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Quick Syrian Coffee Loaf
Apr. 23rd, 2021 12:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mama_kestrelThis comes from The Complete Bread Cookbook by Jean and Ted Kaufman, released in 1969. It was a gift from my grandparents when I'd been baking bread for a couple of years and it had become clear that the enthusiasm for baking with yeast wasn't going to be supplanted by another interest.
One of my law school housemates made this recipe, so I had some idea how it would taste. But that was in 1980 or '81, and I'd never made it myself.
I did tweak it. Of course I did - no recipe goes untweaked. In this instance I reduced the sugar by 25%, down to 3/4 cup, doubled the amount of rosewater, and added 1/2 tsp almond extract. I almost always reduce the sugar in recipes from American cookbooks, because I find most American baked goods cloying. I also left out the anise seeds, because one of the people for whom this is intended has a colostomy, and seeds of any kind cause her extreme pain. Since this will be our "we're celebrating being vaccinated" gathering, that would rather defeat the point of the exercise!
QUICK SYRIAN COFFEE LOAF
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar (I used 3/4 cup)
2 eggs
1 tsp rose water (I used 2. I could have used more.)
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsps baking powder
pinch salt
1/2 tsp anise seed
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour an 8"x4" loaf pan. I find Baker's Joy non-stick spray with flour works well.
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until the mixture is very light and creamy. Add rose water (I got mine from a gourmet shop), then add flour, baking powder and seeds (if using) alternately with milk. Beat until well blended. (This is one of those "experienced baker presumed" types of instructions. I combined flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a small mixing bowl and whisked together. To the batter in the main bowl, add about a third of the flour, then half the milk, another third of the flour, the rest of the milk, and finish with the rest of the flour, beating after each addition. Scrape down the sides and across the bottom of the bowl when you think you're done, then mix a bit more.)
Spoon into the prepared loaf pan. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to brown. Turn out on a wire rack to cool.
Verdict: This is very much like a sponge cake, so much so that I think I'll be making it again with different flavorings just to see how they turn out. It did not need any more sugar than I put in. It did need rather more flavoring. I don't remember my housemate's version being this light, but I don't think we had an electric mixer, either. :)
One of my law school housemates made this recipe, so I had some idea how it would taste. But that was in 1980 or '81, and I'd never made it myself.
I did tweak it. Of course I did - no recipe goes untweaked. In this instance I reduced the sugar by 25%, down to 3/4 cup, doubled the amount of rosewater, and added 1/2 tsp almond extract. I almost always reduce the sugar in recipes from American cookbooks, because I find most American baked goods cloying. I also left out the anise seeds, because one of the people for whom this is intended has a colostomy, and seeds of any kind cause her extreme pain. Since this will be our "we're celebrating being vaccinated" gathering, that would rather defeat the point of the exercise!
QUICK SYRIAN COFFEE LOAF
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar (I used 3/4 cup)
2 eggs
1 tsp rose water (I used 2. I could have used more.)
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsps baking powder
pinch salt
1/2 tsp anise seed
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour an 8"x4" loaf pan. I find Baker's Joy non-stick spray with flour works well.
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until the mixture is very light and creamy. Add rose water (I got mine from a gourmet shop), then add flour, baking powder and seeds (if using) alternately with milk. Beat until well blended. (This is one of those "experienced baker presumed" types of instructions. I combined flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a small mixing bowl and whisked together. To the batter in the main bowl, add about a third of the flour, then half the milk, another third of the flour, the rest of the milk, and finish with the rest of the flour, beating after each addition. Scrape down the sides and across the bottom of the bowl when you think you're done, then mix a bit more.)
Spoon into the prepared loaf pan. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to brown. Turn out on a wire rack to cool.
Verdict: This is very much like a sponge cake, so much so that I think I'll be making it again with different flavorings just to see how they turn out. It did not need any more sugar than I put in. It did need rather more flavoring. I don't remember my housemate's version being this light, but I don't think we had an electric mixer, either. :)
