Cluck, Muck & Cook

Baking & Foodie Blog From Sunny Brentwood Essex

halloween

2 Breads

Spooky Fougasse Bread

 

During botanical week of the Great British Bake Off, the technical challenge was to bake a fougasse. Traditionally a leaf shaped bread, quite similar to an Italian focaccia.  Tom Gilliford one of the contestants declared ‘I love fougasse. It’s actually my cinema snack !’. Which spawned a lot of amusement on Twitter and brought this little known bread into the public eye. Instagram and Pinterest have been flooded with everyone’s new favourite cinema snack.
Haloween fougasse bread

Staying on the Great British Bake Off theme, I also saw a previous contestant Richard Burr post a fougasse Halloween themed bread. So I thought it was time I gave it a go.  Historically bread has been my nemesis but these came out a treat. As always I like to tweak recipes a little and added some dried mixed herbs and also used some good quality Maldon sea salt (I am from Essex after all!).

fougasse halloween

Makes: 4 small loaves
Oven Temp: Gas 7, 425F, 220C (200C Fan)
Ingredients
500g strong white bread flour (plus more for dusting)
2 teaspoons salt
7g fast acting yeast (1 sachet)
375ml water
2 tbsp olive oil
Olive oil spray
Maldon sea salt
1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
2 large baking sheets

Instructions
1.Put all the dry ingredients into the bowl of a mixer. Keep the salt and yeast on opposite sides so that the salt does not retard the yeast.
2.Add the oil and the water to the bowl. Mix with a spoon to bring together the ingredients.
3.Mix with a dough hook for about 10 minutes. The dough will be very wet
4.Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with cling film and prove in a warm place for about a hour, until the dough has doubled in size.
5.Put plenty of flour onto the work surface and tip out the dough. I use a plastic dough scraper to make this easier. You want to keep as many bubbles in the dough as possible so treat it gently. Then sprinkle plenty of flour on the top.
6.Using a sharp knife, divide the dough into quarters.
7.Carefully lift each quarter onto the baking trays so there are two on each tray.
8.Cut eyes, a nose and a mouth into each piece of dough. This is tricky as the dough is quite wet. Open out these holes by gently pulling the dough into the shape you want.
9.Cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise for 20 minutes.
10.Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C.
11.Spray the dough with olive oil or gently brush some oil on. Then sprinkle with the sea salt
12.Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown

Adapted from a recipe by Richard Burr

Spooky Fougasse Bread
 
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During botanical week of the Great British Bake Off, the technical challenge was to bake a fougasse. Traditionally a leaf shaped bread, quite similar to an Italian focaccia. Tom Gilliford one of the contestants declared ‘I love fougasse. It’s actually my cinema snack !’. Which spawned a lot of amusement on Twitter and brought this little known bread into the public eye. Instagram and Pinterest have been flooded with everyone's new favourite cinema snack.
Author:
Serves: 4 Small
Ingredients
  • Oven Temp: Gas 7, 425F, 220C (200C Fan)
  • 500g strong white bread flour (plus more for dusting)
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 7g fast acting yeast (1 sachet)
  • 375ml water
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Olive oil spray
  • Maldon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
  • 2 large baking sheets
Instructions
  1. Instructions
  2. Put all the dry ingredients into the bowl of a mixer. Keep the salt and yeast on opposite sides so that the salt does not retard the yeast.
  3. Add the oil and the water to the bowl. Mix with a spoon to bring together the ingredients.
  4. Mix with a dough hook for about 10 minutes. The dough will be very wet
  5. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with cling film and prove in a warm place for about a hour, until the dough has doubled in size.
  6. Put plenty of flour onto the work surface and tip out the dough. I use a plastic dough scraper to make this easier. You want to keep as many bubbles in the dough as possible so treat it gently. Then sprinkle plenty of flour on the top.
  7. Using a sharp knife, divide the dough into quarters.
  8. Carefully lift each quarter onto the baking trays so there are two on each tray.
  9. Cut eyes, a nose and a mouth into each piece of dough. This is tricky as the dough is quite wet. Open out these holes by gently pulling the dough into the shape you want.
  10. Cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise for 20 minutes.
  11. Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C.
  12. Spray the dough with olive oil or gently brush some oil on. Then sprinkle with the sea salt
  13. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown
Notes
Active time is about 20 Mins but you will need to let this prove for about an hour

 

21 Traybakes

Spooky Millionaires Shortbread

Day 2 of the boys weekend and we decided to make one of our favourite quick and easy tray bakes, millionaires shortbread. As Halloween is knocking on the door, we decided to make a ghostly pattern in the chocolate rather than the traditional marbling.

The technique to get the ghost shapes is surprisingly easy. When you get to the chocolate layer in the recipe, reserve a tablespoon of dark chocolate in a piping bag to pipe on the ghost eyes and mouth. For the ghost bodies , pipe a circle of white chocolate on the still melted dark chocolate, then drag a skewer from the centre of the circle to create a tail. Wipe the skewer between ghosts for the best effect, then pipe on some eyes and a mouth.

Makes: 16
Ingredients
250g shortbread biscuits
55g melted butter
150g butter
150g dark brown soft sugar
400g can condensed milk
pinch of salt
200g dark chocolate
100g white chocolate
Square brownie tin approx 20cm

Instructions

  1. Put the biscuits in a bag and crush with a rolling pin until like large breadcrumbs. Line the tin with baking parchment. Mix the crushed biscuits with the melted butter, then press it firmly into your lined tin and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  2.  Heat the sugar,salt and remaining butter in a non-stick pan, stirring until melted. Add the condensed milk and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Cook for a couple of minutes or until the filling has thickened. Pour the caramel over the base. Cool on a work surface for 15 minutes and then chill in the fridge until set.
  3. Melt the chocolate in separate bowls over pans of simmering water. Pour the dark chocolate over the caramel and then reserve a tablespoon of dark chocolate in a piping bag. For the ghost bodies, pipe a circle of white chocolate on the melted dark chocolate, drag a skewer from the centre of the circle to create a tail. Wipe the skewer between ghosts for the best effect then pipe on some eyes and a mouth.
  4. Chill in the fridge until set. Remove from the tin and cut into squares, dip your knife in hot water between cuts to help cutting through the chocolate.

