Augustine Kitchen, Battersea Bridge Road

I have once before visited 63 Battersea Bridge Road. Post rejection by the bouncers at 9.30pm on the door of so called ‘pizzeria’ Bunga Bunga (if course every pizza joint needs bouncers?) my family and I stumbled in to Battersea Tandoori at that very address to satisfy our stomachs after a drinks party with little food. Not somewhere I’d rush back to,

Thankfully 63 Battersea Bridge Road has now been anti-tandoorified and now stands proud as Augustine Kitchen.

What a joy to find a super little French gem, brightening the somewhat bleak landscape a few metres south of Battersea Bridge and the glamour and pretension of the Kings Road!

Simple, delicious and reasonable, you can have a 2 course lunch Monday-Saturday for £9.95. Our dinner too was very well priced. Yummy and clearly carefully chosen house champagne, superb garlicky bone marrow, buttery home made ravioli and perfectly cooked fish and that’s not to mention the tart Tatin.

I will certainly be bringing my family back to 63 Battersea Bridge Road and it won’t take a booze fuelled party to do so.

I find it hard to fault this understated new local….. It just needs to get busier. augustine kitchen

The East Pier Smokehouse, St. Monan’s, Fife

A fabulous lunch has helped me emerge from by blogging hibernation. I’m currently in Scotland taking things as they come following an Aperol and prosecco drenched celebratory weekend in Elie, Fife.

We’d thoroughly overstayed our welcome chez Mills and were then taken for lunch by the long suffering family at The East Pier Smokehouse at St. Monan’s. http://www.eastpier.co.uk/

Mr and Mrs Mills frequent this super little place on a regular basis with good reason. These are a few things that made me love it so:

It’s situated right next door to the sea overlooking the harbour. A pretty whitewashed building nestling amongst pastel coloured fishermen’s cottages and holiday houses

It’s simple. You walk in, pick up a bottle of wine from the fridge, order your food and go upstairs to pick up your own cutlery, napkins and glasses

The tables are rectangular and clean, the chairs are plastic

The doors are open to a lovely terrace equipped with similar tables and chairs overlooking the harbour

There is little choice, everything is delivered in a cardboard take away box with scrummy salad underneath

You can choose from lobster, buttery, herby razor clams, dressed crab, home-smoked beetroot cured salmon and a few other fishy delights

On the side potato salad (with not too much mayo), chips (at least double cooked) or bread an butter are offered

Water from the tap is plonked on the table in a carafe

Once finished very good coffee is offered, I’m sure there’s pudding if you want it as well

It’s seriously reasonable, £7.50 for my razor clams, under £20.00 for a whole lobster

The seafood is not overcooked!

Clear your own table, chuck away your cardboard box, cutlery and glasses go in the dishwasher and away you go, happy, satisfied, jolly and full

The Malthouse, Vanston Place SW6. Go!

I’ve found a gem.  It’s rare that I go somewhere and in my pedantic way find nothing to fault. I really have tried to think of something I didn’t like about The Malt House, Vanston Place, SW6 www.malthousefulham.co.uk , I can’t.  These are the reasons I liked it so:

• My sister and I turned up absolutely drenched in our hi-vis, complete with cycle helmets and mascara down our faces.  The waiters weren’t the slightest bit snooty
• The waiter actually volunteered a recommendation at every stage.  There was no “It depends what you like really”
• The atmosphere is fresh, light and airy; clean feeling
• Fyfie’s Jade Garden cocktail was a winner
• My Hendricks and tonic had lots of ice and a not too tonic heavy ratio
• The Bloody Mary is made with celery infused vodka
• Tap water comes iced and in a jug without a hitch, no “would you prefer the mineral water?”
• The food is scrummy and unpretentious but still interesting

The following dishes were exceptional:

• Roasted Baby beetroot with feta sorbet. What isn’t to like? Golden and pink beetroot with cool, smooth feta sorbet
• Salt and vinegar pork scratchings.  Inspired
• Crab, mango and lime salad.  Served with a bit of sourdough toast.  Simple and delicious
• Beef and wasabi salad.  Thin, rare roast beef with wasabi dressing and a few leaves
• Bavette steak with salad and confit jersey royals.  Pink and tender, light bearnaise, crispy baby gem leaves with a tasty French dressing.  No fussy rocket or watercress.  Confit jersey royals cooked in beef dripping if I remember rightly?  Whatever, they were awesome.
• Fish and chips.  Great tartare sauce, mushy peas, crispy.  Did what it said on the tin.
• Burger.  Cooked well, delicious meat, pickles, plenty of chips.
• Sea bream.  Really well cooked, tasty little roasted tomato thing with it.
• Malt ice cream with salted caramel.  Like a little piece of heaven.  Ovaltine or Horlicks comfortingness with little crunchy sprinkles
• Lovely English cheese selection
• Alfonso mango Eton mess.  Very crunchy meringues and sweet mango.

