We were entering the 19th day of autumn when I made this bread. It was still a hot and sunny day in Sydney. However, the temperature has cooled down a bit since yesterday and it’s been the 3rd day of Sydney partial lockdown. “Self isolating” as much as possible. It’s also a perfect time for me to practice my baking skills.
Flipping through Vefa’s cookbook, I came across a potatoes bread recipe. Since I have sweet potatoes puree in the fridge, I’ve replaced 80g mashed potatoes with 140g of sweet potatoes and reduced the liquid from 250ml to about 190ml (see recipe note). Rather than just a simple loaf bread, I’ve turned it into a braided loaf bread. The bread turned out very soft and fluffy.
You’ll make 1 standard size loaf bread from this recipe. So let’s get started.
- Combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast in your mixing bowl. You can sift the flour and salt together but it’s not necessary.
- Make a well in the center, add the sweet potatoes puree, milk and melted butter. Turn on the mixer and slowly add in the water. Remember not to add in all the water in one go as different type of flour absorb water differently.
- Knead until it forms a smooth, pliable dough that comes away from your mixer bowl or fingers.
- Oil the bowl with some oil so the dough won’t stick to the bowl. Put the soft dough into the oiled bowl. Cover with a cling film and leave to proof until double in size, about 1 hour.
- After it has double in size, tip the dough out to a pastry board and knead for a few seconds. Oil the loaf pan. Cut the dough into 3 pieces and shape each into a ball.
- Let it rest for 5 mins. Roll each dough into a rope, and braid. Pinch the ends to seal and tuck under.
- Place the braided dough into a baking pan. Cover and let it rise for about 40 mins or until it has double in volume.
- Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius. Beat an egg with 1 tsp of water. Brush the top of the dough with egg mixture.
- Bake for 30-35 mins, or until the top is golden brown. If you have a thermometer, the internal temperature of the loaf should register about 88 degree Celsius. Turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool.
1. Mix in all ingredients, except water and egg 
2. Turn on mixer and slowly add in water 
3. Mix until dough comes away from bowl 
4. Oil the bowl 
5. Form the dough into a ball and cover 
6. Let it rise until double in size 
7. Oil the loaf pan 
8. Cut dough into 3 pieces and shape each into a ball 
9. Roll dough into rope 
10. Pinch the top end 
11. Start braiding 
12. Pinch the bottom end and tuck under 
13. Transfer to the loaf pan 
14. Brush with melted butter 
15. Cover and let rise until double in volume 
16. Brush with egg wash 
17. Baked until golden brown and tip to a wire rack to cool
Recipe Note:
- Different types of flour absorb water differently so you might need to adjust the amount of water needed for the dough. Slowly add in water into the dry mixture and knead until the dough comes away from your mixer bowl.
- I have made some slight changes from the original recipe by replacing 80g mashed potatoes with 140g of sweet potatoes and reduced the liquid from 250ml to about 190ml. Instead of baking it for the first 20 mins at 200 degree Celsius then 180 degree Celsius for the remaining baking time, I’ve turned down the heat and bake it for about 30-35 mins at 180 degree Celsius.
- I would usually use a thermometer to test a baked loaf. A perfectly baked loaf will reach an internal temperature of 88 degree Celsius. Check out this blog on how to nail the perfect baked loaf. Alternatively, take the loaf out of the oven and turn it upside and give the bottom of the loaf a firm thump with your thumb, like striking a drum. The bread will sound hollow when it’s done.
Baking Equipment:
- Bowl
- Mixer with hook attachment
- Dough scrapper
- Cling film/tea towel
- Digital scale
- Measuring spoons
- Pastry board/mat
- Pastry brush
- Baking tray
- Cooling rack
Why not switch it up a bit and add some sweet potatoes to your loaf of bread? This recipe makes one very soft and fluffy loaf of bread.Bread with Sweet Potatoes - Psomi me Glykopatáta
Ingredients
Directions
Recipe Note:
- I usually use dry yeast as it is easily available and easy to use. 1 packet is 7g so I would use 1 packet for most of the bread recipe.
- You can use 80g of mashed potatoes or pumpkin. You can add more mashed potatoes or pumpkin but make sure you reduce the amount of water. Slowly add in water to form a dough rather than adding all the water in one go.
Nutrition Per Serving (Based on 20 servings, excluding egg wash):
| NUTRITION INFORMATION | AVE QUANTITY PER SERVING |
|---|---|
| Calories | 94.4kcal |
| Protein | 2.6g |
| Fat (total) | 1.4g |
| – Saturated Fat | 0.8g |
| Carbohydrate | 17g |
| Sugars | 1.9g |
| Sodium | 97mg |
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