Easy to bake bread for a coffee morning

On Friday 30 September the MacMillan Cancer trust is sponsoring the world’s biggest coffee morning to raise money for cancer.  For those of you who LOVE sweets and cakes and HATE them at the same time, why not take some lovely bread and butter along to the coffee morning?  With jam, honey or even marmite for those of you who are not “sweet” people, bread and butter is a delicious alternative and is, afterall, a baked good.

Several of the Bread Angels got together yesterday for an inspirational day of baking.  It was wonderful to feel in like minded company:  with people who did not think conversations about fridge rising, shower cap collecting, and the search for cheap tins were weird or boring.  Giuliano, Rosie, Charlie, Lucie and I spent a day kneading, talking, shaping and baking and by the end of the day had about 16 loaves made.  Some for all to take home, some for the real cheese shop, two for the coffee morning at Tony’s Cafe at Covent Garden market at Nine Elms, and one for Helen who has kindly invited me to a Harvest Breakfast there tomorrow morning.

Bread

The bread we made was sourdough – hence its staying power from Tuesday to Friday.  I reckon it will be perfect on Friday.  It is wrapped up in a tea towel until then.  You don’t have to make sourdough for your coffee morning.  You can make a simple loaf of fresh bread which will be appreciated by all as a wonderful compliment to the sweets and cakes on offer.  Here is a recipe:

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Servings 2 Small Loaf

Ingredients

  

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Simple loaf (makes 2 small or one big)

• 600 g White or whole meal flour  Or a mix
• 1 sachet Instant yeast 7 grams
• 400 g  Warm water
• 15 g Salt

Instructions

 

• Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir together.  When it is all mixed together, knead it all for a good ten minutes.  If you are not sure how to knead, click here to watch a little video of that.  Pop it back in the bowl and let it rest, covered with a tea towel, for 1 hour.
• After an hour, pull it out of the bowl.  Butter either one big tin or two small ones.  If you are using two small tins, cut the dough into two pieces.  If you are using one big tin, don’t!  Shape your dough into a sausage shape and pop it in the tin.  If you are not sure how to shape the dough, click here to watch a little video of that.  Cover the dough with a tea towel and let it rest for 45 minutes.
• About 20 minutes before you want to bake, turn the oven on to 200 degress Centigrade.  Put the tins in and bake for 45 minutes.
• Let it cool completely and try not to eat it before you go to the coffee morning!
  

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!