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BUCHTY

Traditional Czech Buchty – Sweet Buns filled with Rosehip Jam

Posted on October 15, 2012
Hi, Everyone! I’m so excited to share this recipe for traditional Czech “buchty” (sweet filled buns) with you today! Every time I get a little homesick and miss Prague, I know that cooking or baking something that reminds me of home will cheer me up! These sweet buns are one of my favorites, and just the smell of them backing brought back lots of happy memories of summers at my grandparents’ house. Traditionally, the buns are filled with a sweet sort of cream cheese mixture, plum jam or a sweet poppyseed mixture, but since I didn’t have any of those I decided to fill them with some rosehip jam (one of my favorites!) These buns are really easy to make, are so light and fluffy and deliciously sweet! Here is how I made them…
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TRADITIONAL CZECH BUCHTY
*Makes 12*
YOU WILL NEED:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) instant dry yeast
2 tbs granulated sugar
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 whole egg and one extra egg yolk
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting
1 cup jam of your choice!
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DIRECTIONS
1. First, combine the flour and sugar in your electric mixer bowl. Next, heat up the milk until it is lukewarm, and add the instant dry yeast to it. Cover and let sit for about five minutes, until its frothy. Set aside.
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2. Next, whisk together the egg, extra egg yolk, vanilla extract and oil. With the mixer running, slowly begin adding the yeast mixture and the egg mixture to the flour, and mix until a soft dough begins to form (if the dough is too wet, add more flour). Then, knead for five minutes using the dough hook attachment on your mixer. Form the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about an hour.
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3. Once the dough has risen, punch it down and turn it out onto a floured surface. Roll out into about a 9×13 inch rectangle. Using a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut the rectangle into 12 equal squares. Drop a dollop of jam in the middle of each square. Grease your baking dish (I used a 6x8inch baking pan) and make little bundles out of each square, pinching down the bottom so none of the jam leaks out. Place the little bundles into your pan (brush the sides of each one with oil – this is very important, it’s what helps them bake as buns and not one big cake) and cover and let rise for another half hour.
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4. Preheat your oven to 350 deg F and bake for about 20 – 30 minutes, depending on your oven, until they are beautifully golden brown on top! (While they are still hot, you can brush them with a little bit of milk just to make them super soft.) Let cool for a couple of minutes, then dust with confectioners’ sugar!
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Happy Baking, Everyone!

Vanocka – Traditional Czech Sweet Bread

Posted on February 23, 2015

Hello Everyone! I’m so excited to share one of my favorite family recipes with you today, for a Czech sweet bread called Vanocka. Sometimes, especially on the weekends, I really crave a sweet, indulgent breakfast, and this is one of my favorites. A vanocka is a rich, buttery braid filled with raisins and almonds, that’s beautifully golden brown and glossy on the outside (sometimes dusted with confectioners’ sugar), and super soft and rich on the inside; utter heaven in a bite. What’s even better is that you spread it thick with some butter and (preferably homemade) jam… what could be better with a big cup of tea on a lazy weekend morning or cold wintery afternoon! Traditionally, this bread is made for Christmas, but it’s baked and sold in stores all year round, so it’s not necessarily just a holiday treat. This recipe is one that I’ve adapted from my grandmother’s recipe, which we’ve been baking for years. I love the consistency of this dough; it’s so soft and it rises beautifully, making this bread wonderfully rich and fluffy. The perfect slice of home when I’m craving one!

Vanocka

YOU WILL NEED

4 to 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 package instant dry yeast

1 stick (8 tbs) unsalted butter, softened

2 egg yolks

250 ml lukewarm milk (approx. 1 cup + 2 tbs)

Handful of raisins

Handful of sliced almonds

Egg wash: 1 egg & 1 tbs water

Optional: confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Vanocka

DIRECTIONS

1. In a small bowl add the dry yeast to the lukewarm water, cover and let sit for about 5 minutes, until the mixture is frothy on top. Then, pour it into the bowl of your electric mixer, and add in the flour, sugar, 2 egg yolks, softened butter and salt, and mix until a soft dough forms. (I usually add in the four cups of flour, and if the dough is still too wet and unworkable, I add in more flour by 1/4 cups, so you may need more than 4 1/2 cups of flour, or may not. The amount of flour I add in differs almost every time, so add in just enough to have a soft dough.) Towards the end, add in the raisins and almonds (reserve enough sliced almonds to sprinkle the top of your braid at the end), and form your dough into a ball. Place in a large, lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size (1 – 2 hours).

