Potato Onion Bread

Hello friends,

How is everyone??? Its been a month since my last recipe post and I missed the blogging world very much. Last weekend has been a fun filled one with the "Blogger's Buzz meet" and I enjoyed myself immensely.

Blogger's Buzz was a grand success ... wonderful job by the team : Nisha, Preethi, Nupur and Suchi.

Girls, U ROCK..:) Sponsors, goody bags, good food, food photography workshop ... Hope we have many more of these meets in the future...

It was a refreshing change from the mundane routine of blogging, recipe post etc as it was a chance to see the people behind the blogs. I can confidently say that I acquired a few friends ... "like minded friends"..:)

Somehow this meet has made me realise that there is much more to blogging than posting recipes..... a feeling of increased responsibility. It has made me think about the blog, its contents [both photos and written material], people who read my post and my commitment towards the blog.

On the whole I've realised that my responsibility has increased and I am all geared up to do all the hardwork towards maintaining a good space for my readers. First in the list is this bread recipe which caught my eye when flipping through a magazine.

I am not a big fan of bread but Mr.M loves flavoured bread. He gobbled up a whole loaf in just 3 days - with soup / cheese / olive spread ...:)

Addition of onion, potatoes and herbs makes this a flavourful accompaniment for soups or just on its own. Potatoes gives the bread a soft texture unlike the conventional bread and I loved it.

This is my first experiment in making baking bread at home and the positive result has basically increased my confidence in my baking skills..

For the bread:
Strong white bread flour: 500 gms.
Small red onion: 1.
Potatoes: 100 gms.
Butter: 50 gms.
Sugar: 1 tsp.
Easy mix yeast : 1 sachet [7gms].
Parmesan cheese: 2 tbsp. 
Warm water: 300mls.
Mixed dried Italian herbs: 1 tbsp.
Salt and pepper: to taste
Milk: 1 tbsp [for brushing].
Pumpkin seeds: a handful.

1.Peel and chop the potatoes into small pieces. Boil until soft, mash and keep it covered in a warm place until later use.
2.Peel, finely chop and saute the onion in a little oil until soft. Reserve until later use.
3.Rub the butter into the flour. Mix in the mashed potatoes, onions, sugar, cheese, half of the dried herbs, salt and pepper.
4.Mix the yeast with the warm water. Make a well in the middle of the flour mix and gently pour in the yeast mix.
5.Gently mix with the flour and knead for 5 minutes. Shape into 2 loaves or one large loaf [in the shape of a bloomer].
6.Leave to rise in a warm place for approximately 30 minutes until well risen and double the size.
8.Preheat the oven to 200 C/400F/Gas 6. Place the loaves on a lightly greased baking tray. Score the surface in a criss-cross manner.
9.Brush the surface with some milk and place the pumpkin seeds in a orderly fashion.
10.Gently press the seeds into the dough and sprinkle the remaining of the dried herbs.
11.Bake for 40-45 minutes until the surface in browned and firm.

Serve warm with soups or as slices with grilled cheese...

Notes: When you tap the base of the bread, it has to sound "HOLLOW", that is the sign of a good baked bread.

You can play around with the herbs added to the bread - try some Indian herbs for a desi flavour.

Instead of pumpkin seeds, try using sesame [white or black]/sunflower/ onion seeds or poppy seeds for a different flavour. You can skip the seeds and sprinkle the top surface of the bread with sauteed onion before baking.

Make sure that there are no lumps in the mashed potatoes.

Enjoy.....

Scribbled by Reva