tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76632385516314422412023-11-16T02:53:50.712-08:00Bake and Knit...and knit...and knitCelebrating my obsessions: hey, when Mom's happy, everyone's happy, right?Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-64050377005170768342011-01-04T15:14:00.000-08:002011-01-04T15:26:03.159-08:00Happy 93rd Birthday, Grandma!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpJCE1BLTXeidBE3corPVXBuDVpUT3nNJEIMay_fXDfXA4RjTxSjNlYvVVk1V7ekxrl446qTCaOgX-lpnWHV_uGuPHpFH5XGZ6_NH6IpzUzL-AhkNgJdX1r1grmfcVR43zpUJpJy-J5ok/s1600/IMG_0602.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpJCE1BLTXeidBE3corPVXBuDVpUT3nNJEIMay_fXDfXA4RjTxSjNlYvVVk1V7ekxrl446qTCaOgX-lpnWHV_uGuPHpFH5XGZ6_NH6IpzUzL-AhkNgJdX1r1grmfcVR43zpUJpJy-J5ok/s320/IMG_0602.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558475493636214562" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicQRvsH6uzESdCaSjNPRRkiNvVeZgSr7PripJnan7687nwzFZnakfrjMFTgM2SAKLkGZ2mnQdtRuyIrN4Qe1cQJwVmVSh8Ve_hvc7rfkFmS22XVuYB7ody5TsTS3FBmaCPjsDfGv4ayPg/s1600/IMG_0595.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicQRvsH6uzESdCaSjNPRRkiNvVeZgSr7PripJnan7687nwzFZnakfrjMFTgM2SAKLkGZ2mnQdtRuyIrN4Qe1cQJwVmVSh8Ve_hvc7rfkFmS22XVuYB7ody5TsTS3FBmaCPjsDfGv4ayPg/s320/IMG_0595.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558475489487029010" /></a><br />Today is my Grandma's birthday! We talked on the phone yesterday, and I miss her very much. I only get to be with her once a year anymore when we travel home in the summer. In fact, these photos were taken at her home last July.Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-60489815023506606372010-03-15T08:11:00.000-07:002010-03-15T08:49:21.882-07:00Back in the game...sort of.It seems this has been another winter with sickness settling its way into our home. Colds, earaches and the like have hit the family. Yuck! Pick a day and one of us (or all four of us on a really bad week) was suffering from some symptom. Which is why I haven't kept up with the<a href="http://www.bigblackdogs.net/"> HBin5 Bread Braid</a> as much as I had hoped to. Back in January, I did manage to bake the Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich bread and even made hamburger and (really sad looking) hot dog buns, but never got around to blogging about it. Oh well. We are getting healthy and now it's time to get back in the game :)<br /><div></div><br /><div><em>Assignment #7: Avocado-Guacamole Bread and Pesto Pine Nut Bread</em></div><br /><div><em></em></div><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448882874317277810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZx8ZF2DbIhICdIRzq7S2PdoP43SSam3x9jvlGi03Iss2mZU1SDClXcUyfaXdy9cUiyR_0Y_PUwlULQHaSZIsXmsefqxIt3gtLRtbypTd3Y191B8B75dN_BbTpcI6QOJEwLzRfZfdmGlU/s400/Avocado-Guacamole+Bread.jpg" /></div><br /><div>I say I am back in the game "sort of", because I only made the Avacado-Guacamole Bread this time around. When I first got the new book, "Healthy Breads in Five Minutes a Day", one of the first breads I made was the Pesto Pine Nut Bread. I made two loaves. We enjoyed one with neighborhood friends at a potluck dinner and the other went into the freezer. I meant to get it out when my parents came to visit in December, but forgot all about it. <span><br /><br />Thankfully this bread-braid assignment came along just in time for</span> their next visit this week. It's our youngest son's 3rd birthday on the 22nd and "Grandmom" & "Kapa" are coming back! I'll get the loaf out and we'll see how well it survived in the freezer. I have never frozen a loaf of bread, but it should be fine. Right? I'll let you know later.