Miracle Overnight Bread; & A Cookbook Club Roundup

Apr 04, 2022

miracle overnight bread passionate baker

Oof, hi friends. Happy Monday! I’ll be coming atcha in a few short days with our monthly catch-up post, but in the meantime I’d like to share a quick cookbook club roundup of sorts. You may or may not have noticed, but I’ve dropped the ball recently regarding Cookbook Club – and it makes me so sad! Being confined to just one or two cookbooks stressed me out, but rather than dumping the whole idea entirely, I’ve decided to change things up a bit. From now on, I’ll be dipping in and out of all my cookbooks, sharing a roundup of what I made, and sharing the recipe that trumped all others. What do you think? It’s basically the same.. but different! And so, to kick things off I bring you: Miracle Overnight Bread, the best thing I baked in March!

You might notice a certain lack of sweet things listed below. See, I’ve been suffering from a horrible tooth ache all month long and it’s hindered my enjoyment of eating basically every single thing. The good news is that I’ve been to the dentist a lot – like, a LOT; she called me a drama queen – and I’m finally on the road to recovery. The bad news is that sweets have been a major no-go for me of late. It’s been grim, but hopefully my sweet-less time is coming to an end.

Now, let’s get down to it! Here’s the roundup:

march’s cookbook club roundup:

Passion Cake, from Ravneet Gill’s Sugar, I Love You. This cake went down a treat! It’s a cross between carrot cake & banana bread, and it’s perfectly moist and flavoursome without being too sweet.

Fagioli all’olio, from Emiko Davies’ Florentine. Beans with olive oil, fresh herbs, and salt. So simple, and yet so comforting! One of my very favourite dishes, and one that I’ve been obsessed with ever since I first tasted it in Siena. I miss Italy. Sigh.

Winter Citrus Cake, from Thalia Ho’s Wild Sweetness. It’s impossible to find this recipe online anywhere, but it’s so good! I made a few tweaks due to what I had on hand and it was still delicious – definitely one to try if you have the book.

Cottage Pie with Chorizo, from Joanna Weinberg’s How to Feed Your Friends with Relish. One of my more obscure cookbooks, but one of my most trusted. Can you ever go wrong with mashed potato & meat with gravy? I think not.

Charred Kale and The Perfect Steak, from Joshua Weissman’s An Unapologetic Cookbook. Two words: yes! please! The steak was great, but bizarrely the kale dish stole the show! Insanely tasty and so simple; a whole new level of kale deliciousness.

Crispy Whole Wheat Graham Crackers and Magic Key Lime Pie, from Stella Parks’ Bravetart. This was amazing! Ever since making Nigella’s (Key) Lime Pie in May, both Boyfriend & I have been semi-addicted to it. This recipe has a slightly looser filling than Nigella’s, but the taste is wonderful. As for the graham crackers: delicious!

Chole Bhatura and Paneer Tikka Achari, from Dishoom. We’re always looking for delicious new vegetarian meals, and these two from Dishoom are absolutely stellar! My love of the Dishoom cookbook is well documented both here and here, and it has yet to let me down. Honestly, it’s one of the best cookbooks I own.

Miracle Overnight Bread from Kitty & Al Tait’s Breadsong. All the details below!

Miracle Overnight Bread: The Details

Okay, now we’re down to the best part, my favourite recipe of the month: Miracle Overnight Bread from Kitty & Al Tait’s soon-to-be-released Breadsong. I was lucky enough to get my hands on an advanced copy of Breadsong before it hits shelves later this month, and I simply had to try the recipe that kick-started Kitty’s baking career. Spoiler alert: it’s amazing. It’s a satisfyingly simple bread to make – à la Jim Lahey’s no-knead technique – and the resulting loaf is light and springy with a fantastic crust. You’re going to love it.

Here’s a quick run down of how this miraculous bread comes together:

• the night before you want to eat the bread, mix the dough together. Lukewarm water, strong white flour, yeast, and salt – that’s all there is to it! It looks a little shaggy and unappealing, but just wait. I covered mine with cling-film, scribbled the time on top, and went to bed.

• 12-16 hours later – I left mine for 14 – the dough has transformed. No longer a shaggy mess, now it’s more of a huge and bubbly thriving beast! Gently scoop it out of the bowl onto a floured surface, use floury hands to lightly shape it into a ball, and then leave it to rest for another hour. No kneading, no folding, no stretching. I popped my dough into a semolina-dusted banneton, covered it with a clean tea-towel, and left it in a cozy corner. Coffee break anyone?

• one hour later and we’re ready to bake! Transfer the dough to a piece of parchment paper, slash the top, pop it into a cast iron casserole dish, and bake at the highest temperature your oven goes to. 30-minutes with the lid on, 15/20-minutes with the lid off, and voila! I let my loaves go super dark, almost to the point of burning, for an extra flavorsome crust, but you do you.

• the final part is the hardest: the waiting! The loaf needs to cool for at least an hour before slicing, otherwise you’ll squish all the goodness out of it. 100% worth the wait.

And there we have it: Kitty Tait’s Miracle Overnight Bread. I hope you bake and devour it in one single day, which is basically what we did. It is exceptionally good a) in sausage sandwiches and b) for mopping up pasta sauces – I speak from experience.

Happy baking! xo

P R I N T