Easy peasy home bakery

 

People often panic at the prospect of making bread because it's so time-consuming and requires some magical kneading skills or you end up with something so inedible it could kill a duck! So not the case! With a super simple base recipe, you can pretty much make any kind of bread - even bagels and baguettes, and even fancy gourmet loaves with nuts or spices or anything else your foodie heart desires. So here we go...

Ingredients:
3 cups strong bread flour (white or wholemeal)
1 packet dry yeast (or the other kind is fine, just follow their instructions)
1 - 1.5 cups water (usually the latter for wholemeal)
splash of oil
big pinch of salt

Mix everything but the oil together in a bowl until it forms a slightly sticky ball of dough. On an oiled surface, start to knead the dough until it gets all stretchy. After a while (say 10 minutes max) it will be really soft and cuddly looking. Pop it back into the bowl with a bit of oil and cover. Let it sit for at least an hour. It'll double in size (at least!) which I think is the most exciting part! Then you can knead again on a floured surface and add little additions here if you wish (fruit, nuts etc) and shape it however you like. Pop it onto your baking tray and leave for another hour or so before baking it in the oven at 220 C for about 30 minutes. At the bottom of the oven, leave a shallow tray and fill it with water when you bake the bread - this creates steam and makes the bread chewy and ever so scrumptious!

Now there is no excuse!!

Before I die...

Moving to Europe has really got me thinking more seriously about all the things I want to see in my lifetime, now that it's almost all at my fingertips! I reckon I've managed to see a fair amount of the world - one of the perks of being a postgrad student. But I feel like there's still SOOO much more to see and not enough time (or money) to do it all! So when I thought deep and hard about it, a number of places really stuck out to form my "must see before I die" list. Sure, they're a little touristy, but there's a good reason for that right?

Jordan - Petra

Pyramids (I love Karl Pilkington's thoughts on his pyramid experience! but I still want to go!)

Iceland - Northern Lights and the Crystal Cave

Skiing at Niseko and Whistler

New Zealand's Abel Tasman National Park

Croatian Islands (BOOKED with these guys and it looks AMAZING! CANNOT WAIT!)

Portugal - always been intrigued about this underrated country

Morrocco - FOOD HEAVEN!

Southeast asia - FOOD HEAVEN #2!

Domestic goddess?

Since living alone, I've developed into somewhat of a domestic queen, with the latest craze being breadmaking. Believe it or not, it's actually quite easy, even without the fancy mixer! All you need is flour, salt, water and yeast and mix it all up in a big bowl before putting in some elbow grease for a measly 10 minutes! You just need to make sure you have the time to let it prove to let the yeast do its magic! And voila! I've now made baguettes and even bagels, although the bagels require a bit more practice!

In Bruges

Can't believe it's already been almost 2 months since I shipped myself off half way round the planet to "sunny" England. It's been an exciting but scary time but it's really flown by, which I guess means I'm having fun?

My first city break that I decided on when I first arrived was Belgium for Easter weekend. Seems silly to not take advantage of having a myriad of European countries on your doorstep! But this meant I had to really do on the cheap!! Which actually wasn't so bad - especially since it meant eating waffles for lunch instead of proper wining and dining!

My favourite place from the trip is most certainly Bruges. It's exactly how you'd imagine it (and how it was in the film too!) with cobbled streets (it's hell with a rolling suitcase though), reflective canals and beautiful medieval architecture. Sure, it's a haven for tourists, which I usually despise, but it's definitely a place to visit at least, just to take in the fairytale atmosphere (and maybe catch a glimpse of a midget and a hit man?).