Spontanicznie, poprosze! O muffinach, bulkach i zupie z soczewicy w Tlusty Czwartek/ Spontaneously, please- about blueberry muffins, sweet and dinner rolls and red lentil soup

To byl bardzo dlugi i bardzo bardzo pracowity tydzien.
Zmienilam adres. Przeprowadzalam sie tym razem w trybie, powiedzialabym, ekspresowym i w pewien sposob nieplanowanym tak do konca...A mimo to chyba jestem i tak szczesliwa i pelna nadziei na to co ma sie stac, bo przeciez nowy dom, nowe miejsce, poczatek kolejnego rozdzialu w mym zyciu...
Zmeczona ale chyba szczesliwa. A zmeczenie predzej czy pozniej mija.

Znalazlam mimo wszystko, podczas gonitwy obowiazkow, listy spraw do zalatwienia, i rozmow telefonicznych jakie mnie czekaly, czas na to, co lubie, przy czym nigdy sie nie mecze, chocbym miala stac godzinami przy formowaniu buleczek, czekac na ciasto grubo po polnocy i natezac wzrok nad tym co ma to wszystko uwiecznic... I tak nie zmienilo by to nic... Zawsze jest czas na ma  foodoterapie do 2ej nad ranem...

Wiem,wiem- dzisiaj Tlusty Czwartek i powinnam Was czestowac paczkami, faworkami  i oponkami. Wybaczcie jednak, nie zdazylam.
Nie bylo czasu, a moze i sil zabraklo...
Byl taki plan, ze usmaze moim dziewczynkom cala gore rozplywajacych sie w ustach paczkow z dziurka z najlepsza czekoladowa ganache..Jednak planu nie zrealizowalam. Co prawda pojawilo sie ciasto dzisiaj na naszym stole, ba! ciasto az grzeszace nadmiarem bakalii i czekolady, ale tradycja u nas nie wialo zbyt mocno...
Zapewniam jednak ze paczki tudziez oponki jeszcze sie nieraz pojawia, tyle ze na pewno pozaterminowo bo ja z trzymaniem sie terminow i planu ogolnie mam raczej problem...:-) A co do owej planowosci, przewidywalnosci itp...
Czy pamietacie Kroliczka z bajki o Kubusiu Puchatku?
Czy pamietacie z jaka precyzja zabiegal o swoj ogrod?
 Kroliczek jak dla mnie mial cechy perfekcjonisty, wszystko musialo isc zgodnie z planem bez wzgledu na to, czy jego przyjaciele byli na to gotowi i czy biedne warzywa zdazyly juz urosnac na tyle aby je wyrywac czy zbierac.
''We go by the book''- mawial Kroliczek do Puchatka.
Coz...nie, Kroliczku, dziekuje, ja raczej nie umiem  a moze i nie lubie...
Ja tak raczej spontanicznie, poprosze...

Wezelki drozdzowe ze szpinakiem i serem feta
ok. 18 sztuk

Ciasto:
10 g drozdzy swiezych
350 g maki typ 450
szczypta cukru
sol morska do posypania buleczek albo sol do ciasta, okolo 6 g
2 lyzki oleju slonecznikowego
ok.280 ml letniej wody

nadzienie:
ok. 140 g szpinaku umytego, ugotowanego, woda powinna byc jak najmocniej odcisnieta
ok. 120 g sera feta, pokruszonego

