Brioche Berry Pudding

I wonder if the Olympians can indulge in a pudding this week as a reward? Or maybe they are programmed never to go anywhere near sugar. For those of us who like an indulgent dessert/pudding this is one of my favourites because it is as light as a feather to eat, quick and easy to make and reheats quickly in the microwave.

All you need is a sliced brioche loaf, which I mostly buy from Aldi, berries of your choice, eggs, sugar, milk and a pot of whipping or double cream.

You will need: large buttered ovenproof dish

1 small sliced brioche loaf about 200g
75g fresh raspberries
75g fresh blackberries
250ml semi-skimmed milk
250ml whipping or double cream
3 medium eggs
25g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Icing sugar for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
2. Cut off the crusts. Lay half the brioche over the base of a 1.5 litre x 6cm deep ovenproof dish. Sprinkle over half of the raspberries and blackberries, cover with the rest of the brioche squares. Scatter over the rest of the berries.
3.Whisk the milk, cream, eggs, vanilla extract and sugar together in a jug. Pour the egg mixture over the top of the brioche and leave to soak for 5 minutes.
4. Put the dish into a deep roasting tin and pour boiled water into the tin to come halfway up the sides of the dish. Bake for 30 minutes until puffed and golden. Remove from the oven and the tin. Leave to rest for 10 minutes, dust with icing sugar, serve on it's own or with whipped cream.

Bread Made in a Banneton Proving Basket

Some time back I bought a banneton, it's been sitting in the cupboard waiting patiently for me to do some online research and get some use out of it.

The  first thing I found was that it has to be 'seasoned' otherwise the bread will stick for ever and a day. Here's how I did it - take a clean spray bottle and spray the inside of the banneton. Now dust the inside with cornflour. Hold the banneton by it's edge and keep on turning it round until the inside is coated and the excess falls onto the work surface. Leave to dry.

My first attempt was a bit rubbish but not to be outdone I had another breadmaking session and whilst I'm not saying it's perfect, I was more than a bit chuffed with my attempts.

Bread which has been baked until black and slashed to within an inch of it's life with intricate patterns adorn galleries on Instagram and whilst I may have bread envy I'm more than happy with my efforts.I decided against slashing the bread in case the dough deflated, maybe next time..... At least the dough came out!

Instructions are for making in a stand mixer - Thermomix instructions in italics

7g sachet easy-blend yeast
or 15g fresh yeast
500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
300ml lukewarm water

You will need: round banneton which has been well floured and the excess tipped out.

1. Tip the flour into a mixing bowl. If using easy blend dried yeast, stir this into the flour. For fresh yeast, crumble it and rub into the flour  Add the salt and sugar.
Add the fresh yeast (defrosted to room temperature if previously frozen) to the jug with the water 2 min/37°C/speed 1.
2. Mix the oil into the 300ml lukewarm water and pour into the dry ingredients.
Now add the olive oil, salt and flour. Knead 4 minutes.
3. Fit the dough hook to the stand mixer. Mix on a slow speed for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
4. Tip out the dough onto an oiled silicone mat. Shape into a round and place into a greased bowl. Cover with oiled clingfilm and leave in a warm place for 1 hour until double in size.
5. Remove the risen dough from the bowl and knock back until smooth.  Shape into a round and place upside down in a floured banneton.  Cover with clingfilm and rise for 30 minutes in a warm place.
6. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
7. Perhaps not a conventional way to remove the dough from the banneton but my way - place a piece of baking paper over the risen dough, take a baking sheet and place over the baking paper, tip over and the dough should come away easily.
8. If you wish slash the bread with a very sharp knife and bake for 40 minutes until cooked through and brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.