This quick bread by Dean Brettschneider, which doesn’t use yeast, is great when you don’t have the luxury of time to wait for the bread to prove. Be sure to experiment with as many flavour combinations as you wish (finely chopped spicy salami and onion is a fave of ours)! Dean will be sharing more of his delicious recipes at the upcoming Cake Bake & Sweets Show Melbourne will be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre from 3-5 October 2014, so if you’re in the area make sure you head down and check him out!

TIME

1 hour

SUITABLE FOR

Ages 14+

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

500g strong bread flour | 40g baking powder | 5g salt | ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper | 65g unsalted butter, softened | 1 tbsp chopped thyme | 1 tbsp chopped rosemary | 380ml tepid milk | 150g sweet potato cubes, par-cooked in a microwave oven | 100g beetroot cubes, par-cooked in a microwave oven | 150g feta cheese, cubed | ½ quantity of Caramelised Garlic (See below) | 6 cherry tomatoes, halved | 1 sprig fresh rosemary, broken into smaller sprigs Caramelised Garlic 2 heads garlic, separated into cloves | 2 tbsp olive oil | 2 tbsp water | 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar | 3 tbsp sugar | ½ tsp salt | ¼ tsp ground black pepper | 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped

WHAT TO DO

  1. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and pepper into a large mixing bowl. Add softened butter, thyme and rosemary. Using your fingertips, rub butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
  2. Make a large well in the centre, then slowly add milk. Using your hands, gently combine the ingredients. Take care not to over-mix.
  3. Once dough is almost combined, with some wet and floury patches still showing, add sweet potato, beetroot, feta cheese and Caramelised Garlic (see below). Gently fold into mixture to form a dough mass. Take care not to over-mix otherwise the bread will be tough.
  4. Tip dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide into two equal parts and very lightly shape each piece into an oblong shape with the smoother side facing upwards.
  5. Place each dough piece onto a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Using the palm of your hand, gently flatten each piece until it is approximately 3cm thick. Lightly dust with flour and press cherry tomato halves and rosemary sprigs into the dough surface.
  6. Using a large knife or metal scraper, cut a trellis pattern into each dough piece, taking care not to cut it all the way through. Leave to rest in a cool place for 15 minutes.
  7. Preheat oven to 220°C. Place dough pieces on their baking tray in the preheated oven and bake for 25–30 minutes. Do not over-bake as this will result in a dry loaf. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Caramelised Garlic

  1. In a saucepan of boiling water, blanch garlic for 2 minutes. Refresh in cold water, peel and set aside.
  2. Heat olive oil in a heavy frying pan over a medium heat. When oil is shimmering, add garlic and saute for 1 minute, taking care not to let cloves burn. Add water and balsamic vinegar and as the mixture bubbles, add sugar, salt, pepper and rosemary. Reduce the heat to its lowest setting and simmer for 3–4 minutes until a syrup is formed and garlic is soft. Transfer to a bowl and cool until needed. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

AND THEN

Serve warm and whole to your guests, allowing them to pull off delicious chunks as they please. Recipe makes 2 loaves.

TIP

Best eaten within a few hours of baking.

Reproduced with permission from Baked  by Dean BrettschneiderPublished by Penguin Group NZ. RRP $45.00. Copyright © 2013 Marshall Cavendish International (Asia) Pte Ltd.