This is a spin up of a classic cinnamon rolls, but using pumpkin (butternut squash in fact) inside the dough, because it is autumn and squashes are all over. Also, as a filler, I don’t use cinnamon, but you could definitely add some if you want. I used almonds this time, but use whatever nuts you have and like.
The reason for this recipe is, in fact, a visit from a friend of ours, that does not eat dairy. So I accepted the challenge and baked something that might seem ordinary for many, but not usually done in a dairy free version. He was more than happy with the rolls. So I had to get the recipe online as well and sent some from the new batch to him again.
I hope you enjoy and give it a try.
Love,
Andra
Dairy Free Butternut Squash Rolls
This is a dairy free option for sweet rolls, or sticky buns, and on top of that it uses butternut squash in the dough, that lends the rolls a bright yellow color. They are sticky and delicious, soft and perfumed. Best eaten lukewarm. I do recommend heating them a few seconds in the microwave before eating them the following days, due to the coconut oil that hardens at room temperature.
Mix all the ingredients for the dough. Use a stand mixer to knead the dough for about 8-10 min, or knead by hand, but it is a very sticky dough and quite soft.
Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover and let proof until doubled in a warm place.
Extend the dough on a floured surface to form a rectangular shape, of a thickness of about 1 cm. Try to get the air out from the dough.
Pour and spread half of the melted coconut oil on top of the rectangle, spread the sugar mixture, pour the rest of the coconut oil and sprinkle the chopped almonds.
Roll the rectangle on the larger side to form a long log shape, seal the end and put it underneath the log. Cut the log in chunks of approximately 5 cm length. As a tip: use a dental floss to cut them (see in the video how).
Put the pieces in an oiled tray, leaving some spaces between them. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and let proof until they fill the tray. In the meantime preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Bake the rolls until they start to change color on top. In the meantime make the syrup by boiling the coconut milk with the sugar and some ground vanilla or vanilla extract.
Take the rolls out when they start to get golden on top and spread evenly the syrup on top and all the crevices. Then bake for another 10 min.
One of my favorite foods when I was younger was Pizza. Nowadays I don’t eat it too often, because I have some issues with the gluten, or it has some with me. But I wanted to explore the pizza dough and come up with a recipe that can be made at home, and not needing fancy equipment. My partner told me the other day that this pizza could be perfectly fine to be sold in a restaurant. So that is enough praise for me.
I want you all to be able to do it at home, so you enjoy not only a very tasty pizza, but also one that is more digestible due to its long fermentation. And you can choose your topping and know exactly what you get in it.
I would say the basics are: a 70% hydration, long fermentation, and hot oven. The hot oven is usually the issue in our homes, but we will make do, by preheating the tray that comes with the oven, flipped, on the highest temperature the oven can get to (mine 275°C), and the fan turned on.
I used a baking tray with perforated bottom for a better circulation of the heat, but you can use parchment paper. I avoid using too much things that are usable just once, but I did use parchment paper in the past and it works just fine.
The recipe is flexible regarding timings, and how long you leave it to ferment, I will leave you here 2 options that you might want to use to fit into your timetable.
You can find the recipe bellow and I hope it is all clear and easy to follow. If you have more question, please let me know in the comment section.
Homemade Pizza | Neapolitan Style
This Neapolitan Style pizza is so easy to make and needs no special equipment, It has crunchy crust and chewy inside and is delicious and addictive.
On day 1, in the evening, start making the poolish by mixing all the ingredients mentioned above. Ferment covered overnight.
On day 2 in the morning, to the poolish, add the rest of the flour(200 g), and the salt dissolved in the 50 g of water. Mix well. Rest covered for half an hour.
Perform a set of 8 stretch and folds on the dough. Leave to ferment 1 or 1 and 1/2h, depending on the temperature. It should puff up a little.
Prepare a shallow, rectangular plastic or glass container that has a lid, by oiling the inside with olive oil.
Oil the work surface and flip the dough into it. Split in 3 or 4 parts and from each one make a tight ball, by folding the edges into the inside, or tucking in the sides into the bottom of the ball.
Place the balls into the prepared container, cover and leave at room temperature for an hour.
Place the container in the fridge for 12, 24 or 36 h.