ponadto:
jajko, lekko rozklocone, do posmarowania buleczek przed pieczeniem


Ze swiezymi drozdzami przygotowujemy rozczyn. W ok. 100 ml wody wkruszamy drozdze, zasypujemy cukrem, dodajemy 1-2 lyzki maki, mieszamy energicznie i pod przykryciem odstawiamy na okolo 10-15 minut.
Po czym laczymy rozczyn z maka, ktora dosypujemy powoli, olejem i wyrabiamy ciasto jak na pizze. Powinno byc elastyczne, lekko lsniace i ladnie odchodzic od reki. Ja wyrabialam ciasto okolo 10 minut reka, mikserem czas dwukrotnie sie zmniejsza, tj. do 5 minut.
Ciasto umiescilam w lekko natluszczonej misce i przykrylam folia spozywcza do podwojenia, tj. okres czekania waha sie miedzy 45-60 min. w zaleznosci od temperatury pomieszczenia, pogody etc.
W miedzyczasie przygotowujemy nadzienie: gotujemy szpinak, odcedzamy bardzo dokladnie i kruszymy fete.
Ciasto jak tylko podwoi swa objetosc wykladamy na stolnice lekko podsypana make i rozwalkowujemy na
wymiary mniej wiecej 50cm na 35 cm ( ciasto tak rozwalkowane bedzie cienkie ale nie przeswitujace i co wazne bardzo elastyczne). Rozkladamy nadzienie: najpierw szpinak nastepnie ser, rownomiernie.
Zaczynajac od krotszego boku zwijamy ciasto na zewnatrz tak aby utworzylo rolade/ rulon. Po czym ostrym i obsypanym maka nozem doslownie kroimy te rolade wszerz na czesci okolo 2 cm grubosci i odwracajac czescia, od ktorej widac nadzienie, lekko rozciagamy, nastepnie skrecamy tak aby przypominalo cyfre 8.
Wykladamy tak przygotowane buleczki na forme do pieczenia wyscielona papierem do pieczenia. Zostawiamy odstepy okolo 3 cm od siebie.
Nagrzewamy piekarnik do 180 stopni.
Jajkiem rozkloconym smarujemy kazda buleczke i jezeli lubimy posypujemy sola morska, jezeli zrezygnujemy z niej, pamietajmy o dodaniu wiekszej ilosci soli do ciasta.
Pieczemy okolo 20-25 minut albo az do momentu kiedy to wezelki nabiora lekko brazowego koloru.



                                                                        ***

That was a very long and VERY very hardworking week.
I moved house. I changed my address again but this time, it was extremely fast, still I am happy cause I think that moving into a new house is a beginning of a new chapter in my life.
I am quite tired, well, actually I am very tired but this will be gone soon, I am sure.
Anyway, help yourselves to the lovely blueberry and white chocolate muffins, rolls and the red split lentil and carrot soup. I know that I should really welcome you with a plate full of pancakes or, as we celebrate in Poland, doughnuts ( paczki) still I did not manage to make those. I was planning to but I did not have time nor energy...I was going to make a few plates of beautiful doughnuts with the most evil chocolate ganache..It does not mean at all I am not going to make them one day but most probably it will just happen all of a sudden without a good reason cause I must say that I am not a sticking -to -dates-and-following-the-plan-man...:-) Everything I happen to do in my life and my kitchen is sort of spontanous.
Anyway, you are most welcome to try the recipes and I wish you all lovely day and many to come!



Red lentils and carrot soup
with cinammon, tumeric and chilli
circa 3-4 servings

350 g carrot, washed, peeled and sliced
one big organic potato, washed, peeled and cubed
180 g red split lentils, washed and drained
3 small shallots, peeled and cut half
circa 900 ml water
circa 10 cherry tomatoes, washed
1 cube of veg stock
3 tbsp tomato puree
1/2 tsp cinammon
1/2 tsp ginger
1 1/2 tbsp chilli
Maldon salt (the amount of which rely on your taste buds, pls!)
coarse pepper ( the amount the same as with salt)
2 tsp sezam
pinch of tumeric

Pour the water in a wide and deep saucepan. Put the carrots, potatoes and stock into it and simmer for about 20 minutes until the carrots become almost tender. After that put the lentils and cherry tomatoes into the pan and continue on cooking for further 20-30 minutes stirring everything occassionaly.
Next add the tomato puree, salt, cinammon, ginger, tumeric and chilli. You can add pepper now but I prefer to leave it for later just before the soup is ready to be served.
After the soup is cooked I make a puree with a help of a blender. At this stage you can also add 2-3 tbsp double cream if you like your soup very creamy. Personally I like it the way it is.
I always serve lentils and carrot soup with either home-made croutons or spinach and feta rolls( the ones you can see in the pics above) or french crusty bread. You can also serve it with your fav cheese or with a mix of rucola and seeds such as sunflower seeds, pine nuts etc.


