A-maize family this festive season with six bread recipes

Staple food has been of importance around the world since the dawn of agriculture.

Bread is one of the oldest prepared foods and research shows that people used starch extract from the roots of plants to cook a primitive form of flatbread as early as 30 000 years ago. Grains became the mainstay of making bread with the dawn of the Neolithic age and the ancient Egyptians are believed to have been the first to use yeast to leaven the dough.

It is a staple food in the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe and is usually made from wheat, but can be also made from other cereals, including rye, barley, oats, maize, rice, millet and sorghum. In many cuisines, there are traditional bread recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation.

Here are six South African-style bread recipes from the chefs at Capsicum Culinary Studio, South Africa’s largest culinary school with six campuses across the country.

• Steamed Bread

Ingredients:
• Three cups of flour
• Two tsp (teaspoon) salt
• One tsp yeast
• Three tsp sugar
• One cup warm water

Method:
Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add the warm water and bring together, kneading until the dough combines and does not stick to your hands. Grease a clean bowl with butter, add the dough, cover with a dish towel, and place in a warm place for an hour. Fill a large pot halfway with boiling water and place over medium heat. Grease a bowl with butter and add the dough. Place the bowl with the dough inside the pot (making sure no water gets in), cover with a lid, and allow to steam for an hour or until cooked. Remove bread and cool before slicing and serving.

• Beer Bread

Ingredients:
• 330g all-purpose flour
• One tablespoon (tbsp) baking powder
• Two to three teaspoons salt
• 340ml beer (lager)
• 110g cold butter

Method:
Preheat oven to 190 °C. Grease a loaf pan. In a bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk together. Pour in the beer and stir all ingredients until just combined and there are no dry parts. Pour the thick batter into the loaf pan and bang lightly on the countertop to smooth it out. Cut the butter into slices (roughly a tablespoon size) and place evenly on top of the raw batter. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown on top. Stick a skewer in the centre of the bread and if it comes out clean you know it is done.

• Mealie Bread

Ingredients
• 330g creamed sweetcorn
• 120ml milk
• Two eggs, beaten lightly
• 30g salted butter, melted
• 180g all-purpose flour
• Two tbsp cornmeal
• Two tbsp sugar
• Two tsp baking powder
• One tsp salt
• ½ tsp paprika

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 °C. Butter a 21cm x 11cm x 6 cm loaf tin. Place half the sweetcorn and the milk into a blender and blend until the corn is pureed. Add the remaining corn and blend quickly leaving kernels coarsely chopped. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl and add the beaten eggs and melted butter. In a separate bowl, add the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, and paprika and mix until well combined. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and mix until all the ingredients are incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45–50 minutes. Stick a skewer in the centre of the bread and if it comes out clean it is done Cool in the loaf tin for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to continue cooling. Serve warm with butter.

• Breakfast Bread

Ingredients:
• 275g plain flour
• One tsp baking powder
• Eight spring onions, chopped
• 350g cheddar cheese, grated
• 125g back bacon, diced
• Four eggs
• One tsp sea salt
• One tsp freshly ground black pepper
• One tbsp vegetable oil
• 60ml buttermilk

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 °C. Grease a large loaf tin. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until well combined. (You don’t need to pre-cook the bacon as it cooks in the bread and provides moisture and flavour.) Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 40–45 minutes, until golden brown or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the bread. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. A perfect loaf to slice and pack for padkos and picnics.

• Mosbolletjie Bread

Ingredients – Dough:
• 100ml grape juice
• 100ml milk
• Four cups white bread flour
• 10g dry active yeast
• 10ml tepid water
• One tsp salt
• One tsp aniseeds
• 85g sugar
• 50 grams butter

Ingredients – Glaze:
• 20g butter
• 45ml milk
• 30g sugar

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 ºC. In a bowl, mix the yeast, 5g of the sugar, and water and set aside until frothy. In a saucepan, melt the butter and milk just before boiling point then add the grape juice, remove from heat, and cool until tepid. In a separate bowl sift the flour, aniseeds, salt, and remaining 80g of sugar. Add the yeast mixture and stir until it forms a soft dough. Remove from bowl, place on a floured surface, and knead until soft (10 mins). Place in a clean, lightly oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm, and place in a warm area until it has doubled in size. While the dough is rising, grease a standard-size bread tin. Once the dough has doubled in size, divide it into 21 equal parts to make 7 rows of 3 in the tin. Roll and shape each piece of dough into a rectangle and place 3 by 3 next to each other in the tin. Allow the dough in the tin to rise until double in size once again then place in the oven for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Make the glaze by adding all ingredients to a saucepan until melted. Brush the bread with the glaze as soon as it comes out of the oven.

• Roosterbrood

Ingredients:
• 1kg wholemeal flour
• One heaped tsp sugar
• Two tbsp cooking oil
• 10g dried yeast
• ½ cup warm water
• Pinch of salt

Method:
Add sugar and yeast to the warm water and leave for 15 minutes until frothy. In a separate bowl add the flour, oil, and salt then add the yeast/water mixture. Mix well then remove from bowl and knead well on a floured surface. Place in a clean, oiled bowl, cover with cling film, and leave in a warm place until doubled in size. Remove, knock down, and knead again. Divide into golf-ball size balls, flatten and leave to rise again. Place carefully on a braai grid over slow coals (once the meat has been cooked). Turn regularly until cooked.