes, until a pale golden-brown. Cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Bake in batches if need be.

 

7. For the buttercream: Meanwhile, if you are making a buttercream filling, in a bowl beat together the butter and the icing sugar and vanilla. 

 

8. To finish the biscuit when they are cool, if filling with the jam and buttercream, simply spread some of the jam onto one biscuit with a spoon and then pipe the buttercream onto another biscuit and then sandwich together. Use a star nozzle for piping if you have one. 

 

9. Alternatively, dip the biscuit in the melted chocolate to cover part or all of the biscuit. 

 

10. The biscuits are best eaten on the same day.