Tuesday 24 April 2012

The promised bread



So here it is, the bread I promised last week. It's a bit of an odd bread, this. In fact, it might not be much of
a bread at all. Maybe it should be called a loaf. It's a bit undecided, even in its disposition - not wholely sweet, nor stubbornly savoury.

But in that I-don't-really-know-who-I-am demeanour, the unsureness, lies its real charm. I am still talking about the bread.



























This bread is a quirky one.

I like things quirky.

Quirks make me feel comfortable. Like a patchwork blanket where the squares don't perfectly meet. Quirky blankets, quirky bread, quirky people. They are who you put your feet up with. Even if your sock has a hole. Hell, sometimes it's all about the hole.

I can make my daughter happy just by cutting a hole in a piece of paper, and having her look through it. Suddenly, the world looks a little bit quirky, a little less regular. And it makes her giggle and giggle.

And, I am still talking about the bread. The loaf. The loafy bread. Oh, call it what you will, but I promise it will make you put your feet up like quirky things do. And it'll surprise your mouth with bits of sweet pear and salty cheese and crunchy seeds.

It's odd in such a good way. It's the bread that thought outside the bread box. Square loaf in a round hole.

Yeah, I know it's not really square.






Cheesy pear and pumpkin seed bread

This bread is gloriously good straight out of the oven, when the pieces of pears are folded up in gooey, melted cheese, and the pumpkin seeds are all toasty and crunchy. I chose cheddar because I wanted a no-frills, robust cheese cosying up to the sweet pear. But you can posh-up the bread by replacing the cheddar with gorgonzola, or any other blue-veined cheese. That works wonderfully too.

The other thing we discovered with this bread is that it tastes great a day later, when toasted in a flat pan till lightly browned on both sides. Buttered, or not.





























Ingredients


2 1/2 cups plain flour
2 soft pears (3 if small), peeled and cubed
1 cup grated cheddar (or gorgonzola cut into small pieces)
2 tbs pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 eggs
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tbs butter melted
1 tsp olive oil to grease the bread tin
1/2 cup cold milk
Some grated cheese to sprinkle on top



























In a big bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and sea salt. To this, mix the pear, cheddar (or gorgongola) and half of the pumpkin seeds. With your hands, or a wooden spoon, mix them in well.
In a separate bowl mix the eggs, olive oil and melted butter. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Add a bit of cold milk if the mixture feels too tight.
Grease your bread tin. Spoon the mixture into the tin. Sprinkle the remaining pumpkin seeds on top. 
Bake in the oven, at 160 degrees C, for 45 minutes. Then take it out of the oven and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Put it back in for another 5-10 minutes. 
Insert a knife in the centre of the bread. If it comes our clean, the bread is baked.
Slice, and enjoy!





 

14 comments:

  1. Oh, love! Quirky is nice. Cheesy goodness does win my heart.

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    1. and my 3-year old would vouch for the goodness of cheese too. she's a bit of a cheese connoisseur. the only pre-schooler i know who loves blue cheeses :)

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  2. I love the way you write so much, I really do.
    I'm with you on the wonky blankets, socks with holes and round pegs...

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    1. a kindred soul! i love that you love what i write. it kinda makes my day :)

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  3. LOL on the blanket ends not meeting! For a control freak like me, I might never fold it and leave it as a spread on the bed or find a different way to fold it :D
    The bread sounds lovely .. quirky or not!

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    1. there must be some medication for this :))
      i can just imagine you breaking your back straightenng slippers, and dabbing at specks!

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  4. My mouth is watering just looking at that! It looks amazing! :)

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  5. This quirky bread sounds utterly fantastic! Mmmm...

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    1. my in-house tasters tell me it is, snix :)

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  6. You had me at 'quirky'... and then you bowled me over with "bits of sweet pear and salty cheese and crunchy seeds". Yummmmmm......
    And im so so happy coz I have all these ingredients at home! Im so making this loafy, quirky break this very weekend :)

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    1. ooh, excited that you're going to be trying it out! you must, must tell me if you liked it, swati! :)

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  7. Such tasty looking bread! I love the combo of cheese, pears and seeds.

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  8. thanks arrose :) the combo was determined mainly by some pears that were sitting at home, getting too soft :)

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