Home-baked

Michelle Phetlhe | Tuesday September 19, 2023 06:00

 

I completely forgot that I am supposed to be taking myself and all of you avid valued readers though a journey of discovery with Danone Inkomazi (sour milk). I promise to go back to that. I blame the fact that school is opening this week, third term! My mind is a little all over the place as we get the boys ready to take the last term by the horns. This amazingly delicious loaf goes well with so many dishes. I made a quick Rosemary Loaf. Inspired by the Focaccia we made so much of last year.

I have had a bottle of rosemary in the kitchen which I have not given much attention to. It caught the corner of my eye as it does every time I am near the spice rack. This time I opened it and got a whiff of rosemary, and my thoughts immediately gravitated to; fresh! I wanted to describe the scent in a little more detail but I can’t quite find the words. So, I did a bit of research and came across some interesting notes. The aroma of rosemary has been linked to improving one’s mood, clearing the mind, relieving stress and lowering cortisol levels (including those with chronic anxiety or stress hormone imbalances). Rosemary is known to rapidly reduce cortisol levels by simply just smelling it - alleviating stress in the body. Wow, trust and believe I’ll be reaching for the rosemary a lot more now that I know what I know. This loaf is made with two-ingredient dough and no yeast! No yeast is my favourite thing about this dough because I can avoid that over fermented taste I struggle to get away from when using yeast. Another upside is that we can bake in real-time (gone hoo), with no need to cover the dough and put it in a dark place until it is double in size. Serve your rosemary loaf with your favourite soup, pasta or use it to make sandwiches. On this particular evening, it was served with tomato soup and some canned fish, eating fancy on a budget.

INGREDIENTS 2 cups plain Nutriday yoghurt 3 cups flour 3 tsp baking powder 5 teaspoon dried rosemary divided 2 tsp oil 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS Preheat the oven to 180°C Mix the plain Nutriday yogurt, flour, baking powder, and four teaspoons of rosemary to combine. Turn onto a floured surface, sprinkle flour on top, and knead several times. Form into a loaf shape. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Or butter pan. Bake at 180°C for 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with the remaining rosemary and sea salt. Place the bread on a wire rack and allow it to cool completely before slicing. I chuckle to myself because without fail, as soon as anything leaves oven, one of my smile keepers is in the kitchen waiting for a piece to taste test.