</div><div><span><br />Okay, back to the bread I did bake. <span><br /><br />I mixed up a 1/2 batch of the Avoc</span></span>ado-Guacamole bread, per our baking schedule from Michelle over at <a href="http://www.bigblackdogs.net/2009/10/announcing-hbinfive-new-baking-group.html">Big Black Dog</a>. I didn't have fresh tomatoes, so I used some from a can. I mashed up the avocado (okay, my 3yr old did!), added the crushed garlic and tomatoes and <em>then</em> remembered I was only making a half batch. That was easy enough to fix however. I used half in the recipe and mixed in more of the canned diced tomatoes into the other half of the avocado and scooped it up on some whole grain chips. Yum!</div><div> </div><div>On baking day, I made a batch of Bob's Red Mill: <a href="http://www.bobsredmill.com/13-bean-soup-mix.html">13 Bean Soup Mix</a>. It was a lovely dinner, and very pretty. <span><br /> </span></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWy2sRKsKOKEPHqnS2Rqfx4FlXfBGl68GT5K1zDBvp_AXPgy-6Vg-P6Gqn_ZL2DWTQ56xX8_AFXeDRR9qLTF-S3r5NESA6-EekFg6kQ1vskgY0yGrZlqUViAcSYkJY4-sNNiaEBz7LE80/s1600-h/Avocado-Guacamole+Bread+and+Bean+Soup.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448878616676209458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWy2sRKsKOKEPHqnS2Rqfx4FlXfBGl68GT5K1zDBvp_AXPgy-6Vg-P6Gqn_ZL2DWTQ56xX8_AFXeDRR9qLTF-S3r5NESA6-EekFg6kQ1vskgY0yGrZlqUViAcSYkJY4-sNNiaEBz7LE80/s400/Avocado-Guacamole+Bread+and+Bean+Soup.jpg" /></a>I am looking forward to reading everyone's entries for this bread-braid and I'll see you again in April for the Carrot Bread. Take care!<br /><br /><br /><div></div></div>Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-70010684193364494662010-02-05T12:48:00.000-08:002010-02-05T13:00:06.822-08:00"Oh let the light shine in"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5RYwj39ZI9InUT_uDIsKSrbKf3Q2EH20Uo2Y2k4jCDyePGXOU-deacIkqEY2-B3dG0ExPfTJW2wLeBrwxzQ9A27EL9DMc8lsFrcqdr459kK0xUKlPJ23OQ-pLllkjXZMM6HirhqNL7YE/s1600-h/MM+Mitt+Class+2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434865476568589266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5RYwj39ZI9InUT_uDIsKSrbKf3Q2EH20Uo2Y2k4jCDyePGXOU-deacIkqEY2-B3dG0ExPfTJW2wLeBrwxzQ9A27EL9DMc8lsFrcqdr459kK0xUKlPJ23OQ-pLllkjXZMM6HirhqNL7YE/s400/MM+Mitt+Class+2.jpg" /></a><br /><div>That is how my DH likes to get our boys going in the morning...with a croaking "Oh let the light shine in". They laugh every time. For the first day in a <em>long</em> time, we can shout out "let the SUN shine in"! What a glorious sight it is. But it is also reveling that I need to wash windows, and quickly!</div><div> </div><div>I am so excited to be able to offer a few knitting classes in February and March, including the Maine Morning Mitts shown above. This sample is knit in Malabrigo...yummy!</div><div> </div><div>Check out the <a href="http://stores.nbyarns.com/-strse-template/workshop/Page.bok">Class Schedule</a> at my LYS. My friend Jerri is teaching a beautiful felted scarf class that requires no knitting or sewing. It's created with a piece of silk and lots of layers of fiber. The results are stunning.</div><div> </div><div> </div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-72718168870405976152010-01-29T09:27:00.000-08:002010-01-29T09:45:45.278-08:00Spreading the love today!I am so excited and just had to share the news. My friend and next door neighbor, Sharon, is coming over tonight to learn how to make her own bread from <a href="http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/">ABin5</a>. Whoo-hoo!!