Is it safe to come out yet, my dear readers? I certainly hope so. And yes, before you ask, I have indeed spent the last month hiding out. This reporter decided that it was by far the safest option after someone decided that it would be a great idea to spend an entire month creating havoc for me both at work and at home. There will be no prizes given out this time, as I am sure you are all well aware of who I am referring to. Needless to say, Wolf is on the warpath, and I do not want to be the target of her latest outburst.
As if that wasn't enough, the Editors, in their infinite wisdom, decided to choose Bubblemania as the theme for this month's issue. Which, of course, was yet another excuse for our resident chaos demons to launch another attack on my office! I swear Kalina must've stolen her friend Benjamin's bubble recipe after the latest Gobstones tournament, as I simply could not get rid of the blasted things. No matter how hard I tried. I eventually had to bribe her with some very expensive Quidditch tickets to get her to help me.
I apologise, though; you did not come here to listen to me ramble about my misfortunes with those misguided mischief makers. You want to hear what the marvellous kitchen phenomenon came up with for this month's issue, don't you? Well, I will tell you that she is feeling much better and was on top form again after last month's cold. From the minute I stepped into her TARDIS of temptation, she was practically fizzing with excitement. It seemed that Spring had rejuvenated her, and she was eager to tell me all about the Beltane Party she was holding that weekend. The entire kitchen counter was filled with the most delicious-looking treats, and as she described each one to me and how it was made, she explained that there was just one last thing she had to make before her quests began to arrive that afternoon. The entire village was coming for her outdoor event, and we were going to have our work cut out if we were going to make enough of the recipe she had planned for everyone.
Reading the parchment Momma Fox pressed eagerly into my hand, I saw that, yet again, she had come up with the perfect thing to ease even Wolf's temper. The Bubble Bread recipe was bound to make even the fussiest person melt.
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon yeast (quick active, instant)
1/2 cup warm milk
11/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 garlic cloves, crushed
5 tbsp salted butter, melted
Directions:
1. Add all ingredients to a mixing bowl in the order listed except the last two.
2. Stir ingredients together until a ball of dough forms. (You may need to add a little more flour or milk if it is not coming together to form a ball. The dough will be a little sticky). You can use Permisceto for this, but be careful not to mix the ingredients too vigorously.
3. Cover loosely and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to form a rectangle, about 10x8".
5. Cut into approximately 25 pieces. Roll into balls and place on a greased cookie sheet or a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. You may want to use a muggle ruler for this so that the balls are all roughly the same size.
6. Let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Ideally, somewhere warm. Do not be tempted to speed up this process with magic, as you could end up with spoiled dough.
7. Preheat oven to 325 F. degrees. Then brush the tops of the dough balls with the melted butter and garlic mixture before baking.
8. Bake at 325 F. degrees for 18-20 minutes.
By the end of my session with our favourite culinary craftswoman, I was hot, exhausted and had almost as much flour in my curls as there was on the counter. But it was absolutely worth it. I promise. We were left with 10 trays of the most buttery, melt-in-the-mouth bubble treats that I had ever tasted. I don't even think the Hogwarts House Elves could weave magic as delicious as what we created that afternoon. I just hope I can reproduce it when I get home. I may just need to if I am going to bribe the rest of the SOUP writers to stop pranking my office long enough for the Editors to not want to lock us all in the Archives for the day to suffer in the dark.
So, my dear readers, wish me luck... please?
Until next time though, Happy Bubbly Baking! - Nikita