Stores well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Spooky Millionaires Shortbread
 
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Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 16
Ingredients
  • 250g shortbread biscuits
  • 55g melted butter
  • 150g butter
  • 150g dark brown soft sugar
  • 400g can condensed milk
  • pinch of salt
  • 200g dark chocolate
  • 100g white chocolate
  • Square brownie tin approx 20cm
Instructions
  1. Put the biscuits in a bag and crush with a rolling pin until like large breadcrumbs. Line the tin with baking parchment. Mix the crushed biscuits with the melted butter, then press it firmly into your lined tin and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  2. Heat the sugar,salt and remaining butter in a non-stick pan, stirring until melted. Add the condensed milk and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Cook for a couple of minutes or until the filling has thickened. Pour the caramel over the base. Cool on a work surface for 15 minutes and then chill in the fridge until set.
  3. Melt the chocolate in separate bowls over pans of simmering water. Pour the dark chocolate over the caramel and then reserve a tablespoon of dark chocolate in a piping bag. For the ghost bodies, pipe a circle of white chocolate on the melted dark chocolate, drag a skewer from the centre of the circle to create a tail. Wipe the skewer between ghosts for the best effect then pipe on some eyes and a mouth.
  4. Chill in the fridge until set. Remove from the tin and cut into squares, dip your knife in hot water between cuts to help cutting through the chocolate.
Notes
Stores well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

The first two stages have to chill for 30 mins each once cooled.

Adapted from a Carnation recipe.

2 Bake with the kids

Halloween Gingerbread Men

While the wife’s away the kids will play.

This weekend has been a boys weekend in my house, with the wife popping away to catch up with some old school friends. Which left me and my two boys alone for the weekend to get up to mischief.

Gingerbreadmen

Gingerbread Men

On Saturday morning we decided to pop to the local farm shop’s new cafe to sample their breakfasts. As usual at any coffee shop we go to the boys will sniff out the gingerbread men. The farm shop was full of pumpkins as Halloween is just around the corner. That gave me the idea to dust off my favourite gingerbread man recipe and do some baking with the boys. Skeletons and mummies were on the cards.

I have a great skeleton cutter that I have not had a chance to use yet that imprints a skeleton onto the dough so you can fill the impression with icing. Unfortunately the definition was slightly lost as the biscuits cooked but it did give me a guide for my first attempt at piping royal icing. The smaller mummies I just free handed with a small flat piping nozzle.

Gingerbread skeleton

Gingerbread skeleton

This recipe uses golden syrup rather than treacle so makes a slightly lighter coloured gingerbread but it has a good kick of ginger and cinnamon to make a lovely, warming biscuit.

Makes: About 20

Oven Temp: Gas 4, 350F, 180C (160C Fan)

Ingredients
350g plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
125g butter
175g light soft brown sugar
1  egg
4 tablespoons golden syrup
Extra flour for rolling
250g royal icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
40-50ml water

Instructions

  1. Sift together the all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and whizz until the mix looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add in the sugar and whizz again just to incorporate.
  2. Beat the egg and golden syrup together, add to the food processor and whizz until the mixture starts to come together. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, wrap in cling film and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
  3. Preheat the oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with grease-proof paper.
  4. Roll the dough out to about half a centimetre thickness on a lightly floured surface. Using gingerbread men cookie cutters, cut out and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.
  5. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown.
  6. Leave on the tray for 10 minutes to cool slightly, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
  7. To make the icing add the royal icing sugar, vanilla extract and 40ml of water to the bowl of a mixer with the whisk attachment or you can use an electric whisk. Before whisking mix together with a spoon or spatula. This will prevent a icing sugar cloud when you start mixing.
  8. Whisk for a couple of minutes until thick, if too thick to pipe, loosen with an additional teaspoon or two of water.
  9. Put into a piping bag.When cooled decorate with the icing.

Adapted from a GoodFood recipe.

Halloween Gingerbread Men
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
A lighter coloured gingerbread but it has a good kick of ginger and cinnamon to make a lovely, warming biscuit.
Author:
Serves: 20
Ingredients
  • 350g plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
  • 2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 125g butter
  • 175g light soft brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 4 tablespoons golden syrup
  • Extra flour for rolling
  • 250g royal icing sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 40-50ml water
Instructions
  1. Oven Temp: Gas 4, 350F, 180C (160C Fan)
  2. Sift together the all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and whizz until the mix looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add in the sugar and whizz again just to incorporate.
  3. Beat the egg and golden syrup together, add to the food processor and whizz until the mixture starts to come together. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, wrap in cling film and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
  4. Preheat the oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with grease-proof paper.
  5. Roll the dough out to about half a centimetre thickness on a lightly floured surface. Using gingerbread men cookie cutters, cut out and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.
  6. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown.
  7. Leave on the tray for 10 minutes to cool slightly, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
  8. To make the icing add the royal icing sugar, vanilla extract and 40ml of water to the bowl of a mixer with the whisk attachment or you can use an electric whisk. Before whisking mix together with a spoon or spatula. This will prevent a icing sugar cloud when you start mixing.
  9. Whisk for a couple of minutes until thick, if too thick to pipe, loosen with an additional teaspoon or two of water.
  10. Put into a piping bag.When cooled decorate with the icing.