Saturday, May 24, 2008

Cardamom Cranberry Tea Bread

Alright, so this is really last minute even for me!! This is my entry for think spice - cardamom, hosted by Easycrafts. I actually had this in my drafts and hadn't been able to get around to posting it until now.

This bread is a yeast bread that I would say is similar in texture to challah, but not as rich. I added dried cranberries for a sweet-tangy bite to the bread. We actually loved the taste of the cranberries augmented by the tantalizing aroma of cardamom! This is great with tea, buttered or not. Tastes wonderful warm and leftovers make killer french toast!!

If you're one of the people who's intimidated to use yeast, you really shouldn't be at all! Just be a little careful and soon you'll be confident. I'm still working on it and was pleasantly surprised at how good this came out! This recipe might seem like it has a lot of steps, but the only thing required is a bit of patience. It's truly not that complicated.

I used 3/4 cup of dried cranberries and we found ourselves wanting a bit more, so if you're like us, you'll probably want to increase the amount to 1 cup. I wrote the recipe as I made it, but will probably increase the amount of cranberries next time! :)

Cardamom-Cranberry Tea Bread


Ingredients:


Yeast - 1 package (2 1/4 tsp)
Warm water - 3/4 c (120-130 F)
Warm milk - 3/4 cup (120-130 F)
Sugar - 3/4 cup
Butter - 1/4 cup, softened
Egg - 1 (optional, but adds richness)
Cardamom powder - 1 1/2 tsp, freshly ground preferred
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Dried cranberries - 3/4 cup
White whole wheat flour (or bread flour) - 2 cups
Bread flour - 2 to 2 1/2 cups
Granulated sugar to sprinkle over the top - 1 tbsp, optional
Egg wash - 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp of water, optional

Method:


1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the white whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups of bread flour, salt, sugar, cardamom and yeast. Use paddle attachment to mix well.

2. Now, add the warm milk, warm water, and egg. Beat until smooth. Switch to a dough hook and let the mixer knead the dough, adding 1/2 to 1 cup of bread flour as needed until the dough is smooth and elastic. Don't worry if it's a little sticky. Just make sure not to add to much flour and make the dough too dry which would result in a coarsely textured loaf!!


3. Oil a bowl and place the kneaded dough in the bowl. Alternatively, you can leave the dough in the bowl of the mixer itself, but just oil the bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and/or plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place until it's doubled in bulk, about 1 1/4 hrs. I find that my oven which has a pilot light on works best for this.

4. Now, remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured work surface. Fold the dough gently over itself a few times to deflate it. Pour the cranberries on the work surface and knead them into the dough by hand. Cover the dough and allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes before shaping. Preheat the oven to 375 F.

5. At this point, I chose to make a braided loaf the easy way. You could just as well shape it into a loaf and bake it if you don't feel like braiding! For the braid, I divided the dough into 3 roughly equal pieces and braided the pieces like you braid your hair. Pinch the ends to seal them and tuck them underneath the surface.

6. Again, cover the dough and allow it to rise in a warm place until doubled in size. This takes about 45 minutes. I find that my kitchen counter works pretty well at this point.

7. Once the dough has risen sufficiently, remove the cover. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with granulated sugar, if desired. Bake at 375 F for 40-45 minutes, or until an internal read thermometer reads 190 F. Cover loosely with aluminum foil after 25 minutes if the top seems to brown too quickly.

Enjoy with tea and use leftovers for French toast or bread pudding!

Bread with a spot of tea!

30 comments:

Suganya said...

Hi Kalai....
Ur Cardamom Cranberry Bread rocks... Looks great. YUM!... YUM!... Nice recipe..

Cham said...

Wow kalai, it is perfect ur bread, that is a perfect at anytime :)

Finla said...

I love the idea of addinf the cardamom.
I can smell the arome when it was baked.
Yumm

EC said...

Looks cool...nice one, thanks for the entry

indosungod said...

Hey Kalai, thats what you have been upto. Bread looks fantastico, how about some butter and mango pickle on top? :)

Uma said...

lovely bread, Kalai! Kudos. Perfect with a cup of tea.

Sagari said...

yummmm adding cardamom is a great idea kalai

Pravs said...

wow, super ! Looks so well done.

FH said...

Kalai, that's a gorgeous bread girl. Cardamom is often used in Finnish breads.Good one!:))

Laavanya said...

My oh my - that looks just perfect. I love cranberries too and what a great addition to the bread.

Hetal said...

Was waiting for a recipe frm you and here it is.....this bread looks wonderful,gr8 work..

Sig said...

Wow, what a perfect loaf, great job Kalai!

bee said...

what a gorgeous bread. must have smelt really lovely.

kamala said...

Adding cardamon is a great idea.Flavorful too.Love it Kalai

Lavanya Raj said...

kalai..romba nalla vanthirukku bread..unga veetukku varalama??

Madhavi said...

WOW Kalai, wonderful bread recipe, looks divine, awesome work!!!

Meena said...

What a lovely braided bread! Looks great.

Bong Mom said...

The bread looks amazing, the braided look is too good.

Unknown said...

would love to have this with tea..can u send me some?

Anonymous said...

Wow..the bread looks so soft and yummy! And it looks so pretty! Great entry.

Sia said...

what a gorgeous bread kalai. i can seriously smell it right from the screen:)

ST said...

Hi, visiting ur blog first time.U have a nice and lovely blog.Ur Cardamom Cranberry Bread looks yummy.....Thanks for sharing...

bha said...

the bread looks real nice and must have smelt wonderful and all warm

Siri said...

yummy looking bread Kalai..:) Great entry..

so, are u done with ur break??

Siri

Madhavi said...

Hi Kalai, check my blog, something waiting for u :))

sra said...

Kalai, you have one helluva droolworthy blog, I haven't told you that before. Cardamom and cranberry, who'd have thunk?

Kalai said...

Thanks, Sukanya! :)

Cham, you are too sweet! :)

Thanks, HC and EC!:)

Sounds great to me, Indo! :)

Exactly, Uma! :)

Thanks, Sagari! :)

Kalai said...

Pravs and Laavanya, I'm blushing. You're too kind! :)

Thanks for the info, Ashakka. I had no idea! :)

I aim to please, Hetal! Hee hee. Glad you liked it. :)

Sig, Bee, and Kamala, thank you so much! :)

Kandippa vaanga, Lavi! :)

Awww, thanks Madhavi! :)

Kalai said...

Passion Cooking, welcome to my blog! Am glad you liked it. :)

Divya, sure! :)

HC, thanks!

Sia, it definitely smelled amazing! :)

Sireesha, welcome, dear. Thanks for the sweet compliments! :)

Bhags, just makes you feel all warm and cozy, you know? :)

Siri, thanks, dear! No, still on my break. Am wondering if I should even call it that... Looooong story!

Sra, you truly made my day by saying that, my dear! Thank you so much. I adore your blog as well! As for marrying cardamom and cranberries... I always say there's a fine line between genius and insanity... I usually fall towards insanity! :)

Beyond Curries said...

The bread looks amazing. Bonus, egg is optional.

Unga blog romba nalla irukku.