<br /><div></div><br /><div>To prepare, I am mixing up a batch of dough this morning so she can see how much it rises. I'll probably cut off a loaf to bake while we mix up her batch to take home. I haven't started working on the February 1st line-up for our HBin5 Bread Braid, so that is the recipe I'll be following this morning. </div><div> </div><div>While I'm in the kitchen, I need to mix up a couple more batches of granola. Below is a photo from my marathon granola baking day back in December. I mixed up eight batches of granola (from Artisan Breads in Five Minutes a Day, of course) and packaged a 1/2 batch along with a fresh baked baguette as Christmas gifts for our friends around town. </div><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432217629626435986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRfr8yRPwXyYQxMHop3XlS47dfVbm-xvdtuf2gOcX3vpxpqfFUK30SzjvR-PX-7WRr8jvZG8AffXV6tA-f4Ezd002oIQCrnE2v9mGy0QQHyki9ql8BpMeXJw-e3IkiIpm3cW49LQh3-k/s400/Christmas+2009+Granola.jpg" /> </div>Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-12822730538948918712010-01-17T08:43:00.000-08:002010-01-17T08:44:15.391-08:00Bread Baking Assignment #1: The Master RecipeFirst off, "Happy New Year!" I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to spend the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with dear friends and my family. Winter break was wonderful and our 5 yr old son even learned to knit! He's very proud of himself, and I suspect I have already done my part to create another <span style="font-size:85%;">(shh)</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">"yarn snob"</span> in the family. It's not a bad thing, really...<br /><br />So moving on to the Bread Braid featuring the recipes of "<strong><a href="http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/">Healthy Breads in Five Minutes A Day</a></strong>" or "HBin5" as it's known to the many loyal followers of Jeff Hertzberg, MD and Zoe Francois. If anyone is reading this who isn't a part of the bread braid, we have been asked not to post the recipes, but it's worth the investment to <a href="http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780312362911-1">buy</a> either of their two books!<br /><br />Thanks to our wonderful host and organizer, <a href="http://www.bigblackdogs.net/2009/10/announcing-hbinfive-new-baking-group.html">Michelle</a>, I am focused on baking my way through 2010 and well into 2011. See, we have a Google group (HBinFive), a baking calendar and a never-ending supply of support from so many talented folks. It's pretty cool!<br /><br /><em>January's Assignment: The Master Recipe</em><br />What better place to start than at the beginning. Now, I was lucky enough to get my copy of HBin5 the day it was released so I have made this recipe several times. But it never get boring, and my boys love the bread so much! YAY.<br /><br />What I <em>have not</em> done before was to weigh the ingredients. I've always used the measuring cup method. I felt very accomplished calculating each ingredient as my helper (our 2 yr old) dumped each one in the bucket. I am not sure I noticed a difference in the end results, but I suspect I will continue with weighing method. If nothing else, fewer items to wash!<br /><br />I made the basic loaf on the 2nd (from a previous batch where I didn't weigh the ingredients)...<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427745104421693986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1d7Cnxbmi0FSskhmqrbjFyLamZCBBLhfPIxKVFeqsds8oqRb8TXLcPZV7B_9pSxkNiBVohIX0E7gQpk63iA-5s4hFEBXnshTf7fQVO7_GCaJ4b71kLbTaVt3UQL4okzrvr4T_HWkdSEI/s400/064.JPG" /><br />and then moved onto an "epi" on the 10th.<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427744820650814082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoe6DCrJ00pmNhwRFK-cDzXN66IbMtWGUMMO51ExmBI5u2v7ZvrBZXMH_NF4zsixdVnWFmcJqhOAJ20Hi7xQWyj6RoYzgh5Cj0DjBo_ghp7IynWmHrSGksbGMTiIfsMnK6zC8VKU2LUpk/s400/077.JPG" /><br /><br />I think it turned out okay, don't you? It really is just as easy as the books says - just a few cuts with the kitchen shears and you are good to go. This sweet little creation went straight from the cooling rack to the dinner table in a matter of minutes. Truthfully, it never had a chance to cool!