Easy breads – no kneading or proofing!
We love fresh bread, but I don’t love kneading dough, or waiting for it to proof and rise. I have two recipes that I make from time to time, which are so easy and perfect for picnics. And best of all – no kneading, no waiting around!
Pumpkin bread
The first recipe is pumpkin bread. Whenever I roast pumpkin, I do a bit extra to mash up and freeze. That way when I want to make the pumpkin bread I can skip a step. The recipe is 2 cups of self-raising flour, 1 tablespoon of caster sugar, and about half a teaspoon of salt (the salt helps the bread rise – resist the urge to be healthy and cut the salt out!). My boys like chilli, so I add about half a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes as well, but obviously this is optional. In a separate jug or bowl mix two eggs, 60g of melted butter, 125mL of milk, and approximately 1 cup of mashed pumpkin. I’ve made this recipe about a dozen times and I’ve never measured the pumpkin, so the recipe is pretty forgiving.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Tip into a prepared loaf tin and add a couple of handfuls of grated cheese over the top. Then add about a handful of sunflower seeds over the top. Cook at 180 degrees for about 35 minutes.
This recipe is lovely in school lunches, for picnics, or with barbeques.
Beer bread
Yep, you read that right – beer bread. The yeast in the beer is the raising agent in this bread. It is incredibly simple to make. 3 cups of self-raising flour, 1 tablespoon of caster sugar, and 450mL of beer (I find a pale ale is lovely, but I don’t think it really matters). Mix this together, tip into a prepared tin and add a couple of handfuls of grated cheese over the top, and then a handful of sunflower seeds. Cook at 180 degrees for about 45 minutes. The bread doesn’t taste too ‘beery’ – in fact, if you didn’t know there was beer in it, you probably wouldn’t guess. It does make a nice textured bread, but really we love it because it is done in less than an hour from start to finish.
Like the pumpkin bread, this is ideal for picnics and barbeques.