One hour before baking, remove the container from the fridge and leave in a warm place.
Preheat the oven at maximum, option with fan, and insert the oven pan, flipped upside down, to heat inside the oven. This will act as our baking pizza stone.
Prepare the pizza sauce by crushing the tomatoes and adding the herbs, olive oil and salt.
Prepare all other toppings, grating cheese, cooking ingredients, etc. They all have to be ready before starting with the dough.
After the dough got to room temperature we can start the extending the dough. Carefully pick one ball from the rectangular container, flip it on a plate with a lot of flour, flip it again the plate, so that the other one soaks the flour, lay the dough on the working surface and punch it lightly in the middle with your fingers, leaving a circle on the exterior that is not punched.
Flip it with the bottom up and punch again the center, flip it back on the good side and start stretching it from the inside out, and pulling lightly on the exterior to stretch it, so that the interior will have a thin dough and the exterior will have a 1-2 cm dough ring that is thick and not stretched at all.
Transfer to the baking dough or parchment paper and adjust again the dough.
Spread a thin layer of the tomato sauce, and back for 2-3 min, until the tomato sauce has dried a little and the outer ring of dough is slightly golden.
Remove from the oven, lay your topping starting with the parmesan cheese, and finishing with mozzarella if you use it, brush some olive oil on the outer dough (the one that is thicker) and bake for 2-3 min more, until it acquires the color that you like.
Let cool on a cooling rack until you cut and serve, which should be while still warm.
This is a recipe for absolute beginners, and/or for people that don’t want to get into the trouble of making and then feeding a sourdough starter, and rather prefer using commercial yeast. It requires minimal effort, and no special equipment other than a cast iron pot with a lid, aka Dutch oven.
I developed this recipe because I noticed people are afraid of getting into the sourdough starter “business”. Although I rather recommend a sourdough bread, for its flavor and its long shelf life, I understand that not everybody has the time or interest to be taking care of a living being.
So for this recipe you will only need flour, dry yeast, salt and water. You will start the mixing of the dough in the evening before the baking day, stretch and fold the dough 2 times (no need for kneading), and leave it to proof overnight. Next day you shape it, let it rise in a basket and then bake it.
Flour
I chose all purpose flour for this recipe, because I suppose it is what any household has. If you want to use another one, like bread flour, you might need to add a little more water.
Anyways, in general, all flours need more or less flour than others, it depends how dry it is, where you store it, what type of wheat, etc. But you can start with this recipe and then experiment in the following trials with more water if you want it more moist, or less water if you think it was too hard to work with it because it would not want to stay in place.
But I must warn you, the more water you add, the more difficult it will be to shape it in the final phase. This recipe has a 65% hydration. That means, for every 100 g of flour, I added 65 g of water. I think it is an easy to work with hydration for a beginner, without the bread being too dry.
The recipe calls for 700 g of flour and 455 g of water. If for example you want to change the hydration to 70%, for the 700g of flour you will have to add 700g * 0,70 = 490g of water.
Yeast
I used active dry yeast, that you can mix it directly with your flour. If the instruction on the packages tell you to activate it in some water before, do that. The recipe calls for 1/4 tea spoon of yeast. I doubled it because I had around 16-17°C in my kitchen and I did not want to wait too long in the morning for the dough to rise. If you have an usual home temperature of 24°C, use the quantity from the recipe.
Water
If your tap water has a lot of chlorine, use filtered water. Here in Germany, in the area where I live, the water is really good, and does not smell or taste la chlorine, so I can use directly tap water for the bread. But too much chlorine can kill the yeast, so better use filtered water.
The temperature of the water should be room temperature. If you use colder, it will slow the fermentation, if you use warm (around 40 °C), it will ferment faster. Be aware that the taste wins a lot in case of longer fermentations. After the 2 stretch and fold that you will do, you can even pop the dough in the fridge and leave it for more time than just overnight. You will have to check though if you have to leave it more on the counter then, for it to rise to a doubled volume.
Salt
I used pink salt, but use whichever you have at hand. Be aware though, that table salt will make the dough saltier if you use the same amount. So you might have to use less. Salt is important not just for taste, but also for the texture of the dough, it makes it tighter and more elastic. But if you don’t want to use salt at all, it is also ok.