<br /><br />Finally, I took my turn with the Whole Grain Snack Crackers on the 16th. This is the one I was most hesitant to attempt. Thankfully I had a chance to read the comments from our Google group and learned a few useful tips.<br /><br /><br />I only used a 1/2 lb. of dough at a time and rolled and cut it out directly on my Silpat. Instead of the spice mix provided in the recipie, I used salt and garlic powder. Wow, they were delicious. I didn't get the best photo, but here it is...<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427744212471486050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPgDQrEnj-Ey1pGR2Es__PzGJD8LmIZ_OF7d9mEO4I280ABMUJPIfKk3itx2g-qCze9u97CmuGeH7O6IP4Ld64Ro0KNaL6RNRN8JUCKDeoiJhk6l9bdVt_ivXF1J35plT5ztzvNk1QP3Q/s400/081.JPG" /><br />I've since made one more batch and have enough dough left over for more. Next time I plan to take only 1/4 lb. at a time and really work to get them thin. With the first two attempts, I had just a few that were crisp. I think using the smallest amount of dough possible to fill the Silpat will work best for me.<br /><br />Michelle over at <a href="http://www.bigblackdogs.net/">Big Black Dog</a> was kind enough to ease us into the bread braid with just one assignment this month, but starting in February we will be doing double-time (entries on the 1st and 15th of the month).<br /><br />Next month: Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread, Red Beet Buns and Chocolate Espresso Whole Wheat BreadTarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-84586234423352001982009-11-21T20:32:00.000-08:002009-11-21T21:21:12.696-08:00Doughnuts and Crescent Rolls<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvz4T7EYU7izN2-CQ-PQC90j66QLd5MCxmeu1t-1KaZX9pzzf9Bmu7MbA7ewHRzjHeB34fvtQxtmFV4PVSrCnUtbnP1Tbu1T8B8GRsgqVi2eM-7gpIdMhDVxTRJBDFYicZkU-m4izc4I/s1600/152.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406789839370865170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvz4T7EYU7izN2-CQ-PQC90j66QLd5MCxmeu1t-1KaZX9pzzf9Bmu7MbA7ewHRzjHeB34fvtQxtmFV4PVSrCnUtbnP1Tbu1T8B8GRsgqVi2eM-7gpIdMhDVxTRJBDFYicZkU-m4izc4I/s320/152.JPG" /></a><br /><div>I was rather productive in the kitchen this morning! I made a double batch of doughnuts from <a href="http://deceptivelydelicious.com/site/">De</a><a href="http://deceptivelydelicious.com/site/">ce</a><a href="http://deceptivelydelicious.com/site/">ptively Delicious</a> - Jessica Seinfeld's book about using vegetable purees. This particular recipe calls for pumpkin and sweet potato purees. I've made my own purees in the past, but now I just use "Farmer's Market Organic" brand. </div><div><br /></div><div>My boys absolutely love these doughnuts. Of course I love that they loaded with whole wheat flour and the vegetable purees AND are baked! For Halloween I made a batch with some cool gooey candy bugs...isn't Spider Man cute :)<br /></div><div></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406786998421496658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5vkTGWEcT0C8gFiEUtSd1uA1Mcsn37hKDXrD8YNuRKSnDGog_g-XkqUaHU9PXttUGa9m8iGJZx_3UmOI4Gq2XWZq7DdiLSKbrqBVYp9UUc2zkaw9f_bAT4GRCE5tXHK4sKlbbR7LS63A/s320/126.JPG" />Okay, back to today. I had the dry ingredients all ready mixed up and stored in my pantry, so it was a pretty quick turn-around to get these goodies in the oven. While they baked, I decided to mix up a batch of the Whole Wheat Brioche so I can make the Cinnamon Crescent Rolls from HBin5 in the next couple of days. They look amazingly tasty in the book, and I am anxious to give it a try. I'll report back!