A busy busy weekend begs for a treat - Chocolate rolls for pure indulgence


You know when a weekend comes by and you already are aware there'll be absolutely no free time at all to pursue ventures that might be to your liking? Well, I knew this past weekend was going to be one of those. End of the month always means we need to go and get the bulk shopping done. Saturdays are usually spent running from one place to the other so we can get all the fish and meat for the whole month - we freeze so we prefer buying fresh and buying whole - the frozen veggies, the packs of rice and pasta and the beans, the flours, the toiletries, you name it. Then we can go from week to week buying only fresh fruit, fresh veggies and so on.


So I knew Saturday was going to be one of those days where we would be out all day long. Sunday meant domestic chores, like changing bedsheets, the vacuuming, the cleaning, the washing, the putting away, bread making, soup making, the part of cooking that will be frozen and ready for us to eat during the week. Some people ask me why I don't do certain things on weekdays, seeing that I don't work and spend all day cooped up in the house. I never explain that yes, actually Ido work, I only don't make any money out of that work, but I do work and my weekdays are filled with said work, whichever I can squeeze in between school runs and exercising and getting lunch and dinner ready. The rest of the time I have, on weekdays, is for working, either here on this blog or on my books. But because I know already that if I don't make money out of it, it's not seen as work, I don't even say a word about it. 


Also, this was the weekend before my kiddo starts his school break, and I wanted to tackle how we're gonna face those dreaded days - yes, he gets bored easily even when I suggest fun stuff. He likes to say he's bored, all the time, and we have huge rows about it, because when I was his age, I don't remember ever feeling bored, I could entertain myself alone for hours, with toys or books. I did read a lot when I was his age, but sadly my boy is a little lazy where it comes to reading. I mean, once he's got a book open, he will read for a long time if left alone, the problem is convincing him of getting a book and sitting down to read. He always says he doesn't want to. I find that horrid and shocking. How can you say you don't want to read a book? Are you nuts or something?


Speaking of nuts, I have been dying to share these here. Chocolate rolls, that are to die for. If you like cinnamon rolls, you'll love these. And they kept my son busy and entertained a whole morning while we were baking them. Here's how to:

For the dough:
  • 150 ml milk
  • 2 tsp turmeric
  • 3 strands of saffron
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 20 gr fresh yeast
  • 1 cup of strong bread flour (T55)
  • 1/2 cup whole grain spelt flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp yellow sugar
Heat up the milk on a pan, with the turmeric, cinnamon stick and the saffron. Bring it to a simmer and then turn it off and take the pan from the stove. Allow to infuse until the milk is lukewarm. Fish out the cinnamon stick and pour into a measuring jug and add water until you have a total of 175 ml. On your stand up mixer bowl, place the flours, the salt and sugar and on the opposite side the yeast broken into crumbs. Add half the milk and water and using the hook implement, beat on the lowest speed. Add the rest of the milk slowly and increase the speed. Beat until the dough has gained consistency and then keep beating for five minutes. Cover with a kitchen towel and let the dough rise for two hours on a warm, dark place. Once it has doubled the size, pour onto a floured surface and gently knead the dough so you take out the excess air in it. Roll into a large rectangle with a floured rolling pin and now you can start with the filling. 


For it you'll need:
  • 100gr dark chocolate
  • dash of milk
  • tiny knob of butter
  • 1/2 of nuts, chopped (I used hazelnuts, walnuts and almonds)
  • vanilla sugar
  • vanilla extract.
Start by truning on your oven at 180º. On a small pan, pour a very small drizzle of milk, the vanilla extract, add the tiniest knob of butter and chop the chocolate into it. Bring the pan to your stove, turn the heat on and allow the chocolate to melt, mixing well. Once it's all meted, take it off the heat, mix in  and allow to cool and set some. Now chop the nuts and roll the dough into a large rectangle, as I said above. Brush the chocolate over the lower half of the dough - chocolate mix should be thick, yet spreadable - and cover with the chopped nuts. Sprinkle some vanilla sugar over it and fold the upper half of the dough into the lower half, pressing down so it sticks together. With a cutter, cut off smaller rectangles along the lenght of it and roll them into small twists and then knots. Place them on an oven tray covered in baking parchment and brush them with either eggwash or milk, if you want to, it's not mandatory. I didn't, and it still looked good. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, it may take longer, it may take less than that, just keep checking. Allow to cool and serve with a cup of coffee or tea for an afternoon break, or if you're feeling particularly indulgent, as a late night snack!




Comments

  1. Que perfeitos, para toda a família!
    E esse recheio com chocolate e frutos secos foi a melhor opção :) vontade de os ter aqui! Um beijinho.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Há outros recheios que ficam bem bons, mas como sou uma chocolatuda...

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