Wholewheat Chocolate Chip Bread with water roux method

Wholewheat chocolate chip bread with water roux method
 


Its going to be six months since my little one started playschool. He enjoys school and I enjoy the small hours that I get for myself. But its not such a ideal situation for real. He finds it real hard to get up in time for school and we wallow in pity and find it hard to wake up such a tiny soul for the rigours of school.Then he takes his time to finish his milk and if the breakfast of the day at home catches his fancy, he doesn’t mind a bite or two. Consequently not only he gets very late to school , his hunger pangs do not follow the school's schedule. So in spite of the fact that his school dishes out scrumptious meals, I have to pack him a small lunch box. And believe me its quite mind boggling to pack a lunch box for an almost three year old. Anything chewy like a nut or a fruit lands in his mouth along with the bite of a parantha or muffin, the whole thing will promptly land in the mud.
Thank God there is chocolate to the rescue.

The basic recipe here is of a hokkaido milk loaf, very soft with a hint of sweetness and all the goodness of wholemilk. I also like to add an egg for the texture and protein but you can totally skip that and replace with half a tablespoon of cream. I will be very honest that if you don’t have a kitchen aid then kneading this dough will give you serious pain in the arms..... that can be cured in an instant with a slice of this warm piece of heaven dotted with chocolate. 
I have made this a number of times, trying to make a few changes here and there every time. I tried replacing one fourth of a cup of a flour with cocoa powder, another time I added two tablespoons of coffee powder, onetime vanilla essence but to my dismay the final product did not give any taste or fragrance of these additives. So this time I left it plain and it tastes just as good.
Infact wonderful and wholesome breakfast when accompanied with a steaming cup of filter coffee.

Working with water roux at first is difficult because it is a very sticky dough.Perseverance and persistence should be your best friends here and when you see the result for yourself, all your bread recipes will take the water roux route...You can thank me for the biceps later..

Ingredients
Water Roux

· 1/3 cups all purpose flour

· 1 cup water (alternatively 1/2 cup milk+1/2 cup water)

For the Dough

· 2 cups wholewheat flour + 1/2 cup all purpose flour+(optional)1tsp gluten powder

· 2 loaded tsp powdered sugar
.2 tsp active dry yeast(I use gloripan)
. 2/3 cup water roux or half of the water roux you made from the above quantity

· 2 loaded tsp milk powder
 . 1 egg OR 1/2 tsp malai
.  1/2 cup warm milk
. 1 tsp salt
. 1.5 tsp ghee or butter

· 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Water Roux - On a medium flame whisk the flour and water together in a small vessel.Keep whisking till you see the lines forming and the consistency becomes like soft cream.Take it off the flame and continue whisking. Cool this paste and refrigerate in an airtight box for later use.This is good for use up to two  days only. Also keep in mind that water roux should be at room temperature when you actually use it for the dough. So remember to place the water roux out of the fridge in advance before kneading the dough.

2.  Dough -  In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, sugar, milk powder, gluten if using and yeast. Give it a good stir. Add the water roux, lightly whisked egg or cream(whatever you are using)and milk. Mix and let it rest for five minutes.Then drink a glass of water and begin.
3. Lightly dust the work platform with flour and place your dough on it.Knead for a good ten minutes.Resist the urge to add extra flour and remember the only way you can get out of this mess is by kneading. Once you have a somwhat smooth ball in your hand instead of the sticky gooey mixture, add salt and ghee. Now flex those muscles and knead again.Our aim is to pass the window pane test.By this I mean- take a grape sized piece of dough in your hand and stretch it between your two fingers.If its translucent and light is passing through that film between your fingers like sunshine comes through your window pane...you have passed the test.If not..keep kneading braveheart!

4. Place this dough in a greased container, cover and keep in a warm place for it to rise and double in size.

4. Once double in volume, take the dough out, deflate it and roll out a ½ inch thick rectangular sheet. Please take care to oil your hands and use minimum dry flour for rolling out the sheet so that the dough doesn’t result in a dry bread later.

5. Sprinkle the choco chips and fold the sides like an envelope. Lightly dab the dough to form a rectangle again. Sprinkle more choco chips and and fold the sides to form a loaf.This is to make sure that choco chips are evenly interspersed in the bread and not form a layer at the bottom.

6. Now place this loaf with seam side down in a greased mould and keep for another half an hour, for it to double in size again.

7. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

8. Bake the loaf in preheated oven for about fifteen minutes at 200 degrees, then lower the temperature to 180 degrees and bake for another fifteen minutes. It should sound hollow when knocked.Brush with ghee/butter immediately after you take it out of the oven. It gives a nice sheen to the loaf and helps it keep soft. I could not do that to my loaf though, because greedy me had topped the loaf with more choco chips before placing it in the oven

9. Remember not to toast this bread on the tawa before consuming. The chocolate chips will melt and make everything squishy. If in hurry just pop the slices in the microwave for twenty seconds. And if you have time then place the slices for a couple of minutes in a preheated oven at 200 degrees.

