SUNBURST ROLLS

These may not be 'trendy' but I love pulling this bread apart to reveal the fluffiness! Also, I find the poppy seeds and sesame seeds irresistible.......


The dough was made in my Panasonic bread maker and then each piece of dough shaped into a ball. When I attended college, I was taught by a baker how to make perfect dough balls. Firstly, remove your watch and rings, these harbour bacteria! Make sure that your hands are free of any perfume or hand lotion otherwise this will transfer onto the dough. Take the piece of dough and place under the palm of your hand, then grasp the dough ball lightly with spread out fingers and make round movements on the work surface. You should now have a dough ball without any creases underneath!

Below the recipe are a couple of photographs of bread baked in the bread maker. Speedy Sesame Bread and Light Seeded Wholemeal Bread, these recipes came from Bread Machine Easy, also from Sara Lewis.



Another useful book for baking bread by hand or using the bread machine is Bread by Eric Treuille and Ursula Ferrigno.

I came across this very interesting blog which concentrates on bread, called The Knead for Bread, so why not hop over to this website for some wonderful photography and bread recipes.

THE BREAD BOOK - Sara Lewis

ISBN 0600607909 - Page 97

You will need: 475g strong white flour (I always use Waitrose Canadian Strong Flour), 2 tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon caster sugar, 1¼ teaspoons fast-action dried yeast, 275ml water

For the glaze and topping:
1 egg yolk, 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, 2 teaspoons poppy seeds

1. Pop the dough ingredients into the bread pan in the order given for your make of bread maker.
2. Set for the dough option. Press start.
3. At the end of the programme, tip the dough on to a lightly floured surface, knead well and then cut into 16 equal pieces and shape each one into a ball. Arrange the dough balls in 2 rings inside a well buttered 25cm spring form tin. Put 10 rolls in the outer ring, 5 in the second ring and the last remaining roll in the centre.
4.Cover loosely with oiled clingfilm and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes until the rolls are well risen and touching.
5. Remove the clingfilm, brush with the egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon of water and sprinkle the outer ring and central roll with sesame seeds and the second ring with poppy seeds.
6. Bake in a preheated oven 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 - I cooked mine on Fan 180°C - for 20-25 minutes until well risen and golden and the bread sounds hollow when tapped with the fingertips. Check after 15 minutes and cover with foil if over browning.
7. Loosen the edges of the rolls with a palette knife and then turn them out on to a wire rack or large plate, then turn again onto a wire rack so that the tops of the rolls are uppermost. Leave to cool completely.

CHILDRENS' BIRTHDAY CAKES

GOOD HOUSEKEEPING - STEP BY STEP BAKING

ISBN 0091865794 - PAGE 292

TRAIN CAKE

I made this cake for my grandsons third birthday and chose the design
because he loves everything about trains (although it has to be said Thomas The Tank Engine and friends are his favourites).
The cake was fairly simple to decorate and to make life easier I purchased ready made coloured icings. The liquorice sweet assortment was cut up into small pieces to make the wheels, windows, funnel etc.
This book has a couple more birthday cake designs for children, such as a snow cottage and birthday bear cake.
I thought the cake was really cute and I hope you do too.


CHILDRENS' BOOK OF BAKING BY SARA LEWIS

ISBN 9780753715505 - PAGE 90

MINI BIRTHDAY CAKE SQUARES


This cake was made a couple of weeks ago for my grandsons first birthday and as he would only be having a tiny piece of cake, I decorated it with my three year old grandson in mind.
I thought these mini cakes would make a change from the usual novelty cake. The cakes looked lovely with all brightly coloured icings, sprinkles, sugar strands, smarties and candles on.
This is a baking book with 60 recipes for children to make (and grownups too!).
I love this little book, but would be hesitant to say it was for mainly for children. I am not entirely sure, that small children would thank you for a slice of creamy kiwi meringue gateau or baked strawberry and lime cheesecake, or even iced ginger and date sandwich cake (all of which look delicious). Last year I made peach Melba cake from this book and it really was fabulous. Some of the recipes such as iced star biscuits, triple choc brownies or how about chocolate fudge squares would be ideal for children.

You will need:

A 18 x 28cm roasting tin 4cm deep, greased and base lined with greaseproof paper.

250g soft margarine, 250g caster sugar, 250g self-raising flour, 4 eggs, grated rind of 1 lemon or 1 small orange.

1. Set the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.
2. Put all the cake ingredients in a food mixer and mix for 2 minutes.
3. Spoon into the tin and smooth flat.
4. Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes until it is well risen and golden brown.
5. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes, then loosen the sides with a round bladed knife and turn out onto a wire rack. Remove the lining paper and leave the cake to cool completely.

For the icing and decoration:

100g unsalted butter at room temperature, 200g icing sugar, 2-4 teaspoons milk, a few drops of your chosen food colouring, 24 candles and candle holders, selection of sweets such as dolly mixtures, mini candy-coated chocolate sweets or mini marshmallows, sugar strands, hundreds and thousands and sprinkles, 24 cupcake cases.

1. To make the icing, beat the butter in a bowl with a little of the icing sugar, then gradually mix in the rest, a few spoonfuls at a time, along with enough milk to make a smooth spreadable icing.
2. Divide the icing into 3 and place two of the thirds in small bowls. Colour the icings with your chosen colours.
3. Put the cake onto a large board and cut into three pieces. Spread a different coloured icing over each piece of cake. Cut into small pieces with a sharp knife.
4. Put a candle holder and candle in the centre of each piece then arrange the sweets and sugar strands around it.
5. Store in an airtight tin for up to 2 days.

Please note: I made a smaller version of this cake by scaling down and using a 3 egg mixture.