Oh Deer!....that's it for another year!.... Guinness Bread

Well it's all over now folks, bar the Christmas cake which still hasn't been cut into....can you believe it? Yes, I know, it's shocking.... this year we actually didn't have a slice of Christmas cake or even dessert on the big day. We have concluded that our stomachs, as they get older, get smaller....how awful...yet our waistlines seem to increase!...how doubly awful!

The Christmas dinner was a delight as always, and cooked to perfection by my brother who is also a chef...I didn't even have to carry out sous chef duties, although I did scrub the pots. This year he filled the cavity of the turkey with whole bulbs of garlic and some onion, covered the turkey in a layer of dry cured smoked bacon and roasted it ever so gently and lovingly on a bed of root vegetables.....and wow! what a delicious bird we had. 
Instead of the usual 'gammon' we had loin of bacon slowly roasted, then slathered with that famously fiery English mustard, covered with slices of pineapple studded with cloves, maraschino cherries, and a good layer of brown sugar. The whole was then given an extra touch in a hot oven just before serving, to caramelise all the brown sugar and sweet juices, resulting in the most tenderest, sweetest, most succulent piece of ham......far better than boiled gammon any day! and I LOVE boiled gammon!... but despite the deliciousness, none of us could manage to finish our dinner, and as for asking for seconds? that was a no go area for everyone...practically unheard of in this house at Christmas.

It wasn't that we had an enormous amount of food our our plates, we think it was the amuse bouche and the Apéro, and then the soup that did it! We began the day with our annual glass of Kir Royale accompanied by a few duck spring rolls and mini pizza triangles...only 2 bites worth of each as we opened our gifts, just enough to get those appetites up and running, but when we sat down to lunch we had my famous vegetable soup to start, with a few breads including my first attempt at Guinness Bread which turned out to be divine and very moreish....I think that was our downfall...note to self for next year....1 ladle of soup + copious amounts of homemade breads = no room for turkey!


But as the turkey feasting is now behind us, and there will be no more 'banquets' until possibly Easter Sunday, you might like to have a go at this delicious bread yourself. It is very simple to make and good for everyday eating with your lunch or supper soup, and you know, as the ad says......Guinness Is Good For YOU! so get your new year off to a 'healthy' start.

Guinness® Bread

you will need.....

200g self raising flour or plain flour with 1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
240g wholemeal flour
60g porridge oats (rolled) plus a little extra for dusting
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 level teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon dark soft brown sugar
1 tablespoon treacle
200mls Guinness
approx 150mls buttermilk
a little butter

How to.....

• pre-heat the oven to 170oC
• butter a 1 pound /500g loaf tin or other suitable bread tin really well and set aside 
• sieve the white flour with the salt and baking soda
• add the wholemeal flour, oats, brown sugar, and mix all together well
• I find it best to use an electric mixer with a K beater for this next part.....however if you feel you have the arm strength then feel free to mix by hand with a wooden spoon just like they did in the old days!........add the treacle to the flours, then pour in the Guinness....begin to mix gently, and as the flour and liquid combine add the buttermilk a little at a time until you achieve the consistency of a slack dough
• continue mixing and adding buttermilk until all the flour has been absorbed.
• scoop your batter into the buttered baking tin, smooth over the top a little then scatter some porridge oats over the loaf
• place in the oven immediately and bake for approx 40 -50 minutes or until the dough is dry when you test it with a skewer
• when done, allow to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire cooling rack until cooled completely

This bread is best left for a full day before slicing into it, and you will be surprised how well it can keep and still remain so moist and delicious. Store in an airtight container once you begin to slice into it. Don't be tempted to try and make little scones from this as the mixture is too slack and if you try to add extra flour to make a firmer dough you'll end up with a 'dead weight'....If you want small ones then get some of those little loaf shaped cardboard moulds and you can have mini Guinness Breads!

So that's it for this year folks, we have cooked a lot, ate a lot, most of it very health conscious, but a few naughty bits along the way to keep our spirits up. My blog has been going for just over a year now and I'm still enjoying it and I hope you are too, so pop back again after the new year and see what's on the stove....let's hope for snow as cold weather calls for delicious soups and stews and all those lovely things that keep the cold at bay.

So until we meet again in the new year, adieu and may you have many blessings in 2017

lesleyann x

p.s. I was lucky enough to be gifted a cookery book by the legendary Alice Waters of Chez Panisse in California, so 2017 will be exciting in the kitchen!  lot's to look forward to.....can't wait!