Sunny Morn Sandwich + Bonus Treat!

Well, it's taken me almost six months, but I've realised something unexpected about the recipes from the box. For the most part, the recipes I've made so far are either completely the same as recipes today, with no substitutes necessary, or they are like the 'Bonus Treat' recipe we had for breakfast this weekend, where 2/3 of the ingredients are substitutes because the original either no longer exists or I can't purchase it here in Scotland. Obviously, I knew that I'd have a lot of substitutions, alterations, and tweaks to make to the recipes in the box, but I assumed incorrectly that most recipes would have one (or maybe two at most) substitutions. I wasn't anticipating recipes like this one that required so many substitutions I lost count. But the alterations are the fun part-- I've been brainstorming ways to adapt the salad recipes I keep finding for weeks because I can't get my hands on Ranch or Blue Cheese or French dressing.*

So when I found these two recipes in the box-- one of which is really just 'marmalade on toast,' of course I thought I was in for an easy ride with no substitutions at all. But then I read them both a little closer and realised 'bonus treat' was indeed going to require some ingenuity. Plus, then I remembered that San Francisco was responsible for starting an entire artisan toast movement a couple of years ago, and so I decided these recipes were going to be awesome. And I was right.

When my dad was visiting a few weeks ago, he tried to explain 'date bread' to me. He claimed it was a squishy, dark bread that you had to squeeze out of a container almost like a thick paste-- and based on the picture that accompanies this recipe for 'bonus treat,' I think that must be exactly what the recipe called for. However, as it's no longer the 1960s (much though Donald Trump wishes it was), I can't buy that kind of bread so I used Soreen to make this. If you're in the UK, you probably already know the wonders of Soreen, and I totally recommend this recipe. If you're not over here and have never heard of Soreen, it's a 'fruited malt loaf' made with raisins and malt extract. It's a thick, super dense, dark and chewy loaf of bread with a rich, fruity flavour. Obviously, it's delicious. Since it's made with malt, though, it's full of sugar so probably not an everyday kind of breakfast food. Evidently other flavours besides grape/raisin exist, but this is the only type I've ever seen since moving here. Usually Soreen is eaten with a smear of warmed butter, but for our purposes we had it with cream cheese and plum butter, instead of the currant jelly that the recipe called for. No currant jelly around here, so I used Polish plum butter, which is my current favourite condiment and I put it on everything.

So in the interest of not boring you with two different toast recipes this week, here I present them to you together. Next time you're brainstorming something new to accompany your weekend brunch, give one of these a try-- you won't regret it.

*Grocery stores here do sell something called 'French dressing,' but it's a vinaigrette-type thing, not the red stuff like in the US. I'm not complaining, as the Scottish version is not only less suspect looking than the American stuff, but also more similar to what actual salad dressing tastes like in France. So the fact remains: American-style salad dressings are just not to be had over here.

The verdict:

5 spoons out of five for the 'bonus treat,' 4 spoons out of five for the 'Sunny Morn Sandwich,' partly because it wasn't a sandwich and partly because it's just an incredibly stupid thing to write an entire recipe explaining.

The recipe:

Sunny Morn Sandwich

the directions:

Spread cream cheese on toast.
poon marmalade in a circle in the middle of toast to look like the sun.
Eat it with a cup of hot coffee and a crossword puzzle.

the ingredients:

Slice of your favourite bread, toasted to your preferred degree of brown
Cream Cheese
Marmalade (coarse shred is obviously best, but I'll forgive you for using the fine-shredded stuff)

THE RECIPE:

Bonus Treat

THE DIRECTIONS:

Slice a thick piece of bread.
Spread it with cream cheese.
Add jam and enjoy.

THE INGREDIENTS:

Malt loaf or other date/raisin bread
Cream cheese
Polish plum butter, currant jam, or similar

Bacon Rounds

We're back home! A little rougher around the edges, a lot happier after a bunch of coconuts, some amazing tacos, and some quality time at the greatest wedding I've been to in ages, and happy to be done with long plane rides for awhile. But we had an amazing time, first at the wedding in California and then in Tulum, Mexico, where we ate a lot of shrimp, swam in the sea in the shadows of Mayan ruins, and generally relaxed after a long and stressful few weeks of work leading up to our holiday.

And since we both stayed up all night on the plane ride home and thus slept for fourteen hours on Saturday night, I really thought I might have escaped the jetlag unscathed... but then the week rolled around, and for the last two nights, I've been awake from 2am until 5:30am, just laying in bed and wishing I could start my day. Then at 7am when my day ACTUALLY starts, I can barely hold my eyes open (I'm yawning as I write this).

Do you know what helps with jetlag? Breakfast. (No, seriously.) Eating real food-- something besides just coffee-- helps reset your body clock and get you back on schedule, so I've been relying on these bacon rolls to do the job for me. They may not be the same thing a Scot thinks of when he thinks of a bacon roll, but they're pretty tasty, and they pair amazingly well with raw salted butter.* (Also, if you promise not to tell anyone, they also taste pretty great with a thin smear of apricot preserves. Try it, no one is going to judge!).

These rolls may not be the classiest breakfast (or the healthiest one), but they make a nice change from the 'lukewarm cup of instant coffee at the office' trend that I find it really easy to fall into, and because they're so easy to grab on your way out the door, you don't even have to wait for a weekend to take advantage of them. Bonus: they keep really well, so you can take one to work every day all week and they'll taste just as warm and fluffy on Friday as they do on Monday. If you can find two 1-pound ovensafe coffee cans, this recipe should technically be made as two small loavess in those cans. Coffee cans that I found are all either cardboard or painted, and either way I couldn't put them in the oven, so I just popped these into a standard muffin tin and got exactly 12 rolls out of the recipe.

