Trouble At' Mill

Trouble At’ Mill was what A Matter of Loaf and Death was originally meant to be titled, I’m so glad they changed it, and if you don’t recognise the pair above they’re Wallace & Gromit. 

On first expectations Wallace & Gromit appear to be aimed at children but that isn’t the case, the pair seem to appeal to people of all ages.  I for one think they’re so entertaining to watch. Luckily they always seem to show a movie of theirs around Christmas time, as they did last year, giving great entertainment, particularly suited to that time of year when all our childlike feelings are at their peek. 

What am I telling you about Christmas for when it’s almost the start of spring? Well it’s because I bought a limited edition flour then, one released in time for the new Matter of Loaf and Death film; an oak smoked, stone-ground, malted blend flour.

It’s a lovely dusky brown flour studded with nuggets goodness such as malt flakes, with such a delightful smoky aroma. The flour comes from Bacheldre Watermill and the flour obtains its smokiness from the malted wheat flakes getting cold smoked over locally sourced oak chippings for 18 hours in the smokehouse. 

When mixed with yeast and water, etc the dough takes on a beautiful almost terracotta hue.

On it’s first rise.

The colour of the bread is not lost on baking, in fact it intensifies, giving it a glorious rusty clay colour.

Matt Scott, co-owner and founder of Bacheldre Watermill, comments,

“The oak chippings infuse the specially malted wheat flakes with a delicious smokiness, the flavours work  really well. The slow cold smoking process infuses a sweet wood-smoked aroma and taste that is reminiscent of bread being baked in a wood fired oven.” 

He is so right, it’s not all that often that a product owner doesn’t ‘big up’ their product that little bit too much, but Matt has hit the nail on the head. A perfect crumb with a hint of smokiness which is not overly powerful, perfect plain with butter or for a good sandwich, toasted dripping with butter would be heaven itself. Matt suggest using it as a pizza base but I cannot see that working at all well myself, maybe I’m just blinded to using a proper Italian style base only, what do you think?

I’m submitting this to YeastSpotting, a fabulous even hosted by Wild Yeast.

In true Wallace & Gromit style I wanted to serve this with some Stinking Bishop cheese, having managed to lay my hands on some at my local butchers after several weeks of searching, I wish I hadn’t bothered.

Stinking Bishop is a sticky orange rind cheese with a pungent and spirited aroma. The texture can vary from firm to soft and creamy depending on the season. Stinking Bishop is said to be derived from a cheese once made by Cistercian monks in the village of Dymock. Monks have always been associated with the production of ‘washed rind’ cheeses. These are cheeses which are washed in a variety of liquids. They are generally full-flavoured with lively aromas. Stinking Bishop is no exception and uses perry as its wash. It has a sticky yellow-orange rind and smells of old socks. The cheese is similar to the famous French Epoisses which has been banned from the public transport system in Paris.

The cheese takes its name from the variety of pear used to make the washing solution. Stinking Bishop pears are one of over 100 varieties which are grown on the Gloucestershire-Herefordshire border. During the cheese-making process the curds are washed in perry before being ladled into moulds. To increase the moisture content and to encourage bacterial activity, salt is not added until the cheeses are removed from the moulds. The cheese is then washed in more perry as it matures. This process takes six to eight weeks.

Despite all my best intentions I just couldn’t eat this cheese, it did nothing for me, and usually I love a good stinky cheese. This was just too much and I’m sorry to say I binned it  

We did however manage to consume the loaf between us with a good spread of butter and some chunks of Wensleydale cheese, another of Wallace’s favourites, so I don’t suppose it’s all that bad.

The Recipe:

• 500g oak smoked malt flour
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 7g sachet fast action yeast
• 3 tablespoons of sunflower oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 300 – 350ml water

1. Place the flour, oil, yeast and salt into the bowl of a free standing mixer (keeping the salt and yeast away from each other).
2. Add the maple syrup and water slowly, using the dough hook and kneed until the dough has come together and is slightly springy, about 5 minutes.
3. Turn out on to an oiled surface and kneed until the dough is smooth and pliable.
4. Put the dough back in the bowl, cover with a damp tea-towel and leave in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
5. Oil the baking sheet and shape the dough into whatever shape you like.  Leave to rise for another hour.
6. Preheat the oven to 230c.
7. Just before you bake the loaf dust the top with white flour and using a sharp knife make slashes across the top.
8. Bake for 30-35 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool.

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