JUST NOT THE CAKES: simiti

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Eggless Greek Simiti / Koulouri /Sesame Crusted Bread Rolls

Simiti / koulouri is a circular bread with sesame seeds on top . They are very common in Greece and Turkey . Simiti's size , chewiness / crunchiness , texture varies in each region . They are also called as Turkish Bagel in USA . These little cuties makes a good filling breakfast . As soon as i took it out from the oven , i had some cream cheese applied on the middle and ate it ASAP . Homemade warm breads are the best and this was out of the world.

The outer part of the bread was crunchy and inside chewy . The flavor and taste of roasted sesame and along with the slight sweetness from honey was out of the world.

Are you getting tempted . I bet ,you will never regret baking these .

For this months challenge on Baking Eggless group , +Priya Suresh from Priyas Versatile Recipes had suggested this recipe . Congrats +Gayathri Kumar and each and every one from the group for entering the third year of successful eggless baking .

Recipe source - My Expat Kitchen
Ingredients :

All purpose flour - 2 Cups
Yeast - 2 TSP
Sugar - 1 1/2 TBLS
Salt - 1 TSP
Warm Milk +/- 1 Cup
Olive oil - 1 1/2 TBLS

For topping :

Honey - 3 TBLS

Water - 1/4 Cup

Roasted Sesame Seeds - 1/2 Cup

Instructions :

Mix all the dry ingredients separately and mix all wet ingredients ( use only 1 TBLS ) separately .
Make a well in the dry ingredients and slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients .
Using a dough hook mix it for 7- 10 minutes .
When all the ingredients are mixed well and formed a dough , place it in the counter top.
Oil your hands knead the dough for couple of minutes .Sprinkle some flour over it and knead really well .
Place the dough in a greased bowl , Cover it with cling wrap. Keep it in a warm place . Allow it to proof for an hour .
Meanwhile Roast the sesame seeds till they are golden in color and allow it to cool completely.
Punch the dough and release the air. Divide the dough and make equal portions.
Divide one portion of dough into two . Roll it out to form 2 ropes. Combine the edges and twist the dough to form a braided bread . Bring the ends together , pinch it and seal .
Place the bread in the baking tray .
Pre- heat the oven at 350F.
Mix the honey and water , generously brush it over the bread . ( I had little honey so i brushed it , original recipe ask to dip the bread in the liquid mixture ) .
Sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds over the bread .
And now its time to bake the simities . Bake the bread for 20 - 25 minutes till they turn golden brown.
Remove from oven , Allow it to cool .
Serve it warm .

Notes -

This is my way of doing the bread . I know the yeast i use is still active . In case if you are not sure about the yeast you use , Replace half a cup of milk to warm water . Mix the sugar in warm water and sprinkle the yeast over it . Once the yeast mixture becomes frothy add it to the bread and proceed with the instructions .
Keeping the dough in a warm place is necessary . It helps the bread to proof . I kept it inside the microwave as it is so cold over here .
Original recipe called for grape juice . As i didn't have it i replaced it to honey .
Usually this breads needs to be dipped in the grape juice , I brushed it with honey as i was going out of honey .
This breads do not need second time proofing .