Finally, let's just note that the bottom of this recipe pamphlet, which I'm pretty sure was a freebie that came with a bag of flour or a packet of yeast, includes an ad for silverware if you mail in coupons, along with a coupon for 5 cents off a tub of margarine. Ew.

*Bacon rolls are as close as you can get to a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit in the US, but they only include bacon-- no egg, no cheese, and they're served on a roll that has kind of the texture of ciabatta, and they're topped with brown sauce, which is like a sweeter version of A1. I'm pretty indifferent to them because of the lack of cheese, but also because, I mean, if you're going to have a breakfast in Britain, wouldn't you rather have a cream scone? I know I would.

The verdict:

3 out of 5. They're delicious, but I'll always prefer a biscuit or a scone when it comes to breakfast food.

The recipe:

Bacon Rounds

the directions:

Grease 12 muffin cups.
In large bowl, dissolve yeast in hot water.
Add 1 1/3 c flour and all remaining ingredients.
Stir until only pea-sized lumps remain, about 15 seconds or so.
Stir in remaining flour thoroughly, scraping sides of bowl until mixture is almost smooth (as my mom taught me, you want a few lumps to remain or the rolls won't rise).
Batter will be very sticky, so avoid going at it with your hands; instead, use a large spoon to scoop heaping spoonfuls into the greased muffin tin, then smooth out the tops of each portion.
Let rise in warm place (aka anywhere in my apartment this time of year) for 50 minutes.
Batter will rise slightly but not double.
Heat oven to 176C/350F, then bake 20 minutes or until golden brown and firm on top.
Immediately remove from pan and serve warm, if possible.

If saving for later, reheat with a pat of butter and a sprinkle of salt, and a tiny spoonful of jam if you're feeling daring.

the ingredients:

4 ½ tsp yeast
¼ c water, very warm
2 1/3 c flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp soda
1 c sour cream
1 egg
½ c lardons, fried until crisp and then drained on a paper towel

Single-Rise Rolls

Have you ever noticed how sometimes when you're stressed, the simple act of doing something repetitive and easy can be the best possible therapy, even if it makes you slow down in your productivity?

For me, making these rolls was that therapy yesterday. We're having a great summer over here, but it's a busy one: guests coming to visit, projects to finish, a busy season for both of us at work, an impending holiday in California and Mexico, and Scottish sunshine that just begs us to go outside and spend time in it. After a busy weekend that was full of Checking Things Off My List, Sunday night seemed as good a time as any to stock up on some easy breakfast rolls for the week... and the fact that this is basically just a new rendition of these recipes made me sure I could succeed, even if my mind was elsewhere. Because seriously, is there anything more soothing than the smell of bread baking in your own kitchen? (Ok, ok, maybe laying on the beach with a coconut drink in hand, but I can't do that for another few weeks, so for now, it's baking bread in my Scottish kitchen while I listen to the rain fall).

The best part? Not only did I cross another recipe off the list, but I also ended up with breakfast for the week-- for me AND Judson! And on a week that requires all of my concentration just to keep my head above water, anything that makes my day easier is a win in my book. Paired with apricot jam (my current favourite) and a warm slather of salted Irish butter, these rolls are the perfect accompaniment to your morning coffee or tea, and because they're made in a muffin tin, you don't even have to worry about slicing them up. Like I said, this week in my house, we are all about convenience.

This is a Betty Crocker recipe that comes from a wee pamphlet with a half-dozen versions on it, but I'm not complaining about the lack of originality-- it's kind of nice making something that I know how to do for a change (unlike the total unknowns I seem to fall into often in this project). And even if you aren't experienced with bread or yeasted doughs, this is still an easy one. Plus, you don't even need a mixer or a muffin tin to do this recipe right. The dough mixes easily by hand, and the rolls could just as well be dolloped onto a cookie sheet instead of into a muffin tin. And when it's summer in a flat with no air conditioning, the 50-minute rise time flies by, so seriously, why are you not in the kitchen yet?

These rolls will impress you with their simplicity, and since they don't last long (no preservatives in homemade goodies!), you'll be happy you ate an innumerable amount on the day you made them. But if a dozen rolls is too much for you (are we even friends?), it's an easy recipe to cut in half-- just scramble the egg lightly and scoop out two tablespoons of it to divide it in half.

The verdict:

4 spoons out of five. These rolls are delicious, easy, and cheap. You probably already have nearly all of the ingredients in your pantry. But I'm knocking off a spoon because the dough is really sticky and hard to handle, so if you're not careful, it's easy to add too much flour and render them pretty dry.

The Recipe:

Single-Rise Rolls

The directions:

Grease 12 muffin cups.
In large bowl, dissolve yeast in hot water.
Add 1 1/3 c flour and all remaining ingredients.
Stir until only pea-sized lumps remain, about 15 seconds or so.
Stir in remaining flour thoroughly, scraping sides of bowl until mixture is almost smooth (as my mom taught me, you want a few lumps to remain or the rolls won't rise).
Batter will be very sticky, so avoid going at it with your hands; instead, use a large spoon to scoop heaping spoonfuls into the greased muffin tin, then smooth out the tops of each portion.
Let rise in warm place (aka anywhere in my apartment) for 50 minutes.
Batter will rise slightly but not double.
Heat oven to 176C/350F, then bake 20 minutes or until golden brown and firm on top.
Immediately remove from pan and serve warm.

the ingredients:

2 ¼ tbsp active dry yeast
¼ c hottest tap water
2 1/3 c flour, divided
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 c sour cream*
1 egg

 

*The recipe actually calls for 'dairy sour cream,' as if there were any other kind. But the more I think about it, the more I want to know if there is another kind, because if so, gross.