If you are put off by how the Malthouse used to be then you will love how it is now.  It’s owned by the same people that own Hibiscus in Mayfair and is headed up in the kitchen by the guy who used to be head chef there.  Hibiscus is the kind of place I would go once in a lifetime for a super swanky 2 Michelin star treat.  I would go to the Malthouse every day if I could.

 

My Favorite Sourdough Loaf

BAKED AND COOLING

Dave is growing up, his flavour has matured and he no longer acts like a hungry child if he’s not fed at the same time each morning.  I can leave him over the weekend without being fed quite happily. I have also matured in my usage of him and with rather a lot of practice, have found my favourite balance of flours for what I think is a pretty darn good loaf.  With the sourness of a natural yeast, the maltiness of rye flour creates an excellent balance giving a nutty and satisfying taste.  Not wholly rye as I don’t want a jaw workout or to feel too worthy when eating it , but a combination of rye and white.  I’ve also worked out that it’s very important to bake the loaf at a high temperature, as a lovely dark, hard crust is invaluable flavour wise.

I still do not have a basket in which to prove by bread but I’ve found that my pasta bowls are a pretty good size and lined with a tea towel, very well floured.

If you’re reading this completely bemused with no idea who Dave is, you can read about him here.

MY FAVORITE SOURDOUGH LOAF

DOUGH PROVED OVERNIGHT

TURNED OUT ON TO BAKING TRAY

YOU WILL NEED:
150g dark rye flour
225g strong white flour
250g sourdough starter
7.5g salt
About 130 – 175ml tepid water

WHAT TO DO

1. Put all the ingredients except the water into the bowl of a Kitchen Aid mixer (or similar) with the dough hook attached
2. Start to mix on a slow setting and begin to add the water until a dough begins to form, you may not need to add all of the water
3. Knead for about 5-8 minutes until the dough becomes springy
4. Rub your hands with some olive oil and remove the dough from the mixer, roll into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl.  Cover with cling film and allow to prove for 2-3 hours
5. After 2-3 hours the dough will have risen a bit but not as much as a traditional yeasted dough.  Oil the mixer bowl and  return the risen dough to it and knead again for about a minute to ‘knock back’
6. Rub a clean tea towel with alot of flour and place into a bowl.  I use a wide, shallow pasta bowl.
7. Oil your hands again and remove the dough from the mixer, shape into a ball and place, smooth side down, into the makeshift proving basket, the tea towel lined pasta bowl
8. Put the bowl into a carrier bag (making sure that there is space for the dough to rise without touching the top of the bag) and move to a warm place to rise.  I always do this overnight, about 8 hours seems to work well.
9. In the morning, put a roasting tray in the bottom of the oven, preheat to 200C and flour a baking sheet well
10. Take the dough out of the plastic bag and holding on to the tea towel, carefully turn outonto the floured baking sheet
11. Remove the tea towel from the dough (hopefully it won’t stick) and make a couple of slashes in the top of the dough with a very sharp knife
12. Chuck a large mug of water into the roasting tray at the bottom of the oven to create some steam and bake the loaf for 40 minutes – 1 hour
13. You will know when the bread is ready as it will have a lovely dark crust and it will sound hollow if you tap the top
14. Allow the bread to cool on a rack, I find it tastes better cool than warm and serve

This bread is really delicious with cheese or smoked salmon.  It also is scrumptious toasted with some butter and a poached egg, my breakfast of choice.

A take on a Greek salad

The people of Chelsea are being remarkably stoic about our so called ‘Spring’.  The Finns picnic menu is in the shop and regardless of the pouring rain outside and the chilly wind they’re ordering for Glyndebourne, Lords, Wimbledon, school speech days and Ascot.  The girls in the kitchen’s coronation chicken pans are twitching at the thought.

