Nutella Buns

I absolutely promise to provide a better picture for this recipe later. I've just been trying about a new kind of method with making buns, one I could have freshly baked buns more often. As it now is, I rarely make them just because it seems such a project with leavening for several times and all that. Now I only baked a couple of them, which are the ones you can see in the picture. But I promise more photos will follow later on. There aren't the best-looking ones either.

These are like cinnamon buns, just with Nutella inside. I'm not exactly sure how much cinnamon buns differ from what is understood with cinnamon buns in Finland, these are the Finnish kind, the ones I've learned to make and love since childhood. For now, being busy to get this recipe into the World Nutella Day round-up, I'll give just in Finnish measurements and will come back later to give the converted measurements.

Nutella Buns

5 dl milk
50 g fresh yeast
2 eggs
2 dl sugar
1 tbs cardamom
1½ tsp salt
about 1 kilo flour
200 g butter

Take out everything you need for the dough a couple of hours before baking so that the ingredients are at room temperature when you start.

Crumble the yeast to milk (body-temperatured) and stir. Add the eggs, sugar and spices stirring well. Add a little flour first, mix it up and then add some more kneading with your hand (or with a stand mixer). Add the soft butter and continue kneading until the dough detaches from the sides of the bowl and doesn't stick to your hand.

Let the dough leaven under a towel until doubled.

Press the air bubbles out of the dough. Let the dough rest under a towel for 10 minutes. Form the dough into desired sizes and shapes. Let the buns rise under a towel.

Break the consistency of an egg and use the egg to "grease" the buns.

Bake the buns in the middle of the oven in 225 C for about 10 minutes.

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This recipe is part of the 5th World Nutella Day round-up. Sara Rosso of Ms. Adventures in Italy and Michelle Fabio of Bleeding Espresso with put together all of the entries of this year World Nutella Day round-up.

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Happy World Nutella Day!

This is my start for celebrating the 5th World Nutella Day! This wonderful day is hosted by Sara Rosso of Ms. Adventures in Italy, Michelle Fabio of Bleeding Espresso. This post is just in case I don't have time to finish my "real" post today. I'm baking something out of Nutella today, but we'll see if it makes it on the blog today as well. Anyway, have a great nutella-y day!

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Deep-dish pizza

Oh dear. Just looking at these photos again makes my stomach grumble. I have to confess: I had to grab a bite to eat between editing the photos and writing this entry.

This pizza pie I made on the second day of 2011. Granted, I have never tasted Chicago-style pizza in Chicago or anywhere in the US, so I can't make comparisons with the real thing. But I do have a deep-dish pizza favorite: when we go to a Finnish chain restaurant Rosso, it's not uncommon that I pick their deep-dish pizza. I find it delicious and worth choosing over and over again. This has been my best try at trying to  create the same taste experience at home. This was everything a deep-dish pizza in my opinion should be: soft and pie-like in the middle, generously topped, cheese meltingly delicious and the base providing just enough crunch.

I found this recipe from a Finnish food blog, the author of which had picked it up from a Finnish magazine years ago. I was a little surprised the dough contained no other oil than what was used for greasing, but this recipe really works like a charm. These pictures are from my second time I made it.

Base:

200 ml / a scant cup of water
1 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
ca 450 ml / almost 2 cups flour
3 tsp active dry yeast

vegetable oil for greasing the dish

Mix together the flour, dry yeast, salt and sugar. Add the 42 C / 108 F temperatured water and knead the dough until the texture is smooth. Let rise under a towel until the size doubles.

Pat the risen dough into the greased dish. Add the tomato sauce and chosen toppings.

Bake in the lowest part of the oven in 250 C / 500 F for about 15 minutes.

This kind of pizza is also very fulfilling so you don't need to eat as much of it to be full than with a regular thin-crust pizza.

This to me looks just right. This is how I like my deep-dish pizza!

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Happy New Year 2011!

Although this blog has been quiet lately, I still want to take the time and wish you all a wonderful this year! I really hope that I can put more effort into this blog from now on. I have some recipes to share with you even as it is and even more ideas about what to do in the future. I also tried out some new things during Christmas, but unfortunately on so tight a schedule that I didn't have time to take decent photos.  Successes encouraged me to give then another try though and even though some of the are holiday dishes, I'm pretty sure you will see them here sometime later, and if not sooner, then around next Christmas.

All in all, I wish you all a happy and a blessed year 2011!

A scene from my current town on the last day of 2010.

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