Tracy Emin and walnut bread

….what do they have in common?  Bear with me.

Lynn Barber or ‘Demon Barber’ has made a name as a writer of excoriating profiles of the rich and famous she has interviewed.  I listened avidly to her Desert Island Discs appearance on Radio 4 this week and she mentioned that among all her interviewees she had only become friends with a couple of them including Tracey Emin, the British modern artist.  It struck me that what both women have in common is brutal honesty. Barber’s account to Kirsty Young on DID was incredibly revealing of her emotional and physical life in a way that I’m sure none of her interviewees had ever been.

So to walnut bread, this month’s Fresh from the Oven challenge set by Sarah from Simply Cooked.  How honest should you be in writing about your cooking experiences?  Do readers want to be inspired by the perfection of cookery and photographic skills?  Will they trust you to pass on recipes if you reveal what really went on in your kitchen?!

This month I’m in England and cooking in my Mum’s kitchen.  I realised just how hard this is as I reached for familiar utensils and ingredients that you take for granted and negotiated with an unfamiliar oven.

I got up at 6 am to make the bread as we had a day out at the Cotswold Wildlife Park planned.  I used all wholemeal flour as I didn’t want to buy too many ingredients (and I like a strong flavour).  The dough was quite wet and it took me a while to knead (I would have reached for the dough hook at home!).  Finally the loaves were proved and I put them on an enamel grill pan (no baking sheet) and put in the small fan oven at 180 C (I cook with gas).  The loaves looked lovely and I could leave it there and show you the beautiful pictures of their emergence from the oven.  Unfortunately they were stuck fast – Superglue would not have done a better job – and I was in a very bad mood as I tried to hack them off with spatula.  But mistakes are there to be learned from right?  I should have used the big oven so there was not so much direct heat under the loaves.

The good news is that the bread was delicious and although I sacrificed the underneath portion of one loaf to the birds there was enough to take to our picnic at the wildlife park. It’s great with blue cheese or a runny Brie de Meaux  Recipe below….and I’d be interested to hear your view on honesty.  Should I have shown you the blackened pan?

Whole Wheat Walnut Bread
adapted from The Neighborhood Bakeshop by Jill Van Cleave
makes 2 loaves

1 teaspoon active dry yeast, divided
500 ml lukewarm water (95 – 110F, 35 – 45C), divided
380 g plain bread flour, divided
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon olive or walnut oil
180 g stone-ground whole wheat flour
40 g semolina flour, or more whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
175 g coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted

First prepare the sponge starter. Dissolve 1/2 tsp yeast in 250 ml lukewarm water in a medium bowl. Let prove until bubbly, about 5 minutes.
Add 190 g bread flour and stir until a thick batter forms. Cover the bowl and leave at room temperature to rise and bubble for 6 to 8 hours. The starter is ready to use now or can be put in the fridge overnight. (Bring it back to room temperature before using.)

Dissolve the remaining 1/2 teaspoon yeast with the 250 ml lukewarm water in a large bowl. Let prove for about 5 minutes.
Add the sponge starter and mix well. Stir in the honey, oil, whole wheat flour, semolina flour (if using), and salt.
Add 160 g of the remaining bread flour gradually to form a stiff dough.
Add the walnuts.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for ten minutes, adding as much of the reserved flour as needed to keep it from being too sticky. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.
Grease the bowl and return the dough, turning it to coat it in oil. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise until it is doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Divide the dough into two pieces and form into loaves. Place on a baking pan and leave them to rise again, about 30 minutes.
Bake at 400 F/205 C for 30 to 40 minutes, until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
Cool on a wire rack

See Simply Cooked if you want the cup measurements.  Thanks for a great recipe Sarah – can’t wait to make it in my own home.