Baking
I recommend a Dutch oven for the baking of the bread. It creates something like a mini oven inside the oven, where the moisture of the bread is trapped inside because of the heavy lid and helps the bread have more oven spring, it rises more, before the crust gets settled. For the browning, later we just remove the lid and allow the crust to get to harden and acquire taste and crunchiness.
Professional ovens can inject steam while baking, but since we do not have such fancy ovens in our homes, we can use this solution of a Dutch oven. It is a very useful tool in the kitchen, I cook all the time in it, making soups, stews, frying things, and of course bread baking.
Ok, I hope I explained decently what is think is important for making this bread. If you do decide to make sourdough bread, take a look at my recipe here.
If you have any questions, write them in the comment section bellow and I will try to answer if I know.
Overnight No Knead Bread | with commercial yeast
This recipe is for anyone that is busy or a beginner in baking bread and does not want to take care of a sourdough starter. It uses all purpose flour and commercial yeast, so it can be done by anyone.
In the evening before baking day (for me it was at 7 PM ), mix flour, salt and yeast.
Add the water and mix with your hands, a wooden spoon or a Danish dough whisk, until combined and no flour is left dry.
Cover and leave at room temperature for an hour.
After an hour do around 10 stretch and folds, picking up the dough from one side, stretching it and then bringing it onto its opposite side or the center of the dough. Turn the bowl around 90 degrees and continue the same procedure 8-10 times.
Cover and rest another hour, then do a second stretch and fold.
Cover and leave it for the night.
Next morning (7 AM for me), check the dough, it should have doubled in volume. If not, leave it some more.
When dough is ready, preheat the cast iron pot with its lid, in the oven, at 220 °C.
For the last fermentation you can use a proofing basket, or a bowl with a tea towel on top, or a strainer with the tea towel. Sprinkle flour generously on whichever you choose.
Sprinkle lightly some flour on the working bench.
With a dough scraper or a spatula, detach the dough from the sides and turn it onto the floured bench.
Fold a few times the dough, grabbing it from the exterior and bring it into the center. Pinch it in the center and then turn the dough 90 degrees and fold again. Do this 8 times, or until you can feel the dough is getting tight.
Then flip it with the seam side down, and with both of your hands, drag the ball from the far end towards you, tucking it underneath a little. This will create tension on the surface of the ball. Rotate 90 degrees and repeat the dragging and tucking, 4 times in total.
Place the dough, flipped with the seam side up, into the proofing recipient you chose.
Cover and leave to rest 45 min or until when poked with the finger, the dough comes back up slowly and leaves a slight dent into the surface.
Remove the pot from the oven with the help of some oven mittens.
Flip the dough onto a parchment paper, slice once in the center, from one side to the other, with a sharp knife or a razor blade. This first cut has to be quite deep, maybe 1 cm, so that the dough can have place to rise. You can make additional ornamental cuts on the sides if you like.
With the help of the parchment paper, transfer the dough into the cast iron pot, cover with the lid, and bake in the preheated oven for 30 min.
After 30 min, remove the lid and bake for 15 min more.
Remove the bread carefully and leave on a cooling rack until completely cooled.
These crispy snacks were one of my childhood’s favorite. You see, I am more of a savory food kind of girl. My mother used to bake a big batch and just have it around. It was perfect to have a to go snack on our way outside to play.
I did not like cumin before, I guess kids usually don’t like strong flavors, but I do now, I think the sticks and cumin are a pretty good match. But as a child and teen, I would also bake these by myself and I would experiment with adding some paprika into it, or oregano. I wanted to get rid of the cumin…They were delicious. So feel free to experiment too.
The cheese from the dough is optional, you can definitely go without it, but I think for my taste it is a good addition. Also instead of butter, you can use lard, they will melt in your mouth. If you make these changes, adjust the quantity of milk and flour, so that it results in a firm dough.
During the resting time of the dough, it will not really rise. But it will afterwards in the oven. So if you are in a hurry, I guess you can skip the resting part. Although, I recommend at least 20 min, for the gluten to relax and ease the extending of the dough.
You can serve them as they are, or they can be a very handy snack option for a party or movie night, along with some dips. You can check this Feta Cheese Dip recipe I wrote. It can be done quickly and also made in advance.
