GUEST BLOG: Better bread

By guest blogger CHRIS YOUNG

Cracking Good Food’s bread expert, Rob Tomlinson, spent Saturday morning at Altrincham Grammar School for Boys showing a full house how to make garlic naan breads and aromatic focaccia with onions, rosemary and crystal salt on top and olives and sundried tomatoes inside, and the perfect organic loaf. Our two wonderful volunteers, Anne and Dianne, also made some wonderful pizzas from scratch so we had a delicious lunch to keep us going!

Rob started out by talking about the different types of yeast and how the quantity affects the breadmaking process: the less yeast you use, the longer it takes for the dough to rise. Understanding yeast and how it works is very important to successful baking. The different types of flour are also important to understand and Rob explained everything as well as tips on how to make the perfect bread.

Everyone started by making the organic loaf so the dough would have enough time to rise.

After that we got on with the focaccia dough. Once risen, the dough was folded and stretched out to fit a baking tray and then we added the onion, fresh rosemary, olive oil, garlic and sea salt on top.

Next, the participants made the naan dough and Rob showed how to make a great garlic paste by chopping garlic, adding salt and squashing it all together using the blade of a knife. It’s both cheaper and better than the store-bought stuff! The garlic paste was added to the naan dough and this was then kneaded until it had a soft, spongy texture. The naan dough was then cut into six equal pieces and rolled out before being cooked in oil-greased pans, giving off an amazing aroma. Thank you to Rob, participants and the volunteers for a great baking day!

Have a look at our Facebook page for more photos from the Breaking Bread session.

Our next class in Altrincham is on Tuesday, when Kevin White, aka Ginger Kid, will be taking us through the steps for making delicious pasta, totally from scratch, Sign up here: http://www.crackinggoodfood.org/cookery-school/altrincham/#pasta-from-scratch