The Breakfast LoafGetting started
Everything you need before your first bake. Three bits of kit, one big shop, and you’re away.
Is it worth it?
Money
Yes, there’s a little investment. A lot of these ingredients won’t be in your pantry yet. But they go a long way.
Time
Some effort to get set up. Then an hour or so set aside each week.
Payoff
An easy, yummy breakfast every day.
Your 80 year old future self will thank you.
The kit
Good digital scales
Almost everything is in grams, eggs included. Cups won’t cut it here.
The one thing worth spending on.
A large loaf tin
Mine is bigger than most. If yours is a standard size, that’s fine. Read about your tin.
Two good sized bowls
One for the wet mix, one for the dry. The wet mix soaks while you get everything else ready.
Also handy: baking paper, a whisk, a spatula, a skewer and a wire rack.
About your tin
Loaf tins are all different. Mine is a big USA Pan, 26.5 × 12.5 cm and 7.5 cm deep. Every recipe here is tested in it.
Got a standard 21 × 11 cm tin? Use the Standard tin switch on any recipe. It scales everything to two thirds. I haven’t tested that size, so keep an eye on it and start checking at 35 minutes.
Not sure what you’ve got? Fill your tin to the brim with water and weigh it. Mine holds about 2.5kg. A standard tin holds about 1.6kg.
The pantry
Buy the cheap stuff. Spend your care on the yoghurt and the scales.
Wholemeal flour
Structure and fibre.
Look for: plain wholemeal. Not self raising, not white.
I find supermarket own brand works fine.
Almond meal
Moisture, richness and protein.
Look for: blanched (pale) almond meal.
Ground almond is also fine.
Whole milk powder
Protein, flavour and a tender crumb.
Look for: whole, not skim. Skim works, but the loaf is a bit drier.
Chia seeds
Soak up the liquid and hold it all together.
Look for: black or white, both fine.
Ground flaxseed
Binds and adds fibre.
Look for: ground flaxseed or linseed meal, not LSA. Keep it in the fridge.
A good source of omega-3.
Psyllium husk powder
Take careHolds the whole loaf together. Very thirsty.
Look for: powder, not whole husks.
A great source of fibre, and a packet will do many loaves.
Savoury yeast flakes
Cheesy, savoury depth and protein.
Look for: nutritional yeast flakes. Not baking or brewer’s yeast.
Also a delicious topping sprinkled on top of melted butter.
Baking powder
The rise.
Look for: a fresh tub. Old baking powder makes a dense loaf.
Bicarbonate of soda
Rise and browning. Reacts with the yoghurt.
Look for: any brand.
Salt
Flavour.
Look for: fine table salt. Flaky salt measures differently.
Cooking oil
Moisture and tenderness.
Look for: any neutral oil.
I use cold-pressed rapeseed oil.
Honey
A little sweetness in some loaves.
Look for: any runny honey.
Maple syrup
Used for a little sweetness and flavour.
Look for: pure maple syrup, not maple flavoured.
Eggs
Take careStructure and protein.
Look for: any size. You weigh them.
Buy fresh each week.
Greek yoghurt
Take careMoisture, protein and tang.
Look for: natural and thick, 8g+ protein per 100g.
I use Cyclops Greek yoghurt.
Buy fresh each week.
The spice rack
Herbs and spices do most of the flavour work, so here’s a heads up on what the recipes use. Check your cupboard before you shop. Old spices taste of dust.
Which Greek yoghurt?
Natural, unsweetened and thick, with at least 8g of protein per 100g. “Greek style” on the label doesn’t guarantee it’s strained, so check the protein.
Low-fat Greek yoghurt is fine, as long as it’s thick. A thin, runny one can leave the middle of the loaf wet.
Good matches: Cyclops Greek Natural (mine), The Collective More Than Protein Natural Greek, Meadow Fresh Kalo Greek Natural, Puhoi Valley Authentic Greek.
Why weigh the eggs?
My eggs come from our young chooks, so they’re small. Every recipe gives the total cracked egg weight. Crack yours into a bowl on the scales until you hit it.
Shopping list
Tick what you need, here or on the cards above. Only the ticked things print.
Pantry
Herbs and spices
Plus fresh each week: eggs, Greek yoghurt and the fresh bits for your flavour.
Got the lot? Pick your first loaf.
Loaf didn’t work? Check these first
Wet or gummy in the middle. Runny yoghurt, eggs heavier than the recipe, wet extras not dried, underbaked, or out of the tin too soon.
Sunk in the middle. Out of the tin too soon, underbaked, or old baking powder.
Dry or crumbly. Skim milk powder, or overbaked.
Dense or heavy. Old baking powder or bicarb, or overmixed.
Sweaty, soggy base. Left in the tin too long.
Gluey pockets. Psyllium not whisked evenly through the dry mix, or whole husks used instead of powder.