2. Once your dough has risen, take it out and divide it into 5 pieces (3 large, and two smaller. The three larger pieces will be for the large bottom braid, the two smaller pieces will be for the “twisted” braid that will go on top of the large braid.) Roll each of your 5 pieces of dough into a rope. The three larger pieces should be rolled into a rope about 22 inches long each, the smaller pieces should be rolled into a rope about 14 inches long each.

3. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. With the three longer ropes, make your braid directly on the parchment paper lined baking sheet (braid the ropes like you would your hair, and make sure you don’t braid it too tightly, the braid will expand as it rises again and bakes, so do it pretty loosely. Tuck in the ends underneath). Twist the two shorter braids together, then place them on top of your braid, tucking the ends under too. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise for another 30 minutes.

4. Preheat your oven to 350 deg F. Make your egg wash by whisking together an egg with a tbs of water, then brush your whole bread with it, and sprinkle it with your remaining sliced almonds. Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, or until nicely golden brown and well baked through (and an inserted toothpick must come out clean). If the bread starts getting too brown as it bakes, cover it with foil so it doesn’t burn (I usually cover mine after about 20 minutes of baking). Let cool (and dust with confectioners’ sugar if you want some extra sweetness) before slicing, then serve with a generous spread of butter and your favorite jam!

(*Recipe notes: To make sure the raisins are plump, soak them in some boiling water for a couple minutes and drain them before adding them to the dough. You can use regular or golden raisins, or you could also add in candied fruit, as well as the sliced almonds or other chopped nuts. As for the bread’s shape, you could do the braiding differently – – for example do the bottom braid out of 4 ropes instead of three and the top part out of three ropes instead of a twist of two ropes, or even do three levels of braiding instead of two. I just do this because I find it the easiest. Some people insert skewers into the braided bread so the top layer doesn’t slip as it bakes, I don’t do this but you can do it if you’re worried about it slipping. By braiding the bottom braid pretty loosely and nestling the top one into it, it ensures that the bread holds its shape and there isn’t any slipping. You can simply form the dough into a round loaf and bake it off like that too, if you want to avoid all the braiding business and save some time. I adapted this recipe from my grandmother’s, and I converted all the metric measurements into cups. Also, make sure your ingredients are at room temperature since you’re baking with yeast, and this will help the yeast to work better and your dough to rise nicely. Traditionally, the vanocka is baked with fresh yeast, not packaged dry yeast, which may alter the texture/taste just slightly. The vanocka is definitely best eaten the same day, but you can store it for a couple days. I always toast mine in the toaster the next day, and it’s just as delicious as when it’s fresh!)

Vanocka

For more of my beloved family recipes, check these out:

Star Linzer Cookies  Linzer Cookie Hearts

Left: Linzer Cookie Stars (recipe) Right: Linzer Cookie Hearts (recipe)

Classic Apple Strudel  Traditional Czech Buchty

Left: Classic Apple Strudel (recipe) Right: Traditional Buchty – Sweet filled buns (recipe)

Happy Baking, Everyone!

I will be linking to these awesome blogs!

Bake

Posted on December 27, 2014

COOKIES & BARS

Daisy 6 DSCN2409 DSCN1346 DSCN1488DSCN1464 Squirrel cookies 4 Star Linzer Cookies 1 DSCN2831IMG_8823_01 IMG_0972 Caramel-2BStuffed-2BCookies-2B2 DSCN84522e6334a56f8fcaa68fdf020dc9a1b9dc DSCN2511 DSCN2639 Gingerbread Ornaments 1DSCN6178 DSCN8741 DSCN0633 Pumpkin Ice-cream Sandwiches 4DSCN9152 DSCN8934 DSCN1261 DSCN0233DSCN9011 DSCN3320 Shortbread 3 Hot Chocolate CookiesScreen shot 2014-04-23 at 10.25.50 PM DSCN6448 DSCN7016 DSCN5919DSCN7125 DSCN7158 DSCN6094

