Spelt Bread recipe

At last a recipe for you. This is the first ever loaf of bread I've ever made, and I am so pleased with it. It was easy to make and we both loved the taste.

My finished Spelt Loaf

Delicious with Butter

SPELT BREAD

This recipe originally appeared in The Daily Telegraph a couple of years ago and has since built up quite a following on the Internet.

Mixing up a yeast dough and then baking it without giving it time to rise (let alone kneading it) is counter-intuitive, but it works. Baker Andrew Whitley says that if you let it rise slowly, in a cool place overnight, it will be even better. ( I just gave it 15 mins lightly covered before popping in the oven, as was suggested when this recipe appeared in the week-end magazine from the Sunday Mail)

Ingredients
1lb 2oz/500g spelt flour
2 sachets/10g fast-acting dried yeast
½ tsp sea salt
2oz/50g sunflower seeds
2oz/50g sesame seeds
2oz/50g linseed's (optional)
400-500ml warm water ( use enough to form a dough)
Heat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.

Method
Combine all the ingredients, adding the water last. Mix well and when the dough is well mixed together lightly flour your hands and the work surface and gently shape the loaf to fit the tin and then turn the dough into a greased loaf tin.

Leave lightly covered for 15 mins then -
Put straight into the oven and bake for 55 mins.
Remove the loaf, turn it out of the tin and then return it to the oven without the tin for a further 5-10 minutes.


And here is another recipe to try using Spelt flour and In season Rhubarb. I have to admit that I have yet to try this one myself, I will post the result when I do.

SPELT AND RHUBARB CAKE

Spelt's nutty flavour goes well with rhubarb.

Ingredients

5oz/140g butter
7oz/200g soft brown sugar
2 eggs
4 pieces of stem ginger in syrup, chopped
7oz/200g spelt flour
2 tsp baking powder
14oz/400g slender rhubarb stems
Caster sugar to finish

Method
Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Line a cake tin about 7in x 11in/17cm x 27cm with baking parchment.
Melt the butter and stir in the soft brown sugar.
Allow to cool slightly, then mix in the eggs, ginger, flour and baking powder. Scrape the mixture into the lined tin and spread out.
Trim the rhubarb to fit the tin length-ways and lay over the top of the mixture, packing in as many stems as you can.
Bake for 35-45 minutes, until the cake is risen, golden and cooked through.
Brush with some syrup from the ginger jar, dredge well with caster sugar and allow to cool in the tin.

More Squares

I have been meaning to post these photo's of the squares that I have done from the new book '200 Crocheted blocks' I crocheted them weeks ago and haven't got around to doing anymore as we have been away for a few days visiting friends who live on the Isle of Wight also both Austin and I went down with a horrible cold/virus of some sort that he had first and then passed it on to me and guess who got the worst dose of it ?? yes did you guess it was me ! I feel better today but my ribs still hurt from the coughing and I feel drained both physically and mentally, I couldn't manage to even read a magazine leave alone crochet, I just couldn't be bothered with anything. Austin picked it up from the grandchildren, I only hope we haven't infected out friends. Anyway enough of the whingeing here are the photo's

These are made from the left over wool that I used for Florence's throw. I don't have any plans for them at the moment, I guess they are more of a practice at some of the blocks from the book. These were relatively easy, and some in the book look very hard, so I left those for the time being, and when I feel much better I will attempt to tackle the harder ones.

Health benefits of Rhubarb and it's juice

I thought that I had read somewhere recently (probably the daily paper) that rhubarb juice was beneficial to health. So when I harvested lots of the said stuff on Tuesday I decide to save all the juice as I had added too much water and it needed to be poured off. Anyway here are some very good links to places that tell us all about this wonderful juice. It taste lovely and you can even make a mix with oranges as well, check these out as it's worth a try. Also try googling ' Health benefits of Rhubarb juice' as lots of other sites and info came up.

http://web.me.com/davidperryphoto1/GardenBlog/A_Photographers_Garden_Blog/Entries/2009/5/4_Rhubarb_Juice:__A_Many_Spendored_Thing.html

http://www.cooks.com/rec/search/0,1-0,rhubarb_juice,FF.html

And here is one from good old 'Waitrose' must be good if they have a recipe. If you try it and like it please let me know.
http://www.waitrose.com/recipe/Rhubarb_Juice.aspx

I think Florence liked her throw, but --

she would rather get on with her new walking skill, and couldn't wait to take the throw off and get down, she did look cute wrapped in it though, and her mummy loved it.

At last ! Florence's throw is finished.

Finished at last and ready to wrap in lovely tissue to give to her for Easter. I love it, but I can't wait to get on and try something new. I showed it to my daughter this evening and she wants one for her double bed in similar colours. I will start it and do it inbetween other projects as she isn't in any hurry for it (thank goodness) but I was pleased that she liked it enough to want one. I just hope my daughter-in-law likes it too. I haven't told her that I was making it for Florence, so it will be a complete surprise.

I picoted along the edge, but it didn't suit the throw, it looked too dainty for the chunky squares. So I undid it and decided on a straight edge using some of the main colours and worked it in double crochet. I love this stitch it's so firm and has a nice thickness about it, so it was a perfect choice for along the edges.

Sorry about all the photo's but I couldn't decide which ones to post that would show all the details.

Country Living - here's what I bought ....

My best buy was these three fabulous, original, old wooden spools, complete with 5 metres of ribbon on each spool. My only regret was not buying a lot more. As you can see my purchases were not big or indeed expensive, but they all give me a lot of pleasure, so worth every penny in my book.

And I bought this sweet little wooden boat, for the summerhouse, but it didn't get outside the study yet as I love looking at it.

These little tin painted chickens came in a pack of x 12. Oh how I wish I had bought more.

And they make lovely additions to my cards. SO cute!

Then there is the lovely felt flower brooch, fabulous for clothing or hats. I just love it.

Looks good on either of these

Although I make my own cards and I use my photographs for them too, I still like to buy unusual ones, these were from Laura Long. She knits the lovely toys on the cards.

Country Living Fair

I went to the Fair on Saturday, it was in Islington, London at the Business and Design Centre. I could have spent all day in Islington. The markets there were fabulous especially if you like browsing around bric a brac, vintage clothes and china etc, it is an alladin's cave of finds.

Anyway back to my visit to 'Country Living'. I went with my son's girlfriend, Esme, we had a fabulous day and a few funny moments too, so a good day although very tiring, especially the tube train journey to and from my son's home in Marylebone. Going home after walking around for about 5 hours was a killer, we could hardly pick our feet up to climb the steps in the underground.

Tomorrow I will show you my few purchases, I wanted everything !! but had to budget wisely to include all the travel and lunch costs as well as the ticket price, but I am more than happy with looking, taking photo's meeting lovely people and just being there.

A Vintage shop in Islington, I must go back and visit.

The building was old with beautiful details

Lot's of people.

Beautiful Nick Nacks for the home.

Fabulous clothes and scarves

A Vintage stall, love the chair which was sold.

Laura Long's, knitted toy stand

LAURA LONG was exhibiting these knitted toys and the book was written by Laura with patterns of all the toys seen here and I expect more. All can be bought from her @
http://www.lauralong.co.uk/

Chutneys and goodies from Provence

Below, Bags made from sourced Vintage Fabrics, so they are one off's.

can be bought from 'Cattapilla Designs'

http://www.cattapilladesigns.com/

More Vintage stands