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWXAHJ6vWzARbJTcbGLUBDoUHw0jSo02BT6WcbBJFkFChmF9uyuvR3HHIfDuqOm_VYVr73qLLCqg1tJq2LuscnvHmDbIaM5_2DvMXHEhtP5zNGjOlKQ_t36l1WvY9N10aR0OYF1jUUkjU/s1600/159.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 235px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 165px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406789277973952130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWXAHJ6vWzARbJTcbGLUBDoUHw0jSo02BT6WcbBJFkFChmF9uyuvR3HHIfDuqOm_VYVr73qLLCqg1tJq2LuscnvHmDbIaM5_2DvMXHEhtP5zNGjOlKQ_t36l1WvY9N10aR0OYF1jUUkjU/s320/159.JPG" /></a><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 215px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 173px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406788853615103474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftdeUyMqVwR-uyy_DR_3dlIPKFTCzrOGkF_53VvZZ7yRknSWKWB9n8IrdoQDtN0pofawO_OYQYSuwxR3H0r8a7VRqsVIjo8sGMhxtKJ3Kt_4VxgsP8CBDFjTVKbciCTRxC4Va8SB76v8/s320/154.JPG" /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />One batch of the doughnuts goes to a friend who bid at Spider Man's school fundraiser. For the second year, I have been the co-chair of the Silent Auction and I donated two batches of homemade doughnuts and a "Granola of the Month" club good for six batches of homemade granola (using the recipe from ABin5, of course). The boys and I tried to deliver the doughnuts, but I found out my friend was home sick with a bad toothache. I hope she's doing better. I'll get them to her soon, or we'll eat them and I'll make her a fresh batch in a week or two.Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-90547450507399438252009-11-18T19:04:00.001-08:002009-11-23T08:05:52.056-08:00Christmas Knitting<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuiliR33wItCFtPyMa45HZ7c9uJBA9lUcfiXz7EpTnF7bPg-DDbRKTIheiJrMhrfyA89JMkF2kaDIB2lhVcsyLeu28aBf2-KURDBgimpbalckRoA9EpZuXasM0qTZdmv-vs1LFUJIulz0/s1600/Cocoon+Scarf.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407330920454486418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuiliR33wItCFtPyMa45HZ7c9uJBA9lUcfiXz7EpTnF7bPg-DDbRKTIheiJrMhrfyA89JMkF2kaDIB2lhVcsyLeu28aBf2-KURDBgimpbalckRoA9EpZuXasM0qTZdmv-vs1LFUJIulz0/s320/Cocoon+Scarf.jpg" /></a><br /><div><br /><div>Last night I went to a friend's home and knit! She has started a new group that will meet twice a month. She has a beautiful home, and it was so wonderful to sit and knit for a couple of hours surrounded by such a talented group of women.<br /><br />The project I took to work on was this lovely scarf pictured on the left. It's going to my Mom for Christmas (no worries about spoiling the surprise here - my parents don't even have Internet access at home.) The yarn is Rowan: Cocoon - a mix of merino wool and kid mohair. So soft and an easy knit!<br /><br />If you are a fiber lover and a member of <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/">Ravelry</a>, I'm known as "oregonknitter" over there. Come over and say "hi"! For those of you who are not familiar with Ravelry, it's this truly amazing resource for all things fiber related (yarn, knit, crochet, patterns, books, designers, dyers). It's been up for only a couple of years - maybe three? - and already has over 500,000 registered users. WOW. And they have the cutest dog, Bob :)</div></div>Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-18741485715982702382009-11-17T09:11:00.000-08:002009-11-18T19:01:58.593-08:00Bread Braid: Pumpkin Pie Brioche<div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSrDAaSVN9cGsdOk35UARGgWqDkRopMUvJinmBg1eLdw2tv9kKwyFOhU7Q3rDs-Sb8PbW63uG0v_EpuBt7vExFjoeJM4nfBLV4RSUcL_6obh-8wV-MyspFrKuFDiM_GOwLyPhDKJps-4Q/s1600/CSA+Pumpkin+Pie+2.