Cheesymite Scrolls | Possum Magic
It was there, in the far north of Australia,
that they found a Vegemite sandwich.
Grandma Poss crossed her claws and crossed her feet.
Hush breathed deeply and began to eat.
’A tail! A tail!’ shouted both possums at once.
For there it was. A brand new, visible tail!
Possum Magic
Mem Fox
Daylight savings has arrived in Melbourne, and the longer days are leaving me wanting to bake doughs that require hours to rise. To leave the house smelling like fresh baked bread every morning and to enjoy thick slices layered with butter and jams. Which, luckily, is basically what I can do every weekend. A friend dropped around some Seville orange marmalade she whipped up also recently, I’m sure that will go down a treat with the next bread batch (or crumpets, if the mood strikes).
My favourite bookstore in all of the city is one called Readings. It’s multiple shelves of books that line the walls give off an aura of comfort, along with the fact that it is open most days till 11pm. There’s nothing like a few pints, followed by an excessive book shopping spree. On a recent browse throughout the store, I wandered into their sister store next door - Readings Kids. While my attention was mostly focused upon the elaborate and beautiful editions of some classic children’s novels I’d read at a young age, I found myself flipping through a copy of Possum Magic.
I doubt there is a child in Australia that has not had Possum Magic read to them at one stage in their life. Mine was from my librarian within my primary school - a woman that I can still remember with such strong, fond feelings, despite not being able to recall even the slightest memory of her face or name. The book is a beautiful adventure of Hush and Grandma Poss, exploring so many Australian concepts and delights.
This recipe was definitely inspired by the reread I hurriedly undertook within the store, the joyful memories of my first interaction coming back to me as I flipped through the pages. I baked a full batch of cheesymite scrolls for a charity bake sale that coming weekend - followed by another batch to carry along to a middle eastern inspired breakfast thrown by a friend. All disappeared quite briefly.
This recipe for Cheesymite scrolls is a classic Australian one, that every Australian likely has had once. This recipe is from Smith & Deli's cookbook - and produces the most delicious scrolls.
*Note: I used a stand mixer with a dough hook for this - but totally fine to do it by hand. Just knead it for an extra five minutes or so.
Cheesymite Scrolls
Makes approx 12 scrolls
Ingredients
2 tsp instant yeast
2 tbsp caster sugar
375ml cups lukewarm water
525g plain flour + 2 tbsp for dusting later
2 tsp salt
90ml olive oil
4 tbsp Vegemite, mixed with 2 tbsp water
250g grated cheese
30g butter, melted
Combine the warm water, yeast and caster sugar together in a bowl. Leave for a few minutes or until frothy.
Combine the flour and salt together in the bowl of your mixer* (see note), using the dough hook attachment.
Add the oil to the flour mixture, and add in your forty yeast while the mixer is slowly running. The dough should come together and be quite soft, if it is too sticky add another few tablespoons of flour. Leave in the mixer to knead for another five minutes or so.
Cover the dough with a clean cloth, and leave in a warm place to rise until it has doubled in size, or at least thirty minutes.
Preheat your oven to 190C.
Dust a bench or board with the remaining flour, and being your raised dough out onto it. Roll the dough into a rough rectangle, so that the dough is no more than a few centimetres thick.
Using a silicone spatula if you have one, or the back of a spoon, spread the Vegemite thickly over the rolled out dough, getting it right into each corner. Follow that up by covering the Vegemite with a good layer of cheese - the cheesier the better, of course.
Starting at one end, roll the dough up tightly and cut slices off to form the scrolls. Each slice should be approximately 8cm thick.
Place the scrolls into a baking pan that is either lined with baking paper or well greased, and leave to sit covered for another thirty minutes or so or until the scrolls have doubled in size.
Brush the tops of the risen scrolls with the melted butter and pop into the oven for around twenty minutes.
Enjoy! Best eaten hot and gooey from the oven with a cup of coffee.