potato bread

When Da's and my godchildren came to our home on 17 June 2009 for a baking session, I had originally intended to teach them how to bake a simple loaf of potato bread. However, when they saw the dough in the breadmaker machine, they requested if they could make pizza using the dough instead.

Improvisation is important when it comes to baking or cooking. Sometimes, you may suddenly realise that you do not have a particular ingredient. Or you may change your mind halfway during the cooking or baking process and create something else instead.

INGREDIENTS

3 large potatoes
1/2 cup reserved potato water (lukewarm)
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Italian herbs / mixed herbs
4 3/4 cups bread flour
2 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast


METHOD

1. Peel off the skin of the potatoes and cut the potatoes into small cubes. Place the potatoes in a saucepan and add enough water to cover the potatoes. Boil the potatoes until they are soft. Drain off the water (reserving 1/2 cup) and mash the potatoes.

2. When the mashed potato has cooled down, place all the ingredients (excluding the bread flour and yeast) in the bucket of the breadmaker machine.

3. Add the bread flour, making sure that the wet ingredients are totally covered.

4. Add the yeast.

5. Place the bucket in the breadmaker machine and set to "dough" cycle.

6. When the cycle has been completed, turn the dough onto a floured board. Using floured hands, knead the dough about 5 times.

7. Place the dough in a 10" x 7" loaf pan that has been greased and lined with baking paper. Spread out the dough to reach the sides of the loaf pan.

8. Cover the loaf pan with a damp cloth and leave for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

9. Bake at 180 degrees celsius for 35 minutes.

VARIATION

If you want to bake the pizza that you see in the photographs in this post, instead of placing the kneaded dough in a loaf pan, place the dough in a 11" x 5" baking tray that has been lined with baking paper. Cover the baking tray with a damp cloth and leave for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size. Arrange ingredients of your choice (my godchildren used a can of sliced button mushrooms, a can of tuna in olive oil and seasoned seaweed and topped the pizza with mozarella cheese and bacon bits) on top of the pizza and bake at 190 degrees celsius for 35 minutes.