Caramelised Onion and Stilton Multigrain Spiral Rolls

Finished Rolls

Obviously I'm a fan of all baked goods, but these might be the best thing I've ever made; multigrain rolls are packed with sweet caramelised onions and punchy blue cheese. They’re great on their own (warm is best, or straight out of the oven!) or with a herby side salad or bowl of tomato soup. Cooking them side by side makes for crispy tops and soft, bouncy sides, but the fillings would be equally delicious worked through the whole dough to make a large loaf – whatever suits your needs!

Dough, pre-rising

Caramelised Onion and Stilton Multigrain Spiral Rolls

Makes 16/18 rolls

Ingredients:

Dough:

500g multigrain bread flour (or strong white)

25g/1oz marg or butter

2 tsp salt

2 tsp/7g dried yeast

350ml warm water

Filling:

4 onions, very finely sliced

2 tsp butter or marg

2 tsp sugar (any variety)

Salt and pepper to season

225g stilton (or use any variety of cheese you like)

Doubled dough

milk to glaze

200oC oven/180oc fan oven

Method:

1. Rub the marg or butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs, then add the yeast and salt (to separate sides of the bowl) and mix.

2. Add the warm water in stages until the dough comes together but isn't sticky.

Soft, golden caramelised onions

3. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic.

4. Place into an oiled bowl, cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (at least 1 hour).

5. Whilst the dough is rising make the caramelised onions. Cook the sliced onions in a saucepan with a little oil over a low heat for 10 minutes, or until very soft and translucent, do not let the onions colour. Once soft, add the butter and sugar, continue to heat gently until everything is combined. Season to taste. Sieve the onions to remove excess liquid and set aside to cool.

Covered dough with fillings

6. Once doubled in size, turn the risen dough out onto a floured surface, knead gently for 30 seconds to knock it back and then roll the dough out into a rectangle (approx. 1m x 50cm).

7. Cover the rectangle evenly with the onions and blue cheese (broken into small pieces), tack one of the long edges to the work surface and then roll from the opposite long edge like a swiss roll - do it as tightly as you can. (I left a small portion of the dough without stilton as some of the people I was making it for don't like it).

8. Cut the ~1m long roll into approx. 5cm portions (you should get between 16/18 individual rolls, plus some scraggy end bits which you can just bake with the rolls).

Mid rolling

9. Place the rolls, cut side up into greased baking dishes; I used a rectangle dish and a round dish just to mix up the final loafs you’ll get.

10. Cover the rolls with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise again in a warm place for approx. 30 minutes.

11. Brush the rolls with milk and bake in the centre of a preheated oven (200oC) for 35/40 minutes, or until golden brown. Because of the oils from the cheese and onions you can't tap these rolls on the base to test for a hollow sound; you have to do it by the colour of the dough and the feel when pressed, you're looking for crispy exteriors that spring back when pressed. Turn out of the trays and leave to cool on a wire rack, or eat straight away... 

Sliced rolls before 2nd proofing

No two ways about it, these are delicious! They'll keep for up to a week in an air tight container, it's nice to reheat them in the oven for 10 minutes to refresh them if you're keeping them this long.

Happy Baking!

The Baking Ginger xx

Finished Roll!

Ready for the oven

Cajun Spiced Flatbreads and Poppy Seed Rolls

Flatbreads

I am the world’s worst person at doing nothing; I usually watch telly and play card games at the same time or work and listen to podcasts and so when I found myself with an empty day I decided to bake two different types of bread I've been thinking about for a while. 

I started by making a basic bread dough and then split it in half and made Cajun Spiced Flatbreads and Poppy Seed Rolls simultaneously. I’ve only started with the basic dough recipe and then split it up into the method for the flatbreads and rolls, but if you’re going to use the whole of the basic dough to make one or other of these simply double the additional ingredients.

They’re both delicious, the Flatbreads made one of the best lunches I’ve had in ages!

Cajun Spiced Flatbreads and Poppy Seed Rolls

Basic Dough Ingredients:

Rolls

500g strong white bread flour

2tsp salt

1 x 7g sachet dried yeast

11floz lukewarm water

Flatbreads: (makes 4 large)

2tbsp Cajun seasoning, or equivalent (usually something with garlic, herbs, something hot and something smoky works really well)

oil for cooking (light olive or vegetable oil work well)

Poppy Seed Rolls: (makes 6 medium rolls)

milk for glazing (approx. 2tbsp)

2 tbsp poppy seeds

200oC fan/210oC other ovens

Basic Dough Method:

1. Put the flour into a large mixing bowl, add the salt to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other (so as not to kill the yeast), and mix.
2. Add the water and mix into a dough (you might not need all of the water so add it in a few goes until you have a soft, but not sticky, dough).
3. Knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. See this blog for my tips on kneading and other bread baking techniques.
4. Put your dough into an oiled bowl, covered with oiled clingfilm, and leave in a warm place until doubled in size (approx. 1 hour)
5. Once doubled knock your dough back by kneading on a lightly floured surface for 2/3 minutes. This is your basic bread dough, ready for anything!

Flatbread dough

I divided mine in half and made Cajun Flatbreads with one half and Poppy Seed Rolls with the other.

For the Flatbreads:

Flatbread breads being cooked

a. Take half of the knocked back dough and on a lightly floured surface knead in 2tbsp of the Cajun seasoning, this should only take 2/3 minutes until it is fully incorporated.

b. Divide the dough into 4 and roll each portion out until they’re the same thickness as a 10p. Whilst you’re doing this have a frying pan or griddle heating up on the hob over a medium/high heat. 

c. Add a small amount of oil the pan and fry each flatbread for 2 minutes on each side, or until both sides are lightly charred and full of air pockets. 

d. Repeat for the rest of the flatbreads, adding small amounts of oil as required. 

Filled with salad ready to eat!

e. These are best enjoyed warm out of the pan stuffed with fresh crispy salad – delicious! They don’t keep especially well, so best just to make what you need and eat them fresh!

Roll dough

 For the Poppy Seed Rolls:

a. Take the other half of the knocked back dough, divide into six and form each portion into a circle – the easiest way to do this is to knead for 30 seconds and the dough will automatically take on the right shape. 

b. Repeat for all of the dough then place them all into an oiled baking tray, evenly spaced. 

With seeds added

c. Cover the tray with oiled clingfilm and prove for another 30 minutes in a warm place, or until doubled in size. 

d. Once risen brush generously with milk, sprinkle with a layer of Poppy seeds; only the bottom layer will stick so you don’t need to go overboard. 

e. Bake in a preheated oven (200oC fan/210oC other ovens) for 20 minutes or until they sound hollow when tapped on the base – cook for another 5 minutes and test again until you get the hollow noise. 

Finished rolls!

f. These make great sandwiches, or are nice toasted with something like scrambled egg. They’ll keep for 3 or 4 days in an air tight container.

Like I said, it would be just as easy to use all of the dough to make flatbreads, or the rolls, simply double the additional ingredients required.

I hope this demonstrates how flexible dough can be, and how many different things you can do with it (simultaneously or otherwise!) once you’ve mastered the basic technique!

Happy Baking!

The Baking Ginger xx