Breads
The 111th Bake: Paul’s Povitica
Special things are worth preserving and sitting down to a cup of tea the other morning I saw birds in my newly fruiting fig tree. Ahhhhh. I love figs, and it’s the first year it’s fruited (I banned the husband from pruning it so there’s a pretty good crop!) So I raced out in my pajamas to chase away the birds and save my figs. I now pick them slightly early to beat the birds to the prize. I really should just get a net, another trip to the hardware store, dangerous place that and expensive once you’ve perused the shelves and aisles for everything else you might possibly “need.” Might be best to avoid it, but I will keep rescuing my figs. From someone who doesn’t always have success in the garden, I would recommend planting a fig tree. You might get lucky too.
Povitica, what is it? Well it is in the bread section of the recipe book, so I am making bread of sorts, Eastern European sweet bread as it turns out, but reading the recipe ahead made me scared of what was to come!!! It was nothing I had ever done before. Here is Paul’s Povitica recipe if you want to give it a go btw. https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes/povitica_92623
I made the dough by adding flour, sugar, salt, yeast, melted butter and beaten egg to the free standing mixer fitted with the dough hook and then added the seeds from 1/2 vanilla pod along with lukewarm milk. I mixed this for 8 minutes to make a soft smooth and stretchy dough.
I tipped the dough into an oiled mixing bowl, covered and let rise for one hour, until doubled in size. Now time for the scary bit…
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I recently went to a fundraising event with Victor Rodger, the playwright and scriptwriter as guest speaker, with the aim of promoting and supporting the Writers in Schools programme run by the New Zealand Book Council. The objective is to get New Zealanders to read more and to spread the joy of reading and writing. “Telling our stories enriches all of our lives,” and as Victor said after reading his story, “that’s a piece that really resonates with the youth and I love that it does.” It’s such important work promoting reading and writing, with so many stories to tell and so many stories locked away in words in books. Our youth need to know the benefit of this easily accessible art form, and not have it lost to technology, Instagram and Netflix. My daughter is currently reading and enjoying “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. A hard read but undeniably funny. Classics will never go away, but books have to be picked up to be enjoyed and that is what this program promotes and tries to facilitate. 
Just like bread, reading takes time, but the whole process is enjoyable and the end result is well worth the effort. Here’s the link to the book council if you are interested in following their programmes or supporting their efforts to inspire students to develop a love of reading and storytelling.