delicious UK – April 2018

EDITOR KAREN BARNES

Inourkitchenathomethere’sa
huge drawer full of pans and baking
equipment. Hidden at the back is
aslightlybattereditem,onewith
whichI’dneverpart:it’sabreadtin,
blackenedwithuse,andwithour
familynameembossedonthesideso
itimprintseveryloaf.Itmustbemorethan60yearsold.
My great-grandma set up Bourdeaux’s bakery three
generationsagoafterherhusbandCecilwasgassed
inWorldWarIandwasunabletowork.Hiswifewas
so ashamed that she forbade all mention of him. We
only recently discovered that he lived out his days in
an institution. That in itself is shameful now. Great-
Granny Bourdeaux had to find a way of supporting
thefamilyandshedidthatbygettingmygrandfather
(PapaorPop)totrainasabaker and run a bakery with
his younger brother Brian.
ThebakerybecamefamousinCornwallandPop
wasrenownedforhispasties(hewasoncecalled‘the
pastykingofCornwall’ontheradio),breadandsaffron
cakes.WhenIwasachild,therewasnosweeter
pleasure than spending days at my grandad’s side,
watching as he made puff pastry, patting on dabs of
fatandrollingthedoughbackandforth,orhelping
assistantbakerArthurcrimppastiesandshapebread
rollsunderhiscuppedpalm.Buttheenduring
memory? Those buttercup-yellow loaves, studded with
fruit, the smell of a spice from faraway lands filling
thebakeryastheycookedtoperfectionintheovens.
Thisisadifferenttakeonthetraditionalrecipe–no
fruitandscentedwithorangepeel–andI’vecalledit
saffronloaf,ratherthansaffroncake.Aswe’reusing
hisheirloomtin,IthinkPopwouldforgiveusthe
tweak–aslongaswedon’tcommitthesacrilege
of smearing butter on the slices...

SERVES10.HANDS-ONTIME40MIN,OVEN

TIME 45 MIN, PLUS 4 HOURS PROVING

MAKE

AHEAD

Thedoughcanhaveits

second rise in the fridge

overnight (step 5), but you

willneedtobringitbacktoroom

temperature before shaping.

Leave the dough to prove (step 6)

in the tin as in the recipe.

The baked loaf will keep for 48

hoursinasealedcontainer.Freeze,

sliced and well wrapped in cling film

and foil, for up to 1 month.

• ½x0.4gpacksaffronthreads


• Grated zest 1 orange, juice ½


• 500g strong white bread flour,
  plus extra for dusting
  •1tspsalt
  •1½tspgroundmixed spice
  •70gcastersugar


• 25g fresh yeast (or 7g sachet
  driedyeast)


• 180mlwholemilk,gentlywarmed


• 2 medium free-range eggs,
  beaten, plus 1 egg, beaten, to
  glaze


• 50gunsaltedbutter,softened


• Sunflower oil for greasing


• 150g icing sugar

YOU’LL ALSO NEED...

• 3lb (1.3kg) loaf tin, lightly oiled

1 Mix the saffron and orange zest

with 40ml boiling water in a small

heatproofbowlandsetasidetocool.

2 Sifttheflour,salt,mixedspiceand

sugarinalargebowl.Inajug,blend

the yeast with the milk until smooth.

3 Make a well in the middle of the

flourmixtureandaddthesaffron

andorangewater,yeast/milk,

2beateneggsandthesoftened

butter.Mixlightlywithyourfingers

until everything comes together to

formaslightlysticky(butnotwet)

dough. Mix in a tablespoon of warm

waterifthemixtureisabitdry.

4 Turn the dough out onto a lightly

flouredsurfaceandkneadfor10

minutes or until silky smooth. Lift

the dough up high and slap it back

down onto the surface to develop

the gluten. You are after a stretchy

doughthat’s firmer than when you

started.Putthekneadeddoughinto

alightlyoiledbowl,coverwithcling

film and leave somewhere warm

(akitchencupboardisideal)torise

for1½-2hoursuntildoubledinsize

(richdoughslikethistakelongerto

rise than regular bread doughs).

5 Turn the dough out of the bowl

onto a lightly floured surface and

gentlykneadacoupleoftimes

toreleaseanylargeairbubbles.

Return the dough to the oiled bowl,

re-coverand leave to rise for

1hourmoreoruntildoubled in

size (see Make Ahead).

6 Shapethedoughintoasmooth

lozengeshapethelengthofyour

tin, then carefully put it in the tin.

Brush the bread generously with

thebeatenegg.Looselycoverwith

oiled cling film and leave the loaf

toproveforabout1houruntilrisen

toalmosttheheightofthetin(or

higher if your tin is shallow).

7 Heat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan/

gas5.Baketheloaffor30-35

minutesuntilrisenandgolden

brown.Leavetocoolinthetinfor

10 minutes, then turn out onto a

wire rack to cool completely.

8 Inasmallbowlcombinetheicing

sugarandorangejuicetomake

a smooth, thick but drizzleable

icing.Drizzleitoverthebreadand

leavetoset.Serveslicedasitisor

lightly toasted under the grill.

PER SERVING343kcals, 6.8g fat (3.5g

saturated), 8.9g protein, 60.8g carbs

(23.1g sugars), 0.6g salt, 1.7g fibre

Formorewaystouse saffron,

see Loose Ends →

Pop Bourdeaux

in the bakery

in his 70s

SPECIAL

GRANDPARENTS

Nannyand Papa

Bourdeaux