this week weekend herb blogging is hosted by one of my all time favourite blogs in the whole wide world: cook almost anything at least once from australia. it will only take you a second to realize what i mean, once you see all those lovely pictures haalo from melbourne takes. and she has this killer recipe for lime curd . oh - it makes you wanna lick your screen, it looks so good!
this week i bought a big bunch of oregano on the market. fresh oregano is something i barely use, since i always find that oregano only develops its full flavour, once its dried. you can dry your own oregano by simply lining a baking sheet, then spread oregano (destem first!) across. put baking tray into a 120c° hot oven for about 4 minutes and ready is your home-dried oregano. oregano adds spice to your tomato-sauce, grilled veggies & meat or your homemade pizza margarita. you can also use it as a herb for tea. it's very good for an upset stomach and a sore throat.
i used fresh oregano in a simple recipe for the traditional french "pain de champagne". i love it because it's such a simple but delicious bread with a very soft & moist texture. this oregano pain de champagne is a wonderful combination with parmaham or a creamy cheese. or just go for the simplest and best: slather some fresh butter across. it's delicious!
RECIPE270g white bread flour
80g rye flour
1 tablespoon salt
30g fresh yeast
110g butter, at room temperature
1 generous hand full of fresh oregano, destemmed and finely chopped
about 250ml water
mix all the dried ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer with dough hook attached. slowly add the water, while the machine is running. knead for about 10 minutes until everything has come together to a smooth dough, add some more flour if dough is too moist.
put in a clean bowl, cover with clingfilm and let rise on a warm place for about 1,5 hour.
flour a willow banneton (french dough rising basket) or line & dust a baking sheet. tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a ball. dust with flour and put into the banneton (or onto the prepared baking sheet). cover & let rise for about 1 hour.
heat the oven to 220c°.
when using a banneton, tip risen dough onto a lined and lightly floured baking sheet. this will look as if the dough is deflating somewhat, but it will rise again in the hot steaming oven.
using a spray bottle filled with water, quickly spray both sides of the oven and close oven asap. then bake the bread in the middle of the oven for about 30 minutes until golden brown and crisp. transfer to a rack to cool.
keeps for about 2 days - altough tastes best fresh out of the oven.
Beautiful, beautiful bread. I love bread-- it's so satisfying and usually tastes better than store bought. And it's so easy!
ReplyDeleteDo the concentric circle lines on the top of the bread come from the banneton? They make the loaf look so professional! Maybe I should invest in one of those...
hi village vegan. that's right - so easy to make and so much better than store bought (plus: brings that wonderful smell of bresh baked bread into your house, which i think is almost the best part.)
ReplyDeletecircles come from the banneton. they are a little expensive to buy but keep for a lifetime. if you bake bread from time to time, invest in one. its worth it.
Sieht toll aus! Frage, wo hast du den Gärkorb gekauft?
ReplyDeletezorra, ich hab die bei divertimenti in london gekauft www.divertimenti.co.uk. man findet sie sonst auch in allen möglichen haushaltsgeschäften in paris (internetversand?) oder denn und wenn auch in reformhäusern hier in der schweiz. wo bist du?
ReplyDeleteI should invest in a bannetone too because I am a bread fanatic and your bread looks just lovely . Very beautiful,I have to try it one day.
ReplyDeletehi rose. if you are into bread - go for it. it's an investment that keeps for years and years (and is very handy to let dough rise). have fun! m
ReplyDeleteBeautiful bread! Beautiful photos.
ReplyDeleteOregano tea? Now I know what to do with the masses of oregano plants that are taking over my garden.
Ich wohne in Andalusien, aber bin im Mai für eine Woche in der Schweiz, in Zürich vor allem.
ReplyDeletedear lucy. oh you make me blush, thank you for your compliment. good luck with the oregano-tea (but hope you havent got a sore throat!).
ReplyDeletezorra - in zürich hab ich die banettons leider noch nirgends gefunden. (darum aus england nach hause geschleppt). meld dich doch, wenn du in zürich bist. ich zeig dir wo's den besten kuchen gibt!
Mach ich! Ich schreib dir ein Mail.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely bread. so tempting. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a lovely loaf. The banetton certainly looks useful :)
ReplyDeleteThe bread is just amazing. I haven't heard of a banneton before, not that surprising, since I'm hardly a baker. It's something I'd like to try to do more, but the only season I have time is summer, when it's too hot to bake.
ReplyDeletehelene and angie - thank you thank you.
ReplyDeletekalyn - get the one of these bannetons. the good thing about this dough - it's not like pastry so it wont melt away in summer. how about baking this in the early hours of the day, when its not steamming hot outside. it fills you house with the most beautiful scent! go girl!
well, I am so glad I decided to browse your archives and look in the bread folder!
ReplyDeleteThis will be my bread this weekend - I just got a banetton and of course it is a little intimidating to use it for the first time. Your bread gave me the push I needed!
Thank you!
I think you mean "pain de campagne" (country-style bread). "Champagne" is the fizzy wine.
ReplyDelete