I too am trying to look on the bright side and have decided that it’s time to start eating in a summery way at home.  Even if British tomatoes are not yet plump and ripe, the shops seem to have a good selection from warmer climes that remind me of those we used to pick from my Granny’s greenhouse.

A TAKE ON GREEK SALAD 

I served this with some very spicy harissa chicken.  The cool cucumber and feta with the citrussy sumak contrasted very satisfactorily with the hot spices.  It would also work really well with a curry or as part of a selection of salads with a barbeque.

YOU WILL NEED
For 2 as a lone side dish (with leftovers)

1/2 red onion, very finely diced
300g of lovely ripe small tomatoes, 1/2d or 1/4d
1/3 large cucumber, cubed
a handful of mint leaves and a handful of coriander leaves, finely chopped
100g feta, crumbled
1 small avocado, chopped
1/2 lemon
1tsp sumak (if you have it)
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

WHAT TO DO

1. Put the herbs, sumak, a squeeze of lemon juice, a glug of olive oil, the onion and some salt and pepper into a salad bowl and mix together
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and carefully toss
3. Adjust the seasoning and serve

A Persian Feast and Bread & Butter Pudding

“I very much look forward to seeing you tomorrow and would only ask one thing… COME HUNGRY!!!” was the way that Sabrina Ghayour signed off her email the day before I attended her Persian feast.  10 of us were welcomed into her house for an evening of superb home cooked Persian delicacies.  As you will see from the menu above, Sabrina had been a busy girl cooking her little socks off before we arrived; 10  fragrant and delicately flavored dishes graced the table, each one interesting and carefully thought out.  A wonderful selection of Persian ‘tapas’ (for want of a better word) to start with; soft apricotty, herby lamb meatballs and crunchy bitter sweet radicchio, blood orange, dill, sumak and pomegranate salad were favorites of mine.  Main courses again were to share, trout with a spicy pine nut filling and perfumed slow cooked lamb were surrounded by squash with pistachio nut pesto and special Persian rice with sour barberries.  A veritable feast.  Lucky I came hungry.

Sabrina’s food is clearly a wonderful way of welcoming and expression.  She is self taught and admits that she has spent many an hour with her nose in cookery books.  The Persian food she makes is natural to her and is her heritage, it is a labour of love.

Food that is natural to me and my heritage is somewhat less exotic.  Nevertheless, good, old -fashioned English food is always wonderfully comforting to cook and eat.  I felt a calling on Bank Holiday Monday, post Sunday night rose drinking to make bread and butter pudding.  I used the left over brioche from the loaf I made on Friday but any old bread would do.

CHOCOLATE CHIP BREAD & BUTTER PUDDING
For 4
This works equally well if you use left over croissants instead of bread or brioche.  If you prefer raisins or dried fruit the chocolate can be substituted

Ready for the oven

Ready to eat

YOU WILL NEED
A 12cm x 12 cm (or similar) oven proof dish
About 600g brioche or bread, crusts removed and cut into triangles
A couple of handfuls of chocolate buttons or chocolate chips
2 eggs, beaten
300ml cream
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp caster sugar
Butter

WHAT TO DO

1. Butter the oven proof dish
2. If you are using normal bread instead of brioche, spread it with butter
3. Mix the cream, eggs, vanilla and sugar together, set aside.
4. Arrange the bread in layers into the dish.  Sprinkle each layer with a few chocolate drops or chocolate buttons before starting on the next layer.
5. Once you reach the top layer, it’s quite nice to try and make it look pretty by arranging the triangles in lines pointing in the same direction
6. Pour the cream mixture over the bread and allow to soak for about 4 hours or overnight
7. When you are ready to cook preheat the oven to 180C, sprinkle the top of the pudding with a little caster sugar and bake in a bain marie for about 45mins until puffed up and crispy on top.
8. Check that the pudding ready by inserting a knife into the middle.  If the knife is hot, the pudding is ready
9. Allow to cool slightly and serve warm

Sourdough Chocolate Bank Holiday Brioche

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about my foray into the world of sourdough and the birth of Dave, my starter.  Since then, I have come across a few people on Twitter who, like me have named their starters.  In my own sad little way, I have giggled about the idiosyncrasies between this mundane flour and water mix and humans.  Some days Dave, is bubbling and active like a child that needs a run around the park and other days he’s quite happy and subdued as if all he wants to do is sit inside and watch telly.  Like a pet, I have to make sure I feed and water him each day and have become really quite fond of him.  I feel obliged to make bread at least once a week and a little guilty if I don’t.  It’s a good discipline.