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 150px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405129540029953906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSrDAaSVN9cGsdOk35UARGgWqDkRopMUvJinmBg1eLdw2tv9kKwyFOhU7Q3rDs-Sb8PbW63uG0v_EpuBt7vExFjoeJM4nfBLV4RSUcL_6obh-8wV-MyspFrKuFDiM_GOwLyPhDKJps-4Q/s200/CSA+Pumpkin+Pie+2.jpg" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div>So I am one of the many who faithfully follow AB5's <a href="http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/">website</a> and was excited by the invitation to join a Bread Braid (thank you for all your hard work, <a href="http://www.bigblackdogs.net/">Michelle</a>). Our challenge it to bake our way through the newest book, "<strong>Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day</strong>". I was lucky enough to get my copy on the same day it was released!<br /></div><br /><div>The bread baking challenge doesn't officially start until January, but we are getting a preview with a couple of special recipes from Jeff & Zoe. November's challenge: Pumpkin Pie Brioche.<br /></div><br /><div>I mixed the dough on Sunday night, but first started by baking a pie pumpkin. I am lucky enough to have joined a CSA program this year and we just happened to get a beautiful sugar (pie) pumpkin a couple of weeks ago. The dough didn't get mixed until after dinner that night, so I baked it Monday morning. <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405131924095522834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl1G_uLUfP-rbbOKkg1vRKcJ8HinvHed9hcHZQukaJ69bmpYYw0u321x_mYdd9EdiAZPdwhaH-CH1JmloutCMrO9TAGFS9rbIy-prMoYo2vyFyVDUdvrATwbRsQqhqfMTC6MxdRG4wnGo/s200/Pumpkin+Brioche+resting.jpg" /></div><br /><div>We cut into it Monday after I got home from work. Wow, we were all impressed. Our 2 yr old (who loves all my AB5 breads) took a piece, looked at it for a moment then licked it. Then he gobbled it up!</div><br /><div>I will probably bake the other loaf today and give it to a friend, along with a bag of the granola from the AB5 book.</div><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg5AYok0JsP3u-p_J8SdIVYXVv0bJYt71FbMM3kNXcAOK16vs3UhvNceH7FAorEUrZvckrWGsaCOhwgpRU5OcPExBn_kNinPD26m0DpO5M0E3CYsub85HsDqUgjJZ2n9zQD1AmkkntoV4/s1600/Pumpkin+Brioche.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 150px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405132732134931490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg5AYok0JsP3u-p_J8SdIVYXVv0bJYt71FbMM3kNXcAOK16vs3UhvNceH7FAorEUrZvckrWGsaCOhwgpRU5OcPExBn_kNinPD26m0DpO5M0E3CYsub85HsDqUgjJZ2n9zQD1AmkkntoV4/s200/Pumpkin+Brioche.jpg" /></a></div><div>Take care and thanks for reading my first blog entry w/photos! I won't tell you how long it took me to finish :)<br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div></div>Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7663238551631442241.post-21112868791618437832009-11-15T16:37:00.000-08:002009-11-15T16:50:38.088-08:00Do I really want to go there?It's not like I have any extra time in my day, but who doesn't have a blog these days? I have set this up with the idea of sharing my two favorite obsessions: baking bread and knitting.<br /><br />I absolutely love the bread baking books by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois: "<strong>Artisan Breads in 5 Minutes A Day</strong>" and "<strong>Healthy Breads in 5 Minutes A Day</strong>". I've been baking from their books (the second book was just made available a few weeks ago) for about one and half years, and knitting for almost five years.<br /><br />As I bake my way through their second book, I'll post photos here. And I never need an excuse to talk about my recent knitting projects!Tarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02341846945544988128noreply@blogger.com1