{ Mélanger :: to mix }

Returning home from the hospital on Monday, with my little baby girl, was dreamlike.  Baby Mélanger was born Thursday the 16th of September, weighing in at 6 lb 13 oz.

I could not believe the treasure that was fitted snugly in the back seat of the car.  This time last year, Mr Mélanger and I celebrated our wedding vows.  This year, the birth of our first child.

The surprise arrival of a baby girl was a treat.  The moment being told to “take a look at your baby daughter,” by my doctor as he handed her to me was extraordinary.  I will never forget that moment in time.  Ever.

Admittedly, I had to shake my head and acknowledge I must not be blessed with mother’s intuition. I was sure I was carrying a boy!  But in retrospect, perhaps I did given the theme I had lined up for next month.  The idea came to me earlier in the year, before I even knew I was pregnant.

Stay tuned for that one….and images of Baby Mélanger!

I will be taking a short break from baking and my blog as baby Melanger’s arrival is looking to be ahead of schedule, i.e. imminent!  Hopefully when I return, I will have a keen future baker and kitchen helper in the mix!

Mr Melanger and I will very soon have the big question answered.  Boy or girl?  I am too excited for words.  Maybe the answer is already in these “childhood memories” cake plates?  Is the pink/blue positioning top or bottom a sign?  Hmmmmmm….?

Speaking of cake, keenly looking forward to planning what I will bake in celebration of the new arrival.  Any ideas?

Back soon (-ish)!

In my neck of the woods, lavender is not an ingredient you see commonly used in baked goods or desserts.  I just adore the scent of lavender, and happily experiment myself including this floral fragrance in my own baking repertoire.  Sweet and aromatic Lavender Macarons came first, then a honeymoon-inspired Lavender Honey Crème Caramel soon followed.  So no surprise (to me!), that this  loaf has made an appearance this month.

Admittedly, I know lavender laced food is not everyone’s cup of tea.  Mr Mélanger did hint the taste of this crusty loaf was somewhat similar to soap (I will not ask him how he knows that?!).  But in defense, I found that the combination of the lavender with a beautifully scented good quality honey produces a delicate flavour.  Incorporated into the strength of a wholemeal flour loaf, the overall effect it really is more subtle than obvious.

I enjoyed this bread lightly toasted with a little salted butter, as well as loaded up with marmalade.  Smeared with a healthy dose of honey would be the perfect choice right now to inject a little more sweetness in celebration of Rosh Hashanah.

{ Lavender & honey wholemeal loaf } Recipe by Richard Bertinet, from Dough: Simple Contemporary Bread

I used Chilean Tiaca Honey which provided a complementary floral aroma to the lavender.  This honey is very creamy and also has lovely vanilla undertones.

* Ingredients *
300g strong wholemeal flour
200g strong white flour
10g fresh yeast
10g salt
350ml water
1 heaped teaspoon of lavender flowers
30g good quality runny honey

* Directions *
In a large bowl rub yeast and both flours with your fingertips as if making a crumble.  Add in the lavender, honey and salt.  Then add the water.  Hold the bowl with one hand and with the other begin mixing with your fingers until the dough begins to come together, around 2-3 minutes. Lift the dough onto your work surface – even though the dough will be quite soft, do not add any flour to the work surface.  Begin to work the dough.  The idea is to work as much air into the dough by just stretching, kneading and pulling. Slide your fingers underneath the dough like a pair of forks, and with your thumbs on top, swing it upwards and then slap it back down away from you.  Stretch the front of the dough towards you, then lift it back over itself in an arc to trap the air, still stretching it forwards and sideways and tucking it in around the edges.  Keep repeating until your dough comes together, about 5-10 minutes.  Once you have a smooth elastic dough you can lightly flour the surface and form the dough into a compact ball.  Place in a lightly oiled bowl and covered let it rest for approx 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Turn the dough out onto your work surface, then reshape it into a ball, put back into the bowl and rest for a further 45 minutes.  Turn the dough onto the work surface and press down gently.  Shape into a square by drawing the corners into the centre.  Flour the top of the loaf.  Line a baking tray with a tea towel and place loaf on it, folded side down.  Cover and prove for 1 – 1 1/2 hours.  Gently place the loaf on a clean baking tray and mark a double cross shape on the top of the loaf with a razor blade or sharp knife.  Mist the inside of a preheated oven and bake at 220C/430F for 10 minutes, then turn down to 200C/390F and bake for a further 20-30 minutes.  Once baked, the loaf should sound hollow if tapped on the base.

I can easily lose track of time immersed in my cook books.  Particularly when I am reading about the history or tradition of food.  Often I purchase a cook book explicitly to learn more about origin of food.  Exploring more than just the technicalities of how a bread, cake or dessert is created, gives me an opportunity to develop a greater appreciation of a region or culture, along with (of course), a dish.  I find that deeply satisfying.

Far Breton aux pruneaux and crepes are two specialities from the Brittany region in France.  The Kouign Amann (“Butter Cake”) is another.  It is a very traditional Breton cake made of yeasted bread dough enriched with butter and sugar.  The butter and sugar is folded into the dough, in a not too dissimilar fashion to making puff pastry or croissants.  This technique produces a layered, buttery crumb to the finished cake.   To finish, a healthy dose of sugar is sprinkled on top to create a deliciously hard caramel finish.  The end result is a mouth-watering crunchy on the outside, and soft in the centre cake.

Apparently the Kouign Amann resulted from a failed bread dough.  A baker from Breton devised the solution to turn the dough into a cake by adding (copious quantities of!) sugar and butter.  Thus, the “Butter Cake” was born.  I am not sure how accurate this is, but I do know one thing is true.  This cake is addictive.  Fresh from the oven, it is hard to contain yourself to enjoying simply one slice.

