Butterflaps | Guyanese Butter Flaps

Baking is therapeutic. I have heard this so many times before I started baking and used to wonder what really did that mean? And now, I say it myself... baking is indeed therapeutic! 

There is something magically peaceful about working with the flours, yeast and marrying them into a bread dough. Kneading it with love and patiently waiting till it proofs and rises. And then, shaping the dough into fancy shapes, and stuffing it with lovely fillings or topping the dough with delicious ingredients... oh the options are endless! 

And every single time, the resultant bread comes out of the oven bringing along with itself a sense of joy and fulfillment. Yes, even now... it makes me grin from ear-to-ear every time I pull out a perfectly baked bread from the oven! :) 

I look for new bread recipes and ideas. By now you would have guessed, I like my recipes to be simple and easy to create... and this gorgeous beauty, the Guyanese Butterflaps, fit the criteria perfectly! I saw them at my dear friend, Namita's space and I knew what love at first sight felt like :)

I simply had to make them! And I did make them... that same night :)

Its a traditional bread of the Guyana. Its simply, bread dough smeared with buttered, folded and baked. The pretty shape that the folds give it look like flaps and hence the name... Butterflaps! This version has some garlic and some dry-herbs seasonings.

I loved everything about this bread - the preparation, the taste and that cute name! :) Try it and join the fan club :)

Makes - 6 Butterflaps

Time (approx): 

• Prep - 15 mins
• Proofing - 60 mins
• Shaping - 20 mins
• Second Proofing - 30 mins
• Baking - 25 mins

Adapted from here.

Ingredients
All-Purpose Flour / Maida - 2 cups
Instant Yeast - 1 ½ tsp

Sugar - 2 tbsp

Olive Oil - 2 tbsp
Salt - ¼ tsp
Warm Water - ½ cup (maybe little more, as needed)
Butter - 2 tbsp, at room temperature
Garlic - 4 cloves, peeled and finely minced.

Mixed Herbs Powder - as needed

Method

Making the dough:

• In mildly warm water (or milk), add sugar and yeast. Allow to sit for 4-5 minutes. The solution should begin to froth up and bubbles should appear on top.
• In a large mixing bowl, add the flour and salt. Sieve together the flours and salt while you wait for the yeast to proof.
• Add the proofed yeast mixture into the flour mixture, add the olive oil and combine together into a dough. Add extra water (or milk) or flour to make a firm yet sticky dough. You can do this using your hands or a hand blender using the bread hooks.
• Knead for a good 5 minutes and make a firm dough.
• Grease the bowl with olive oil and sit the dough in a warm place where it can rise. Keep the bowl covered with a kitchen towel or a cling wrap. I keep the dough inside the microwave oven, with the power switched off. It makes for a perfect warm place to let the yeast do its work.
• After an hour, remove the bowl from the oven and behold in delight as the dough would have doubled in size :)
• Punch down the dough and knead for a minute more to remove any air bubbles.

Shaping the butterflaps:

• In a mixing bowl, combine together the butter and garlic paste. 
• Dust the counter with flour.
• Pull out small balls of dough and roll out a circle about 10 cm in diameter. 
• Spread 1 teaspoon of butter garlic spread. Fold the dough into a semicircle and then fold again to form a triangle.
• Smear some more butter on top and sprinkle some mixed herbs seasoning.
• Repeat this processed with he remaining dough. The butterflaps are ready to be baked!
• Arrange them on a greased baking tray and keep aside for for 30-45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or till butterflaps turn a beautiful golden brown. 

Enjoy them warm and welcome to soft buttery bread heaven! :D The butter made these beauties extremely soft and some melted and spread on the baking tray making the base lightly crisp up. It was delicious! I can't wait to make my next batch~! :)