The Baking Biker Chic

I am procrastinating today, I have loads of studying to do but of course I have done everything except that. On the upside the house is sparkling and I had a great workout at the gym.

On one of my coffee breaks this morning from the cleaning, the Hairy Bikers were on TV and made a scrumptious sage and onion tear’n’share bread. Now the boys aren’t going to be converting to a herbivore diet anytime soon and there love of fats – both in butter and oil, well it’s not my taste.

Anyway I’m not one for being defeated that easily – that bread looked amazing and I wanted some for tea. So luckily as hubby reminded me I have a lovely healthy sage plant in the garden. I had to go for messages (that’s shopping for those of you not from Scotland) so picked up the rest of the ingredients including some bits and pieces to make a nice pot of lentil soup.

This is not a quick to make bread, however trust me, it’s worth it. Just the perfect thing to enjoy with soup as our winter evenings draw in.

Now am all out of procrastination so time to hit the study books.

Ingredients (makes eight rolls – how many that feeds is up to you):

• 400g strong white flour
• 1tsp caster sugar
• 1tsp rock salt
• 1 sachet of dried yeast
• 150ml water
• 150ml dairy free milk + a little for brushing the top of the rolls
• 1/2 red onion finely diced
• 2 cloves of garlic crushed
• 12 sage leaves plus 8 for decorating
• Balsamic vinegar
• Black pepper
• Fry light

Method

1. Mix the flour, caster sugar and salt then add the yeast.
2. In a pan warm up the water and milk (just to take the chill  off it) and then add to the flour mixture
3. Knead the dough as standard for bread and then put in a greased bowl, covered in cling film for at least 45 minutes
4. Put your diced onion and crushed garlic in a frying pan, using Fry Light and a little water if it sticks to sweat the onions, once softened add a little balsamic vinegar along with some black pepper
5. Once your onions are a little soft (not too soft) finely chop the sage leaves and add to the onions, frying for just a couple of minutes, again add a little water if it sticks
6. Set the onion mixture aside and allow it to cool
7. Once your dough has completed its first prove – turn it out onto a flour surface and then knead in your onion mixture – it’s going to get messy, am not going to lie, but keep going. Dust with some flour if the mixture gets too sticky
8. Once it’s well mixed in, divide into eight equal pieces and roll  to create a round piece of dough
9. Now place all eight pieces onto your baking tray making sure they are all touching (yep that’s how you get tear’n’share – simple isn’t it), place a sage leaf on top of each roll and brush with your extra non dairy milk
10. Spray the cling film with fry light and cover the rolls, placing in a warm location so they can have their second prove (mine took about 45 minutes again)
11. Then once they’ve doubled in size, it’s time to bake. Place in a preheated oven (180 degrees centigrade) and bake until golden brown.

Leave to cool (or not depending on how desperate you are) and serve with a soup of your choice.