But do not just take my word for it.

There are many Kouign Amann devotees around the world.  David Lebovitz persisted tirelessly in the pursit of the perfect butter cake.  Kerrin from MyKugelhopf shares her first face-to-face at Pierre Hermé’s boutique in Paris’ Saint Germain des Prés (distracting her from his signature macarons, no less!), and showcases some delicious variations of this specialty.  Dorie Greenspan talks about the marvel of the Kouign Amann during a recent trip to France, that urged her to return post-sampling to compliment the chef.

Are you convinced to bake this now?

{ Wholemeal Kouign Amann } recipe adapted by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, from the book, “Home Baking”

The authors suggested a twist on the traditional cake by substituting part wholemeal flour for white flour.  The combination of the malty wheatiness complements the caramel and butter finish well.

* Ingredients *
1 cup lukewarm water (about 40C/105F)
¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup wholemeal / wholewheat flour
1 – 1 1/4 cup plain / all purpose flour
¾ teaspoons salt
125g / 1 stick ice-cold salted butter
¾ cup caster sugar
2 tablespoons salted butter melted, spike with a healthy pinch of fleur de sel (or any good quality salt)

* Directions *
Place the water in a bowl, add the yeast and stir to dissolve well. Stir in 1 cup of wholemeal flour to make a smooth batter. Let stand, covered with plastic wrap for an hour or two. Sprinkle on the salt and stir in. Stir in 1 cup of plain flour, then slowly add little by little of the remaining ½ cup of plain flour to bring the dough together enough to turn out to a lightly floured surface. Knead until very smooth and firm but not dry, about 5 minutes. Incorporate flour only as you have to. Place the dough on a floured spot on the counter, cover well with plastic and let stand for about 1 ½ to 2 hours.

On a lightly floured surface, flatten the dough out to a rectangle at least 30 cm long x 15 cm wide (12 inches x 6 inches). Thinly slice the butter and divide it into 3 equal portions. Place 1 portion, in pieces, over half to two-thirds of the length of dough. Sprinkle with about ¼ cup of the sugar. Fold a third of the dough into the centre over the butter, and then fold the other flap over that, like folding a letter. Flatten the dough out again into a rectangle and repat with butter and sugar. Flatten once more, and then repeat with butter only. The dough will feel soft and the butter may be breaking through a little. Don’t worry.

Lightly grease a 23cm/9 inch spring form tin and place on a baking sheet. Place the dough in the tin and flatten it once more, pressing it in the sides with your fingertips to form a round. Cut 6 to 7 cuts right through the dough, each about 5 cm long, in a starburst pattern radiating out from near the centre. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 1 hour. Meanwhile, place a rack in the lower third of the oven and pre-heat to 220C/430F. Just before baking, brush the melted butter over the cake and sprinkle with the last of the sugar.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until very golden brown. Both the top and bottom of the cake will have a caramelised surface. Let cool for at least 30 minutes, and serve cut into wedges.

{ Tips }
• This is meant to be a sticky dough, so be careful not to add too much unnecessary flour.
• Use the best salted butter you can find.  To top the cake, I added in a ½ teaspoon of fleur de sel to my melted butter for a salty boost!
• If you somehow manage not to eat the entire cake fresh out of the oven (remember, it is addictive!), it reheats nicely on 160C/320F to re-create that “crunchy on the outside, soft in the centre” combination.

There was a month or two a little while back where I was having great difficulty sleeping.  My lower back was in agony, my hip joints burned, and my ribcage ached.  Each and every single night would essentially consist of tossing and turning from side to side to ease the discomfort.  I would just seem to settle down and be close to elusive slumber land again, and all the aches and pains would flare up again.  (The joys of pregnancy, right?!)

So for some time, I was experiencing a frustrating level of sleep deprivation.  I would try to console myself that this is Mother Nature’s way of preparing an expectant mother for the lack of sleep ahead.  True or not, the situation was exasperating – knowing what was to come.

Early one weekend morning, Mr Mélanger wandered into the kitchen, practically rubbing his eyes at disbelief at what he saw.  There I was, in the midst of bread dough preparation at 5am.  He asked what I was doing up so early.  I turned, immediately started to cry (from lack of sleep!), and all I could muttered was, “Baking makes me happy!”

It really does.

Bread baking in particular is one of the most relaxing and enjoyable pastimes.  It slows you down.  It makes you focus.  The mixing, the kneading, the proofing, the shaping, the baking.  For me, it is some of the most rewarding time I have in the kitchen.

So this month is dedicated to one of my favourite baking distractions.  Bread baking.  Last time I dedicated a month to bread baking, the selection was entirely sweet, soft and rich.  This month, the focus will be on the flour.  I bake predominantly with white flour and want to try my hand at a few recipes that showcase a less popular ingredient in my repertoire.

Welcome ‘wholegrain style’ bread month!

I cannot believe September is here already.  This is a big, big month!  The countdown is on for baby Mélanger’s arrival.

While a few final touches are being made to complete the nursery that will be home to baby, I have taken a few memory snaps and share here as a sneak peek.

Mr Mélanger and I intentionally avoided finding out the gender of the baby — we (read: I) need a surprise for the big day, right?! — so the colour focus for the room is a neutral apple green with some primary colour highlights.

The clock is ticking …

{ Images:  Top left – Selection of obligatory Moomin books including the recently released Moomin Cookbook – what a find!  Top right -  A decorating obsession with owls.  Bottom left – selection of blankets and throws including a homecrafted number made with love by my mother (top of the pile), also baby’s first teething toy, Sophie the Giraffe (cute!).  Bottom right – selection of muslin wraps – apparently I cannot have enough! }