In the breakfast stakes, I rarely choose something sweet, it’s always poached eggs on toast over a pain au chocolate.  Nevertheless, there is the odd occasion when a bit of brioche or a pancake would go down a treat.  I could not find a sourdough brioche recipe anywhere; I’d be interested if anyone else can? I experimented and came up with this one.  It has a wonderful texture and taste, somewhere between a bread and a cake.  The sweetness of the chocolate and the sugar contrasts in a very satisfying way with the sour nature of the starter.

I think I might make the leftovers into bread and butter pudding today……..

SOURDOUGH CHOCOLATE BRIOCHE
Will fill a 1.5 litre loaf tin

For this recipe you will need a Kitchen Aid mixer or something similar, the dough is incredibly sticky and would be very difficult to work with your hands

I used chocolate in my loaf but raisins, or any dried fruit would be lovely

WHAT YOU WILL NEED
410g strong white flour
250g sourdough starter (See my sourdough recipe for this)
7.5g salt
150g soft butter
2tsp vanilla essence
3tbsp of caster sugar
4 free range eggs
100g good quality dark chocolate, bashed up into smallish pieces

WHAT TO DO

1. Weigh the flour, starter and salt into the bowl of your Kitchen Aid and attach the dough hook. Begin to mix on a slow setting
2. Meanwhile, whisk the sugar, vanilla and eggs together until well combined in a separate bowl
3. Add the egg mixture to the flour and begin to work on a higher setting for about 5 minutes until you can see the dough becoming more glutenous and a little less sticky.  Do not add any more flour here, however much you may want to.
4. Now turn the mixer down and begin to add the butter,  cube by cube until it is all combined.  The dough will still look very sticky but will have a glossy sheen to it
5. Oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to it.  Cover with cling film and allow to prove in a warm place for about 3 hours
6. After 3 hours, butter your loaf tin and dust it with caster sugar
7. Return the dough to the mixer to knock it back on a slow setting and add the chocolate chunks
8. Once all the chocolate is incorporated, transfer the dough to the loaf tin, put into a large plastic bag, making sure that when the loaf rises, it will not touch the bag, and allow to prove again in a warm place for about 8 hours (overnight is good)
   

   Proved dough

9. Preheat the oven to 200C.
10. Take the dough out of the bag (don’t worry if it hasn’t risen as much as normal bread), brush the top of the loaf with some beaten egg and bake for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes reduce the heat to 180C and bake for a further 30 minutes.
11. Remove the brioche from the oven and if it sounds hollow when you knock the top of it, it is ready
12. Allow to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes and then further on a wrack
13. Serve warm with more butter.  I’m having it toasted for breakfast this morning

Crostini and a weekend in “The Country”

“I’m going to The Country” is the response I often receive when I ask my customers where they’re off to for the weekend. “The Country” I’ve worked out, refers to anywhere within under 2 hour’s drive from London. People who go to “The Country” usually have a house in London too. Gloucestershire, Sussex, Hampshire, Dorset and Wiltshire come under the “The Country” umbrella. London is referred to as “London”, definitely not “The City” Or “Town”. One can ‘nip’ to “The Country” for a day to have a meeting about changing the drawing room curtains or vice versa to London for lunch with a friend back from the South of France for a couple of days. “The Country” is where one summers away from London at it’s most ghastly.

I suppose I could say I’m in “The Country” now. It seems more natural to me though to say I’m staying in a village near Oxford. HB and I are having a frightfully civilised time (so far!) with a couple of friends.

I thought I’d give you one of my favorite and most easy recipes this week for crostini. As Spring has almost sprung, everyone is in the mood to have a drinks party and these crostini are a fail safe in “The Country”, London and everywhere in between that has a name. They keep for about 2 months in a biscuit tin and make an excellent base for a canapé. Or as an alternative to croutons for soup or salad.

