Aberdeen Butteries Food

ABERDEEN BUTTERIES

Steps:

• Make a paste from the yeast, sugar and a wee bit of the warm water and set aside.
• Mix the flour and the salt together. Once the yeast has bubbled up add this and mix well to a dough and leave to rise.
• Cream the butter and lard and divide into three portions.
• Once the dough has doubled in size give it a good knead then roll into a rectangle about 1cm thick.
• Then spread one portion of the butter mixture over two thirds of the dough.
• Fold the remining third of the dough over onto the butter mixture and fold the other bit over - giving three layers. Roll this back to the original size.
• Allow to cool for 40 minutes.
• Repeat stages 5-7 twice more.
• Cut the dough into 16 pieces and shape each to a rough circle and place on baking trays.
• Set aside to rise for about 45 minutes then bake at 200c for 15 minutes.

ABERDEEN BUTTERIES (ROWIES)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt until well combined.
• Make a well in the centre of the mixture, then gradually add the water in a thin stream, stirring well with a wooden spoon, until the mixture comes together as a dough. (NB: You may not need to use all of the water.)
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead lightly for 8-10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic.
• Transfer the kneaded dough to a clean, greased bowl and cover with a greased sheet of cling film. Set aside in a warm place to rise (prove) for at least one hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.
• Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, cream together the butter and lard until well combined. Divide the mixture into four equal portions.
• When the dough has proved, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a further 1-2 minutes.
• Roll out the dough into a 40cm x 20cm/16in x 8in rectangle, about 1cm/½in thick.
• Turn the dough around so that the shortest edge is facing you. Spread one portion of the butter and lard mixture over the bottom two-thirds of the dough rectangle.
• Fold the remaining one-third of the dough rectangle over onto the butter and lard mixture to cover the centre section of the dough rectangle. Fold the other end of the dough rectangle over the folded dough, so that the dough ends up three times its original thickness.
• Roll the dough out again to a 40cm x 20cm/16in x 8in rectangle, about 1cm/½in thick. Repeat the process of spreading and folding with another portion of the butter and lard mixture.
• Repeat the process twice more, until all of the butter and lard mixture has been used up and the dough has been rolled out a total of four times.
• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• Roll the dough out again to a 40cm x 20cm/16in x 8in rectangle, about 1cm/½in thick. Cut the dough into 16 pieces and roll each into a round, flat bun shape.
• Transfer the buns to a lightly oiled baking tray and set aside for 40-45 minutes, or until they have doubled in size again (leave enough space between them for expansion).
• When the buns have risen, bake them in the oven for 15-18 minutes, or until they have risen further and are golden-brown and cooked through. Set aside to cool on a wire rack.
• Serve each buttery warm, spread with butter and jam.

ABERDEEN ROLLS (A/K/A BUTTRIES)

Steps:

• These are yeast rolls and, just like yeast breads, ought to be made under warm conditions to allow the yeast to raise the dough.
• Sieve the flour and salt into a large bowl and set aside.
• Cream the fresh yeast, sugar and a little of the tepid water together and add to the bowl of flour.
• Mix the ingredients together with enough water to make smooth firm dough.
• Transfer the dough to a well-floured surface and knead well for about five minutes.
• Place the dough back into the bowl, cover with a warm slightly damp cloth and set aside in a warm place for about an hour to allow the yeast do its work of expanding the dough to about double its original size.
• While the dough is rising cream together the butter and lard in readiness for the next step.
• When the dough has risen, knead it again and then roll it out on a floured surface.
• Then spread it with a third of the butter/lard mixture and sprinkle lightly with flour.
• Fold the dough in three and roll it out again.
• Repeat this procedure two more times.
• Roll out the dough quite thinly and cut into squares.
• Bring the four corners of each square to the centre, shape them into rounds and flatten slightly with hand- do not over handle the dough.
• Place the uncooked rolls onto a floured and warm baking tray and leave them in a warm place to rise for about half an hour to 40 minutes.
• Bake the rolls in a hot oven (200C/ 400F) for about 15-20 minutes until golden brown and crispy on both sides.
• The rolls can be eaten warm (absolutely fabulous) or set aside until they are cool and stored.
• Rolls can be made in a large batch and subsequently frozen for later use.
• If defrosting frozen rolls in a microwave oven, do not overheat otherwise the rolls will become limp and the fat content will become over-heated and sizzle.
• Aberdeen rolls can be eaten dry (without anything spread on them), spread with butter (just in case you really hanker after an early coronary, even if the rolls do then taste splendid) or spread with jam etc.