Twisted spinach and feta dinner rolls
with Maldon salt
yield circa 16-18

10 g fresh yeast
350 g strong white flour plus extra for dusting
pinch of sugar
Maldon salt for sprinkling the rolls or if you prefer just standard salt to add to the dough
2 tbsp sunflower oil
circa 280 ml tepid water


for the filling:
circa 140 g spinach, washed, boiled and drained, get rid of of any excessive amount of water
circa 120 feta cheese, crumbled finely

also:
one egg lightly beaten to brush the rolls

Method:

If you use fresh yeasts you must first crumble those and mix with circa 2 tbsp flour, pinch of salt and circa 100 ml water, give it a good stir and cover and leave in a room temp. Once the bubbles start to come up mix the yeasts with the rest of water and gradually add flour, oil. Work the dough for about 10 minutes if by hand or 5 minutes if with a mixer. It should be shiny and elastic. Put it in a slightly greased bowl and cover with a clingfilm and leave in a room temp for about 45-60 minutes until doubled in its volume.
In the meantime prepare the spinach and feta filling: if spinach is cooked just make sure that there it is no watery and so mix it with finely crumbled feta cheese.
Once the dough is ready dust your working surface with some flour and put the dough onto it and sprinkle some flour over the top then with a rolling pin stretch it out from the middle outwards until it is 50cm x 35 cm big. It will be quite thin but not paper thin. Spread the filling all over the stretched dough, evenly. Then grab the shorter side of the dough and roll it inwards until it forms sort of swiss roll. Once you form it, take a sharp knife, dust it lighlty with flour and cut 2 cm wide pieces across the rolled dough. You should get about 16-18 pieces. Each piece turn to yourself in a way so you can see the filling and stretch it out very gently, then twist it so it resembles number 8.
Put each piece on a baking tray pre-lined up with non-stick baking paper and leave about 3-4 cm space between the rolls. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Beat one egg lightly and spread it all over the top of each roll, then sprinkle with Maldon salt.
Bake for about 20-25 min or until the rolls turn light golden colour.
Serve with soups.


Marzipan and white poppy seeds breakfast rollsyield circa 10 rolls


15 g fresh yeasts or one sachet instant yeasts
120 g grated white marzipan
45 g soft unsalted butter
3 egg yolks
5 tbsp caster sugar
circa 280 ml full-fat milk
425 g plain flour plus extra for dusting
white poppy seeds, circa 5 tbsp

also:
one egg, lightly beaten

Method:
If you use fresh yeast you must prepare those first. Look up in the recipe for twisted spinach and feta rolls.
Do exactly the same way as it says above, just replace water with milk. Then do as follows:
prepared yeasts mix gradually with the rest of milk, yolks, and flour and sugar. Work the dough all throughout combining the ingredients ( I did all in all for about 8-10 min by hand, if you do it with a mixer, this is going to take some 4-5 minutes altogether). Then add marzipan and still continue on working the dough. At the end add the butter and repeat the same. It should be shiny, soft and elastic.
Leave it in a bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to double its volume for about 45-60 min. After this time prepare your working surface- just dust it lightly with flour. Put the dough onto it and work it with a light hand. Then divide it into equal pieces, about 8-10 in all. Take each one of those, spread out slighlty and then grab the edges inwards so you can close up a small ball. Roll each between your palms and place on a pre-lined-up with baking paper baking tray. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Just before you bake the rolls, brush each one of them with a lightly beaten egg and sprinkle the poppy seeds generously. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.