Garlic Pull Apart Rolls

Garlic Pull Apart Rolls

Among my friends this is the most requested item when we are gathering up for an occasion or if someone incidentally comes to know that the garlic rolls are being planned…the rolls become an occasion to get together. It is easy to put together and can be made in advance and stored. Only heat it in the microwave for fifteen seconds before serving.

I have made this a number of times and made slight variations now and then. Once you get comfortable with the basic recipe you can do that too. For instance I added two spoons of mozzarella grated cheese to the garlic paste and it did add a yummy cheesy twist to the rolls.

Also I never like to use maida entirely so I have used one part whole wheat flour and one part ground oats too. Sometimes I make it entirely with wholewheat and it tastes perfect that way too. You can use your combination of flours and make it healthier.

Do try it ..call your friends, gather up and gossip over the yummiest garlic rolls..make some lovely memories of togetherness and friendships…

Ingredients

·      3 cups all purpose flour

·      1 tsp dry yeast

·      3/4 cup lukewarm water

·      1 tsp salt

·      1 tbsp sugar

For the Garlic paste

·      12 cloves garlic peeled and crushed

·      100 gms butter

·      1 tsp chopped coriander

·      A dash of crushed peppercorns or chili flakes (as per your taste)

Instructions

1.   Garlic paste - Soften the butter in the microwave and add all the ingredients for the garlic paste. Mix well and keep aside for later use.

2.   Add the sugar, salt and yeast to the flour and stir well. Gradually add the lukewarm water at intervals, combine and then knead for a good ten minutes. Lastly add the oil and again knead for a couple of minutes more.The resulting dough should be elastic and smooth.

3.   Place this dough in a greased container, cover and keep in a warm place for it to rise and double in size.

4.   Once double in volume, take the dough out, deflate it and roll out a ½ inch thick rectangular sheet. Please take care to oil your hands and use minimum dry flour for rolling out the sheet so that the dough doesn’t result in a dry bread later.

5.    Spoon out the garlic paste and spread it well on the dough sheet leaving half inch of space on the outlines so that the garlic paste doesn’t spill and make a mess when rolling.

6.   Fold the sheet into a tight roll and cut the roll into equal pieces. I generally get 8-10 pieces from this quantity. Place the rolls in a greased mould and keep for another half an hour, for it to double in size again.

7.   Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

8.   Bake the rolls in preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or till sounds hollow when knocked.

9.   Cool the rolls and Enjoy!

Orange and cranberry bread

Orange and cranberry bread

To be honest I have never seen a fresh cranberry all my life and had never tasted one a few weeks ago. I came across a bright red and shiny pack of dried cranberries while doing my regular grocery shopping. Curious and fascinated I lost no time in buying it and I am glad I did. I have been hooked to it ever since.

I ate it just like that most of the time and added it to salads a couple of times. But never got along baking with it until yesterday evening. For the base flavor I chose Orange .Thinking vanilla would be too standard and I think I got it right as the loaf vanished in no time. I used fresh orange juice to knead the dough and the zest lent a strong flavor which is awesome with the sweet and tart cranberries. The aroma of the oranges lingered long after the bread had been baked and eaten.

The bread tastes very much like a fruit cake albeit a little less sweeter. It makes a wonderful accompaniment to a steaming cup of chai or also to milk, for that matter.

Ingredients

·      60 grams bread flour

·      2 tsp dry yeast

·      1/2 cup lukewarm water

·      1/2 tsp salt

·      orange zest from 2 oranges

·      4 tbsp honey

·      1/4 cup (60 ml) vegetable oil

·      3/4 cup (180 ml) freshly squeezed orange juice

·      3 1/2 cups (420 grams) bread flour

·      3/4 cup frozen cranberries

·      1 tbsp flour

Instructions

1.   In a mixing bowl, combine 60gms of bread flour with yeast and lukewarm water. Mix well and leave it for 5 minutes or till it takes up a sponge like consistency.

2.   To this sponge, add the orange zest, salt, honey, vegetable oil and orange juice. Now use this mixture to knead the dough. Gradually add the three and half cups of flour, combine and then knead for a good ten minutes. The resulting dough should be elastic and smooth.

3.   Place this dough in a greased container, cover and keep in a warm place for it to rise and double in size.

4.   Meanwhile take the remaining tablespoon of flour and sprinkle on the frozen cranberries. Mix to coat the cranberries well so that they don’t settle at the bottom when incorporated in the dough.

5.   Once double in volume, take the dough out of the bowl, place it on a working area, flatten it with your fingers and add the cranberries on top of it. With your hands, start kneading the dough until all the cranberries are incorporated.

6.   Preheat the oven to 200degrees.

7.   Shape the dough into a log and place it in a greased mould.

8.   Bake the bread in preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or till sounds hollow when knocked.

9.   After baking, I generally like to remove the bread from the mould and cool so that all the moisture from the bottom of the bread gets evaporated and it doesn’t become soggy at the bottom.

10. Make your chai, slice the bread and you are on the staircase to heaven!