Whole Grain Soda Bread

Brrrr!!! This has been one cold snowy week. I swear it's been snowing ever since Sunday and it feels like -33C. I don't know what's worse the cold weather or the continuous snowsquall warnings. 

Anyway, if this weather indicates anything it's a piping hot bowl of soup and some fresh baked bread.

Gosh I love making bread! There's something about the routine and process of kneading the dough with your hands that lull's you into a sense of calm. It's almost like a form of meditation. HA! I bet you never thought you'd hear that about food.

It's very true though.

Quick breads are also pretty easy and fun to make. Like this Soda bread.

I prefer to make breads that need yeast, time, and the art of rising ...Am I the only one out there? But this soda bread can also give you a lovely rustic loaf of bread with the magic of: BAKING SODA!

Ok so it's not as amazing as I make it sound, however, with just a few ingredients, a little mixing, and 40 minutes in the oven you can have have a crunchy-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside beautiful rustic whole grain loaf of bread.

Hearty and delicious.

This bread is also free form so there's no need to worry about moulding moulding into a loaf pan. Just form the dough into a ball with your hands, knead a few times on a floured surface, then form into a round disc and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You'll also have to make two cuts on the top of the loaf for it to bake properly. Using a serrated knife gently cut an X into the dough about 1 inch deep and then bake.

This is loaf especially goes well with some homemade soup. The perfect winter meal. It's really good with steaming bowl of Vegetable Orzo Chicken Soup.

Whole Grain Soda Bread (makes 1 loaf)

(Adapted from Alive magazine)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups red fife flour
• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup oat bran
• 1/2 cup wheat germ
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 cups low-fat or 1% buttermilk, plus extra for brushing
• 1 Tbsp rolled oats for garnish 

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 375* F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, wheat bran, oat bran, wheat germ, sea salt, and baking soda.
3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add buttermilk. Using a spoon or fork, stir the buttermilk into the flour making small circles working your way outward to incorporate all the flour. 
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. The dough will be sticky. With floured hands, knead the dough a 4-6 times. Form into a ball and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Press into a 6 inch round.
5. Using a serrated knife, make a large X across the top, cutting 1" inch deep.
6. Brush the top with a little buttermilk and sprinkle with oats.
7. Bake for 45 minutes until the crust is nice and browned and a tester or knife inserted in the centre comes out clean.
8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly before cutting and serving.

 

Apple Spice Scuffins

It's that time of year for nostalgic baking. In fact I just finished making the traditional english Christmas cake with my mum over the weekend. Something we do every year to continue the family tradition. That will give it lots of time to get all nice and boozed up with brandy before Christmas day. Yum!

Now I'm sure no one need's an extra excuse to bake since Christmas is a mere less than two weeks away, but I'm going to give you one anyway. It's time to turn on the oven and get the house all toasty warm with the sweet smell of apples and cinnamon.

You may remember when I made these healthy pumpkin spice scuffins.

I explained how they were a cross between a scone and a muffin. Perfect for an afternoon snack or breakfast especially when spread with some creamy nut butter. Well here is a version that I made using fresh cooked apples instead of pumpkin. You have to make sure you use a good baking apple such as a macintosh, empire or cortland variety because they break down easily making them perfect for cooking. Just think applesauce. 

These aren't too sweet making them a wonderful treat without the sugar rush.

Apple Spice Scuffins {GF, Vegan} (makes 6)

Print or Email this Recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of steel cuts oats, ground into flour (I like to use my coffee grinder)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 2 rounded tsp cinnamon +1tsp for the apples
• pinch fresh nutmeg
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1 chia egg: 1 tbsp chia seeds mixed with 3 tbsp water (let sit for 5 minutes)
• 2 large baking apples, peeled, cored and sliced (mac's, empire and cortlands work best)
• (optional) any dried fruits or chocolate chips

  Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*F. In a small bowl mix the chia seeds with water and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking powder, salt, spices, and rolled oats.
2. Put the apple slices in a sauce pan with 1 tsp of cinnamon and 2-4 tbsp of water. Simmer on low until they are tender. Transfer the apples to a food processor and blend until you have a smooth puree or sauce.
3. In a small bowl, mix together the apple puree and thickened chia egg (the chia seed will have absorbed most of the water by now).
4. Now add the apple mix to the dry mix and stir until combined. If you are adding any dried fruits or chocolate stir them in next. Raisins and walnuts are a nice combination.
5. Scoop a 1/4 cup of the batter onto a parchment lined cookie sheet, until you end up with 6 scuffins. Shape and slightly flatten the dough into rounds.
6. Bake for 25 minutes until lightly golden.

 * Note * If you would like to make these a little sweeter (after all it is the holiday season) you can add 1/2 cup of maple syrup and 1-2 tbsp brown sugar. 

I will definitely be making these again! This is the perfect recipe to accompany an afternoon cup of tea. And they have just the right balance of slow digesting carbohydrates to keep your blood sugar levels stable until dinner time. Let's hear it for a smooth running metabolism! Keep that fire burning.

Have an awesome day!