Stout, oat and honey knots

[lepard]

Stout, oat and honey knots

At the bakery in Findhorn up on the Moray Firth in the Highlands baker Eian Smith makes loads of knotted rolls for the Blue Angel Cafe. They go bonkers for knots up there, must be something to do with all the fishermen and the sea. A knot is one of the easiest shapes to make, much more forgiving that trying to work a lump of dough into a perfect ball.

Made with a recipe like this one they stay really moist inside because of the cooked oats and butter. The rolls taste a little bit like granary bread with a slight nutty flavour and a gentle sweetness from the stout and honey, so make them big for an amazing cheese and pickle sandwich or small served warm in a basket with dinner.

To make life a bit more relaxed I make these ahead but only lightly bake them, perhaps 20 minutes in the oven. Then I leave them on the tray to cool and freeze them tied up in a bag. So just before dinner, or whenever I need them they get baked once more from frozen in a preheated 200C (180C fan-assisted) for 10 - 12 minutes.

75g rolled oats
500ml stout or other beer, cider or apple juice
50g unsalted butter
50g honey
1 sachet easy-blend yeast
400g strong white flour
150g wholemeal, rye or spelt flour
1 3/4 tsp salt

Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan-assisted). Place the oats on a tray in the oven for a bit over 25 minutes until they turn a rich golden brown. Get a saucepan out of the cupboard and pour in the stout. Add the oats, stick it on a medium heat and bring it to the boil. Drop the butter and honey into the pan, pop the lid on and leave it about 30 minutes till it gets warm.

Have a large mixing bowl ready and, if you're kitchen feels a bit nippy this time of year, scald the inside with boiling water and dry it well. Spoon in the white and wholemeal flour, add the yeast and salt then toss everything together with your fingers. Pour in the warm oatmeal mixture and stir everything together with your fingers, cover the bowl and leave for 10 minutes. Lightly oil the worksurface and your hands, scoop the dough out of the bowl and gently knead it for 10 - 12 seconds. Scoop the dough back into the bowl, cover and leave for 10 minutes then repeat the light knead twice more at 10 minute intervals.

Leave the dough for an hour, ideally somewhere it won't get a chill, then divide it into pieces. For a big sandwich rolls weigh about five 225g pieces; for dinner rolls weight about a dozen 100g pieces. Cover the base of a baking tray with non-stick parchment (the paper will stop the rolls getting too scorched on the bottom), roll each piece of dough on a lightly floured surface into a sausage about 15cm - 20cm long, tie it in a knot and place on the tray. If you want a coating of oats on the rolls, lay a sheet of wet kitchen paper on one dinner plate and spoon rolled oats onto another, then roll the dough sausage first on the wet paper and then in the oats before knotting. Sit each roll on the tray spaced 4-5cm apart, cover the tray loosely with an old carrier bag and leave for about an hour until doubled in height.

Heat the oven to 210C (190C fan-assisted). Bake the rolls for 20 minutes then reduce the heat to 180C (160C fan-assisted), bake until a good golden brown then leave to cool on a wire rack covered loosely with a dry tea-towel.

[dougal]

Loved this one.

I used:
- a 440ml can of Guinness (minus a swig) and made up to 500ml with water
- spelt as the 'wholemeal' and
- Waitrose 4 Grain Porridge (oat, wheat, barley and rice "flakes") as the 'oats'.

Result was a splendidly moist, very slightly chewy texture with a 'grown-up' savoury bitter taste that was obvious without being overwhelming.

I did some as knots, as described, some as ordinary dressed rolls and some as knots but 'dressed' after tying.
My personal preference (with those 'oats' at least) was against the dressed-then-knotted version. Reason being the largely uncooked and unhydrated pale oats incorporated into the darker dough by the knotting. (The other beer-soaked oats basically disappear.) The layer of pale oat flakes maybe wasn't complete enough, but (in my product and my eyes) it looked more mistaken than being by deliberate intent! Maybe different with different porridge oats!

These are splendid rolls.
I certainly can't buy anything like as special.

Thanks, Dan!

[Teck Poh]

[snip]
These are splendid rolls.
I certainly can't buy anything like as special.

Thanks, Dan!

Doesn't need any more persuasion than that! This will be on next week's menu.

TP

[dougal]

For now, at least, there's a video demo on the Guardian site...
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/food/2007/1 ... and_h.html

Dan, Adam -- couldn't this go on Google Video or YouTube?

[DavidW]

I'm happy for this to stay up on the Guardian website as Dan does work for the paper, but I'd be against it being posted elsewhere as Dan then starts to lose control over the use and distribution of this clip of him, and that's a slippery slope.

[dougal]

That's brilliant that it can be 'pinned' on the Guardian site -- I was just concerned that the demo might be lost to posterity!

[pab]

Lovely video, Dan!

Pete

PS I have visited Findhorn - it is (apart from the RAF base) quite a fascinating place in one of the most magical parts of the UK.

[ostwestwind]

very much, but I think the toasting the oats on a tray "in the oven for a bit over 25 minutes" at 200 °C is too long. After 3 minutes smoke came out of the oven and the oats were already done.


For coating I used untoasted rolls, a great recipe, thanks

[Malcolm115]

Looks like one for the list to try as soon as the time can be found.

Should be great for picnics

Especially liked the video - I always find watching with instructions easier than reading.

Although this forum is great with the pictures too.

[Malcolm115]

Made these a few times now generally with cider and applejuice rather than stout.

The flavour is great and they are well liked at home.

However, I do have a problem or two that needs sorting out.

I find the dough is too wet. On my calculations if you include the oats that are porridged (is that a real word?) the flour total is 725g and the liquid, if you include the honey, is 550g giving a hydration of 76%. I normally work at about 65%.

This may impact on the next problem. I have a great deal of difficulty in getting the baking time right.

Last time I followed the recipe and timings for a fan oven but the rolls (120g dough) were a bit stodgy in the middle.

Would it be best to extend the higher temperature baking time or the lower one.

Or should I try changing the temperatures of both or either and which way, up or down?

Any and all advice will be appreciated.