Bread

I am a bit of a novice on the bread side of things.  I mean, I love the stuff, it is possibly even my favourite carb.  I would indulge in crusty, soft centred white bread all day if both my gastrointestinal tract and my waistline were more accommodating.  But when it comes to actually baking it?  Well, let’s just say my bread resumé is a short one.

So knowing this, you would assume that I would keep it very simple, right?  Like, find a good recipe, read and understand it and follow it to the last gram?  Like, bake a few text-book loaves before I got too adventurous?

Well if you think I’m that sensible, you clearly don’t know me too well.  We have to work on that.  Coffee next week?

Find a good recipe I did……Joy of Joy the Baker, one of my favourite blogs, posted a recipe for Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls which I had mentally bookmarked some time ago.  I finally had a chance to try it.  But follow it to a tee?? I don’t think I’m actually capable of that.

I had to spice it up, make it savoury and of all things, healthy.  Wholemeal flour……whaaaaat??

I had to fill it with a tangy coriander and dill pesto conjured up entirely in my own brain.

Then on a whim, I threw in some feta I found hiding unassumingly in the fridge.

Did I get away with it?  You bet your savoury scrolls I did!

And the best thing is, you can too.  The possibilities for variations are drool-worthy.  Olive bread with an olive tapenade and rosemary filling? I am all over that like a rash!  Pepita bread with spiced pumpkin puree filling? Why not!

Like all bread, this one takes a little time and elbow grease.  It is left to rise while you vacuum the floors or go out for lunch or write your next blog post or whatever it is you do when you have to wait two hours for something.  Then after you cut the scrolls, you ignore it again for two hours while it rises again.

But all the effort is well worth it.  At the end of it all you will have eight perfect, filling scrolls for a picnic, breakfast or to pack for lunch.  And you will be glad you kneaded, waited, kneaded again and waited again.

Wholemeal Coriander and Dill Scrolls

Dough recipe adapted from Saveur October 2008 via Joy the Baker

For the Filling:

Pesto:

1 cup (packed) fresh coriander, leaves and stalks
1 cup (packed) fresh dill, leaves and stalks
1 large or 2 small garlic cloves, peeled
3cm piece fresh ginger
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
10 raw cashews
1 tbsp cumin seeds

Other ingredients:

Zest of 1 lemon
40g feta
1 tbsp cumin, toasted

For the Bread:

1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 (7g) package active dry yeast
pinch sugar
1/2 cup milk at room temperature
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 3/4 cups plain wholemeal flour, sifted, plus more for kneading
3/4 teaspoon salt
100g butter, melted, plus more for the pan

Make:

Toast all the cumin (2 tbsp) in a small pan over medium heat until slightly browned and fragrant.

In a large bowl combine yeast, pinch sugar and 1/4 cup water heated to 45 degrees C (a bit warmer than body temp if you do not have a thermometer).  Stir to combine and let sit until frothy and foamy, about 10 minutes.

Add egg, egg yolk and milk.  Whisk until well combined.  Add the flour, 1 tbsp toasted cumin and salt and mix with a wooden spoon until the dough just begins to come together.  Knead the dough for 3-5 mins.

Add the melted butter and continue to knead for about 5-6 minutes.  The dough will be a little wet and sticky.  Remove the dough from the bowl and grease the bowl.  Place the dough back into the bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel.  Leave in a warm place to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until doubled in size.

While the dough rises, make the pesto.  Combine the pesto ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and whizz until it reaches coarse paste consistency.

When the dough has doubled in size, place it onto a heavily floured work surface.  Gently knead the dough until it is no longer sticky, adding more flour as needed.  Knead for a few minutes.

Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into an oval of about 7 millimetre thickness, about 20cm x 30cm.

Spread the pesto evenly over the dough.  Grate the lemon zest finely over the top of the pesto.  Sprinkle 1 tbsp cumin seeds and crumbled feta evenly over the top.

Grasp hold of one long edge and roll as tightly as possible until it is one long roll

Place dough roll seam side down on a cutting board.  Using a sharp, thin knife, trim off the uneven edges.

Cut the roll into 8 equal slices.  Place the slices, cut side up and evenly spaced in a greased high-edged metal baking pan.  Cover pan with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours

Heat the oven to 190 degrees C.  Uncover the rolls and bake for 30-35 mins, or until a clean knife inserted into the bread comes out clean.

Notes:

For the second rise, Joy suggests that you could also leave the scrolls in the baking tray in the fridge to rise overnight.  The scrolls should be taken out of the fridge 15 min before baking.