First of all, how cute is this? And how wonderful for portion control AND for little hands! I love using the little flower pots, but the bigger ones work just as well.
Treating the Pots
- You do have to ‘Treat’ your flowerpots, which kids can do.
- Use very clean NEW clay flowerpots and generously rub the insides all over with vegetable oil.
- Place the pots in a 450 degree F. oven and let them bake for 1 hour (do this, if possible, alongside something else that may be baking, so as not to waste energy).
- After this the pots need simply be washed in warm water after you've baked in them. If you notice any sticking, repeat the treatment.
Bread
Almost any yeast dough will bake well in a flowerpot.
Making bread always scared me. I never knew what would rise, fall and what is yeast? Turns out, it’s really not that scary, but if you are still a little ‘iffy’ just get a store mix to start.
The Shaping and Baking
- Use the dough after it has had its first rising. (directions on this should be on package or in your recipe)
- Punch it down and form it into shapes roughly half the size of the flowerpots you'll be using.
- Most flowerpots have a hole in the bottom, so stuff that with a wad of crumpled aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Oil the insides of the pots thoroughly, including the bottoms, and have the pots be slightly warm when you put the dough in.
- Fill the pots only half full. Clay makes dough expand more readily, so if they are more than half full, the bread will mushroom over the top so much that it will fall over to one side.
- To make ‘topknots’ (fancy term I know!) form rounds of dough the size of golf balls. Take your finger, poke a hole in the dough in the pot. Pull one side of each ball of dough to a point, then fit it, point side down, into its hole. Very small flowerpots will take only one topknot and in this case the ball should only be about half the size of a golf ball; wider pots will take two or three snuggled close together.
- Cover the filled pots with a kitchen towel and let the dough rise until it is almost to the top—about 45 minutes.
- After the bread has risen for 30 minutes, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Just before baking, paint the tops with a glaze of 1 egg with 1 teaspoon water.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 degrees. Small pots will need only an additional 5 to 10 minutes; medium-sized, 10 to 15 minutes; and a large pot, an additional 30 minutes.
- Slip the baked breads out of their pots and let them sit a few minutes in the turned-off oven, then cool on racks.
Ideas:
- For a special bread, try: A sprinkle of sesame or poppy seeds just before baking, or sprinkle powdered sugar over the little breads after baking. OR sprinkle the tops with grated Parmesan cheese before baking, if you like. This turns nice and golden and crusty.
- (* A REALLY special note is: Brownies! You can do mini flower pots with your favorite brownie recipe or mix- GREAT for a birthday party, or mom’s night in!)
- Reuse those pots for out suggested craft!
Enjoy!