CROSTINI
for about 20 crostini

YOU WILL NEED
1 baguette (stale works better)
Olive oil
Salt

WHAT TO DO

Preheat the oven to 180C
Slice the baguette into 5mm slices. Make sure the slices are bite size. If the baguette is quite wide, cut the slices in 1/2
Lay the slices out on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt
Bake for about 30 mins until golden and very crisp
Allow to cool and use straight away topping with any of the below or store for up to a month

MY FAVOURITE TOPPINGS

A slick of soft goats cheese or cream cheese topped with some Parma ham, a slice of fresh fig and a drizzle of honey
Cherry tomatoes chopped small and dressed with some olive oil, seasoning, a bit of torn basil and a teeny bit of minced garlic
Cream cheese, Parma ham and basil
Cream cheese with some dill and lemon zest mixed into it, smoked salmon, a caper or 2 and some pepper
Red onion marmalade and crumbled goats cheese
Pesto, boccocini and a sun blushed tomato
Mozzarella, salt and pepper and a few pomegranate seeds sprinkled on top with a drizzle of olive oil and some chopped parsley
Griddled courgette ribbons with lemon zest, fresh, finely chopped chilli and lemon zest
Homous topped with a sun blushed tomato or an olive

Duck, sweet potato and pomegranate salad

The lovely thing about Finns for those that work there and the customers is that there is no set menu.  From the kitchen behind the shop, the girls create new recipes daily from the fresh and seasonal ingredients delivered each morning.

Last week pomegranates were looking ruby red and succulent and Colette was inspired to make a delicious sweet potato and pomegranate salad.  So enamored was I that I made my own variation on the idea at home

I’ve previously banged on about my love of pomegranate molasses and in this recipe it’s tangy sweetness goes down at treat with the duck and sweet potato.  HB and I had this as a light dinner but it would work brilliantly as a starter for a dinner party

Pomegranate molasses is gradually becoming more readily available.  I found it recently in Waitrose but I’m lucky enough to have an Iranian shop round the corner where I can get it easily.  If you can’t be bothered to schlep around the shops on a wild goose chase, buy it online.

DUCK, SWEET POTATO & POMEGRANATE SALAD
For 2 as dinner or 4 as a starter

FOR THE DRESSING
4 tbsp pomegranate molasses
1.5 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp honey
4 tbsp olive oil
Juice of 1/2 orange
1/2 garlic clove

FOR THE SALAD
1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 large duck breast
1 sprig of rosemary, leaves picked
A good pinch of cumin seeds
2 good handfuls of peppery salad leaves (watercress and rocket worked well for me)
1 spring onion, chopped
100g French beans, chopped into 1 inch chunks
A large handful of pomegranate seeds
A large handful of chopped coriander
Zest of 1/2 orange
1/2 medium strength red chilli, seeds removed and finely chopped
Olive oil

WHAT TO DO

1. Preheat the oven to 180C and put the sweet potato on a baking sheet with a little olive oil.  Sprinkle the cumin seeds and rosemary leaves all over the sweet potato and bake in the oven for about 30 mins
2. Meanwhile score the skin of the duck and season with salt and pepper.  In a very hot oven proof frying pan, start cooking the duck skin side down for about 4 minutes to crisp up the skin, you will not need any oil in the pan.  Turn the duck over and sear the underside. Move to the oven for about 10-15 minutes (if you like it pink)
3. On a large plate, Mix the orange zest with the chilli, some seasoning and a little olive oil.  Set aside
4. Put all of the dressing ingredients into a jam jar and shake them together vigorously.  Season.
5. Remove the duck from the oven and transfer to the plate with the orange zest mixture on it.  Coat with the marinade, cover with foil and set aside for 10 minutes to rest
6. Steam the French beans and remove to a large bowl
7. When the sweet potato is cooked add it to the French beans along with the salad leaves, spring onions, pomegranate seeds and coriander.  Toss the salad together with a few tbsp of the dressing.  You will have dressing left over but it will keep well in the fridge and is very handy to have around
8. Divide the salad between 2 bowls.  Slice the duck and arrange it on top of the salad. Finish with a few extra pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of the duck resting juices

An introduction to ‘Dave’ the sourdough starter

I really love my Kitchen Aid. This year it has taken me into the world of making bread and I have so enjoyed it. I have made white bread and brown bread, granary and rye bread and have recently got into making age old sourdough.

