Jaison's Porcini Bread by chef/owner Pete Brennan

Jaison's Porcini Bread by chef/owner Pete Brennan

This is a recipe given to me by my mate Pete Brennan chef/owner of the fabulous Porcini Restaurant at Helensville near Auckland.

Pete is very true to the concept of Local, pretty much all of his ingredients he sources locally, some he even grows himself. Watch out for when his black figs are in season, what a dessert they make!!

The Restaurant is intimate and informal with an Italian decor, white table cloths and sparkling glassware. All the staff, both front of house and in the kitchen are friendly and keen to make sure your evening and your meals are delightful

Pete has a very selective winelist, mostly local wines, and all of which he has tried. He is able to recommend the right wine for your meal selection. Cocktails, beers, ports and soft drinks are also available.

Diners come from far and wide, so if you are visiting or staying at Kumeu, Muriwai beach, Waimauku or Helensville, Porcini is not far away, about 50 minutes from Auckland central, and 20 minutes from Kumeu

Easy to find, over the railway bridge coming into the Helensville main street, on the right just before the road dips into the town shops. Call 09 420 8025 to book. Open Wednesday through Sunday.

I love this place so I might see you there. Jaison

Give this recipe a go, almost as quick as going to the bakery!

Our Daily Bread.

I have been making this bread for many years, first at home then for ten years at my Cafes on Auckland’s North shore, where “The Bread” was a staple. We had a policy of making everything ourselves, so a good bread was essential. Originally we produced a few loaves per day for use in sandwiches, toast for breakfasts and to accompany soup. Before long the bread became a product all of its own and we began producing dozens of loaves per day for sale direct to the public. The recipe was a closely guarded secret for all those years but now it is time to share.

This is a batter bread with high water content so it has a very long shelf life, great crust and lovely soft doughy centre. The best part is it is very fast to make, only proves once and can be ready to eat within 2 hours of deciding to make it.

You will need a large bowl, a wooden spoon, a loaf tin, a cup measure and a set of scales.

450mls warm water

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

¼ cup pumpkin seeds

¼ cup sunflower seeds

250g wholemeal flour

250g white flour, (standard or bakers)

2 teaspoons sesame seeds

Pour the water into the bowl and add the salt, yeast, sugar, pumpkin seeds, and sunflower seeds. Stir and leave to stand for a few minutes while you weigh the flour.

Add the flours and stir together with the wooden spoon. The batter will form quickly and once all the flour is mixed in beat 100 times with the wooden spoon until it becomes slightly elastic. That’s it.

Scrape the dough into a greased loaf tin, until it is about 2/3rds full, tap on the bench to level. Sprinkle on the sesame seeds straight away before the surface begins to dry and loose its stickyness.

Place the tin in a warm place uncovered and allow to prove until it is slightly higher than the tin. It will take 30-40 mins to prove so preheat the oven to 190 degrees celceus. Once your bread is proved place in the middle of the oven and bake for 40 mins. Once cooked tap the tin on the bench and turn out the loaf onto a cake rack, allow to cool before cutting.

Note; do not try to make this bread with “surebake conditioned yeast” as this is designed to work in breadmakers and so will fail, just use plain dried yeast.

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