BAKING WITH YEAST

DSCN5848 DSCN7231 DSCN7613 Cherry and Mixed Berry Sweet Rolls 5 DSCN0128 DSCN5858 DSCN0407 IMG_0637 Pesto No-Knead Bread Whole Wheat Bread No-Knead-2BBread-2BBowls-2B1 DSCN0879buchty 1 Cinnamon Monkey Bread Muffins 1 Homemade Pita Bread 1 DSCN0247DSCN7913 DSCN5988 DSCN4543 DSCN3800No-Knead Oatmeal Bread Vanocka

 

 

QUICK BREADS & MUFFINS

DSCN8117 DSCN0549-2 Banana Oatmeal Bread 3 IMG_3733 Blueberry Streusel Muffin Bread IMG_3707 DSCN8829 DSCN0929DSCN7383 DSCN1705 Nutella Swirled Banana Bread

 BAKING WITH FRUIT

IMG_1103 Oven Baked Banana Boats 3 DSCN0700 DSCN8985 DSCN0161 Black Plum Crisp 1 DSCN0672  DSCN0987-1 Blackberry Cobbler DSCN0412

SAVORY BAKING

DSCN7812 DSCN6498 DSCN8148 DSCN9059

OTHER SWEET TREATS

DSCN0825 DSCN2244 Heart shaped puff pastry pockets IMG_7952DSCN2577 DSCN2352 Chocolate Genache Cupcakes DSCN1242 DSCN6319 DSCN6042 DSCN0743 DSCN0596 Grilled Nutella, PB and Banana Sandwich DSCN7701 DSCN6299 DSCN8852 DSCN3996 Chocolate Covered Strawberries  Banana Nutella Crepes Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Carrot Cake Cupcakes

SWEET BEVERAGES

Toasted Marshmallow Hot Chocolate 1 IMG_8703 IMG_9695

 

“A party without cake is just a meeting.” – Julia Child

Baking with Yeast – Recipe Collection

Posted on May 7, 2014
Hi Everyone! I have another recipe collection to share with you today, and this time it’s all about baking with yeast! When I was getting married, my grandma told me that if I can master baking with yeast, I am ready to get married! Although, I’m pretty sure there is more involved when it comes to establishing whether you are ready for marriage. Do you love your partner? Do they fill the hole when it comes to your sexual life? Can you see a life with them? Of course, loving your partner is a massive part of whether you decide to live the rest of your life with them. You have to be attracted to them. If you’re not, how can you build a life together? Now I know I shouldn’t think this way, but to most couples, sex is everything. And if women are required to use a silicone dildo to receive their sexual pleasure, then it could mean that they jumped into marriage too quickly. It may not affect everyone, but sexual attraction to your partner is definitely very important.
To me, these are the more important factors to consider when it comes to thinking about marriage, but as I like baking, maybe mastering baking with yeast is just as important too. I don’t know how she came up with this marital test, and I’m not sure that I passed it too well at that point, but since then I have learned a lot about baking with yeast and have had a very happy marriage, so maybe there was something to it! I’ve had a good amount of disasters in the kitchen, but have also found some great recipes that I’ve made over and over again. So I think I’ve passed the test, and my grandma would be very happy with me! If you don’t usually bake with yeast, it can be a little overwhelming at first and seem like the process is too time consuming and complicated, but it’s really pretty simple and if you follow the simple steps to allow the yeast to activate and let the dough rest and rise properly, you will no problems and your breads, rolls and desserts will turn out beautifully!
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These are nine of my favorite recipes, both sweet and savory, using yeast. Going clockwise row by row, here they are: Nutella Swirl Rolls (Recipe), NY Times No-Knead Bread (Recipe), Czech “Buchty” filled with Rosehip Jam (Recipe), Soft Pretzels with a Sweet Mustard Dipping Sauce (Recipe), Raspberry Swirl Rolls (Recipe), Homemade Pita Bread (Recipe), Blueberry & Lemon Sweet Rolls (Recipe), Homemade French Bread (Recipe), Easy Artisan Bread (Recipe)

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Happy Baking, Everyone!
I will be linking to THESE wonderful blogs!

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