Crispy Bread Sticks
These bread sticks are so delicious, easy to do and they last a very long time. So if you plan a party, be sure to bake them a few days before and not stress in the last moment. You can adapt them to your taste and add the spices of your choice.
The magic world of sourdough is extensive, you can make so many variations of ingredients and tastes. You can also vary the type of yeast that will make your dough rise, by changing the type of flour, or changing your location, country, continent.
You will not have a consistent result compared to the commercial yeast, but you will gain in complexity of flavor and texture, and in excitement to see how your bread will surprise you. You will watch through the oven door like a child excited to see the wonders of baking.
You will then suffer because it smells so good and you know you have to let the bread cool off before cutting it. And sometimes you will cave in, because you see and feel and smell the crust and you imagine how wonderfully chewy it will be, and what a perfect carrier it will be for the salted butter you will spread on top.
Old times
For me the smell of bread gets me to childhood era. My grandmother used to bake bread in her village, in her wood fired stone oven. She would prepare the dough the night before and she would wake at 4 AM to start the process. By 9 when we, the kids, would wake up, the bread was taken out of the oven. So there was everywhere the smell of bread that would just make you happy.
I remember she was also using sourdough, and additionally brewer’s yeast. And before forming the bread she would save some dough in a jar, for the next batch of bread, in two weeks. She would bake around 20 huge bread loaves, to last for 2 weeks for the big family. And the magic of sourdough bread is that it lasts a long time. Yes, it will not be fresh in the end, but you can toast it, or eat it with soup.
Modern times
The good news is, one does not need a wood fired oven now. I have excellent result with a mediocre oven and with a good Dutch oven that will simulate baking with a professional steam oven for a good oven spring. I dare say, my bread is even better than my grandmother used to bake. It is fluffier and more complex in flavor. And I can experiment with lots of additions inside it.
This recipe adds yogurt, but I also baked breads with potatoes, the liquid of lacto-fermented pickles, buttermilk, quark and other experiments. And they turned out great and unique in their way.
No Knead Sourdough Bread With Yogurt | Easy Bread Recipe
Easy no knead sourdough bread that will make you reconsider buying bread ever again.
The night before baking, feed the starter with the water and flour to make the levain.
Leave covered at room temperature, at least 18°C.
Next morning, in a bowl, add the flour, the levain made the night before, the yogurt and the salt.
Add warm water (~36°C), not all at once. You might need more or less water than the one in the recipe. The dough has to just barely come together, but no flour left dry. You can mix it with a wooden spoon or your hands.
Cover and leave in a warm place.
It will need at least 2 stretch and folds: after 1/2h and after 2h 30min. I did 3, with an additional one after an hour.
Fold by grabbing the dough from the outside, stretch the dough a little and then fold it on top. Turn the bowl 90° and continue folding about 8 times in total.
The total rising time will vary based on your room temperature. mine took 4h30min at 18°C. In summer it rises faster. It should have risen at least 50%, but not doubled.
Prepare a parchment paper that will fit inside your Dutch oven(cast iron pot), and heat the pot with the lid on, without the paper inside, in the oven at 220°C. I use 250° because my oven is very weak. My Dutch oven has a diameter of 28 cm, 26cm would also be fine.
Meanwhile dust with flour a banneton, or a bowl with a kitchen towel inside.
Flour the work surface and turn the dough on it.
Fold from the exterior to the center and press a little in the center. Do this 8 times turning 90°.
Then pick up gently the ball of dough and put it seam side up into the banneton.
Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise 45 min.
Check if the dough is ready by pocking with a finger. If the dimple rises slowly, it is done.
Get the Dutch oven out.
Turn your dough, seam side down, onto the paper that lies on top of a big cutting board.
Score the bread with a razor or sharp knife (e.g. a cross, or square) with quick and decisive movements. The slits will allow the bread to rise without breaking the crust.
Take the lid off from the pot with the help of oven mittens.
Transfer the parchment paper with the dough inside the pot, cover and return to oven for 30 min.
After 30 min remove the lid and continue to bake for 15 min.
Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack.
Let the bread cool completely, it is still cooking while it rests.
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