Thanks to panic shoppers and desperate carb lovers, the snap COVID-19 alert level 4 lockdown has seen supermarket shelves stripped of many family favourites including that breakfast staple for many New Zealanders: Vogel's bread.
But if you've been rationing your last loaf or desperately waiting in line at the supermarket each day to no avail, you're in luck.
One Kiwi home cook has done the Lord's work and shared her homemade Vogel's recipe with the world.
Posting on the New Zealand subreddit, user 'Caoilfhionn Flailing' explained it had taken them a "good few months" to get the recipe where they wanted it.
"I've posted it before but what with the bread sitch, it seemed like a good time to pop it back up," they explained, adding the recipe makes two small loaves and is "great for toast".
The recipe - a blend of seeds, oats and flour - is high in fibre and nutrient-dense.
Reddit users were quick to promise to try it themselves, taking to the comments to offer praise for the recipe.
"You are a bloody legend. Made your 'Fauxgels' this afternoon and it's awesome. Only drawback was that the family that usually leaves my Vogel's alone just ate half a loaf before it was cold," one person wrote.
"Thanks! I've been rocking the sourdough, but hell. I may have to do this now. Talk about cravings..." another wrote.
"Nice work! Thanks so much for sharing. And coincidentally dairy-free too, unlike the real stuff. Awesome," wrote another.
One person also offered their own advice for the homemade loaf, advising to "soak the grains overnight so they soften before baking".
"It really helps improve the texture. Just be aware you might need extra liquid to make up for what is absorbed," they added.
Homemade lockodwn 'Fauxgels' loaf recipe:
Ingredients
- 20g white sugar
- 780ml lukewarm water
- 10g yeast
- 50g rolled oats
- 50g linseed
- 75g pumpkin seed
- 100g sunflower seed
- 1/2 t ground pepper
- 100g rye flour
- 300g wholemeal flour
- 250g high grade flour
- 15g salt (add last as it kills yeast)
- 20ml olive oil (for greasing the tins and making crunchy lightly fried crusts)
Method
- Pour sugar, water and yeast into a mixing bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Then start adding ingredients individually, starting with the oats and working up to the flour. Add the salt last but do not forget - I did that once. Do not recommend. We were slathering on the Marmite that week.
- Once all the ingredients are added, mix on medium speed with the paddle in a stand mixer for about 10 minutes. It should look like paper-mache so if it's too dry add a tablespoon of water.
- Once the 10 mins are up, it'll have developed some gluten and start to have the texture of wet tearing paper, switch to the bread hook attachment and mix for a further 5 mins.
- Oil up two smallish bread tins.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the two bread tins and let rest on the bench for about 30 minutes. Gotta let the gluten rest before cooking or else it'll mess up the texture of the bread.
- Once it's rested, turn the oven on to the lowest setting, literally the earliest point the oven will turn on, and leave to rise until the dough starts to hit the top of the tin. Then turn the oven up to 200C and go find something else to do for 45 minutes.
- Once it's done, turn out onto a cooling rack and once it's cool cut it up and freeze it or just let your family cut bits off as needed.
It'll last on the bench or in a pantry for 3-5 days.