White bread (with yeast)

Granary bread (with yeast)

There has been a lot of press surrounding sourdough lately. Paul Hollywood, the azure eyed macho Scouse made it on his program on Monday night. I began the life of my starter about a month ago and although it’s early days were somewhat checkered (I left in the fridge for a week when I went on holiday) it seems like a pretty sturdy thing and I’ve managed to make a couple of good loaves since (with a good lot of feeding and adherence to the instructions below). Not only that but the first loaf I made was the product of some late night, post night out and many a cocktail domesticity. Kneading away at 2am, I’m sure I had to read the recipe with one eye closed. Like Paul Hollywood, this bread is not quite azure eyed but it’s certainly macho and resilient.

Sourdough bread does not use yeast. A mix of strong bread flour and water ferments over the course of about 2 weeks to create a natural yeast that can then be used to make a loaf. I’ve heard of some sourdough starters lasting for 10 years so as long as you keep on feeding it, it’ll be a long term pet.  As such, I thought mine ought to have a name.  I asked the ‘tweeps’ on Twitter thought and my witty Dad came back with “‘Dave’, constantly recycled”.  Dave it is.

SOURDOUGH BREAD

FOR THE STARTER:
100ml tepid water
50g rye flour
50g strong white bread flour

WHAT TO DO:

Starter day 3

Starter after a feed

Bubbles and fermentation

The starter day 12

1. In a jug mix the water and flours together to make a batter like mixture. If it is too firm, add a little more water, it should have the consistency of pancake batter. Cover with cling film and set aside, out of the way in the kitchen in a warm draftless spot
2. After 24 hours repeat the above recipe and add to the first jug, leave for another 24 hours covered in cling film
3. After 48 hours you should begin to see some bubbles forming and it may begin to smell acidic and acrid. For the next 10 days you will need to ‘feed’ your starter each day.
4. Each day remove a couple of ladles of the starter and discard. Replace with equal quantities of flour and water, a ladel of each, and beat together. You can mix it up on the flour front. Some days I used just white, some days just wholemeal, other days rye or a mixture.
5. You should smell your starter before you feed it each time, I find it fascinating. At the beginning the acidic smell hits the back of your throat and is quite horrid. As time passes, mine began to smell like fresh mashed bananas and then malty beer. At the malty beer stage I deemed it ready to go (at 12 days)
6. I have now transferred Dave into a large kilner jar.  He feels happier and more secure there.

TO MAKE THE BREAD (this is Paul Hollywood’s recipe):

YOU WILL NEED:

375g strong flour (I used granary the 1st time and strong white the second)
250g sourdough starter
7.5g salt
130 – 175g tepid water

Ready to rise

Knocking back

Knead again

Shape to prove

WHAT TO DO

1. Mix the salt with 1/2 the water to dissolve
2. In a large bowl (or Kitchen Aid with dough hook attached on a slow setting) mix the flour and the starter together
3. Now begin to incorporate the salted water and then start to add the rest of the water (you may not need to use it all) until a dough begins to form
4. Once you have a springy, slightly sticky dough either turn out onto a surface oiled with olive oil or add a little olive oil to the bowl of the Kitchen Aid and knead for about 10 minutes (slightly longer if by hand)
5. After a good kneading, the dough should be smooth and stretchy, stickier than a traditional yeasted bread dough. Shape into a ball and place into a large, oiled bowl. Cover with cling film and allow to prove for about 4 – 6 hours or until doubled in size
6. Once the dough has proved, knock the air out and knead again for a few minutes on a well floured surface as the dough will be sticky
7. You can use a traditional loaf tin (as I did the second time I made sourdough) or a bowl lined with a well floured tea towel to let the bread rise for the second time. Traditionally a sourdough proving basket is used but I don’t have one of those.
8. Allow the dough to prove again in a large plastic bag for around 8 hours, or until doubled in size. When the dough rises, it becomes quite sticky so make sure that any of the bag that may touch the dough is well oiled
9. Preheat the oven to 220C and put a roasting tray in the bottom of the oven, if you are using a bowl lined with a floured tea towel, carefully turn the bread out onto a well floured baking sheet. If you are using a loaf tin flour the top of it well.
10. Either way, when the bread is ready for the oven make a couple of slashes in the top of the dough
11. Chuck a large cup of water into the roasting tray at the bottom of the oven and put the bread in the oven for around 45 minutes, reducing the heat after 30 minutes to 200C
12. The bread that emerges should have an excellent crust, delicious for toast and scrambled eggs

Granary sourdough

Granary sourdough

Sourdough white

Sourdough white