Sara + h

inspired toast

Let's forget for a moment that I never write anymore.  That I've barely knit a stitch or sewed a seam since before the holidays.  That I rarely leave comments for others and rarer still, respond to my own.  That it was over a week ago that Alison wrote that mine was a blog that made her day and I've yet to thank her or record my own list of happy making blogs.  Let's just let all that go, shall we?

Instead, let's think about toast.  French toast.  Do the mere words not make your stomach growl and the corners of your mouth go up a tick?  No?  Well, if that's the case, just look at the pretty pictures.  The rest of us will think about French toast while you're doing that.

I made French toast for dinner last night and for those who are interested, here's how.  Before I divulge my French toast secrets let me just say that this is a by-the-seat-of-your-pants sort of recipe.  I have few exact measurements to provide you with, and those that I do have are hardly written in stone and can be taken with a grain of salt.  I assure you that your French toast will be tasty, exact measurements or no.  It's difficult to screw-up French toast.

You will need:

-5-6 large eggs
-2 cups of milk or 1/2 & 1/2 or some combination of the two (that would be something like 500 ml for the rest of the world)
-grated zest and juice of one orange
-1 tsp/5 ml vanilla extract
-a healthy amount of freshly grated nutmeg
-a pinch of salt (to bring out the sweetness, as my Grammy would say)

and, lastly, if you have any

-a healthy gulg [or two] of Grand Marnier/Cognac/rum/or booze of your choosing

Preheat your oven to something in the neighborhood of 350°F/175°C and while it's warming, place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until well combined.

Brioche, challah, or any slightly sweet and/or egg-y bread works well for this.  If you don't mind your French toast having a bit of chew to it, a crusty baguette will work too.  In a pinch, you can use a good quality store bought sandwich bread.  Any loaf that you can slice yourself is a better option though.

Cut the bread into 3/4 inch/2 cm thick slices.  In a 9"x 13" baking dish, arrange the slices so that they're overlapping and fill the dish.  Last night I used about 10 slices or 3/4 of a loaf of bread and I cut each slice in half to make everything fit together nicely.  Once everything is situated in the dish, pour the egg mixture over the bread.  All of it.  Yes, there's a lot but let everything sit for 5 to 10 minutes and the bread will soak all the goodness up (think bread pudding minus the sugar).  You may want to move the dish around a bit or gently flip the bread slices over to make sure that everything is evenly sodden.

Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil (or, if you're out of aluminum foil like I was last night, a cookie sheet) then place in the oven and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until the custard is set, removing the foil for the last 5 to 10 minutes of baking. 

No frying pans.  No spatulas.  Easy as, well, French toast (which, if you ask me, is considerably easier than pie).

Serve with butter, maple syrup, and orange confit if you've got any.  ...Enjoy...  And know that the absolute best thing about French toast for dinner is the leftovers for breakfast the next morning.

risen

We're having pizza for dinner tonight.  Turkey pepperoni for the girls and caramelized onion, prosciutto, and more Maytag Blue Cheese for Dan's and my slightly more sophisticated palettes.

It's been forever and a day since I've made a yeast risen dough of any sort.  I always mean to make pizza dough but then time runs short and we go for the convenience of a pre-baked shell.  There was plenty of time for dough making today though, so I threw this together before Astrid's nap and resolved while it was rising to make pizza dough from scratch more often.  Thrown together in about 15 minutes, it's simple, quick, and I get the satisfaction of punching it down and feeling the silky, elastic stuff collapse around my fist.

Sadly, this pizza dough was the high point of my day.  A few hours after making it I sideswiped a parked car while pulling into a parking space near the school where Lola is attending art camp.  No one was hurt and the damage was relatively minor but nonetheless my insides turned to jelly and I was beset with a quivering upper lip.  It's really not much fun to sprint to get your child only to sprint back to the car you've just hit so you can wait 15 minutes with your children in tow to inform the car's owner, the parent of a child in Lola's class as a matter of fact, of what you've done.  I don't recommend it at all.

I'm going to drown my sorrows in pizza now.

a good meal

Marinated flank steak with roasted new potatoes (red, white, and purple) and baby yams sprinkled with chunks of Maytag Blue Cheese and a simple green leaf lettuce salad with grated carrots and a balsamic vinaigrette (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, kosher salt, freshly ground pepper and a bit of Penzey's granulated garlic).  All accompanied with a glass of Monte Antico Toscano.  Not just a good meal, a damn fine meal.  Apologies to the vegetarians among you.

cozy + coffee

Remember this?  That + a need to knit + a love of coffee = a stylishly snug French press, don't you think?

The equation couldn't be simpler.  It's a rectangle with buttonholes and a notch at the top for the spout.  Easy as pie.  My only advice for those who want to make one of their very own is to take greater care in the placement of buttonholes than I did (my spacing is far from even) and to use needles quite a bit smaller than your yarn calls for so that the resulting fabric is dense.  Dense fabric = insulation = hot coffee.  Now go forth and knit coffee cozies!

for lunch

Yesterday's breakfast here, here, here, and here.

Everyone in the family has been restored to health except me.  I continue to be plagued with a niggling cough that keeps me awake at night and reminds me of the effect that two childbirths have had on the muscles of my pelvic floor with the near constant need to change my underwear.  Life has been better.  Hence the nonexistent posting and email neglect which, much to my chagrin, will continue for a bit longer.

breakfast

Today's breakfast.  Today's snack here.

I hope to be back with something to say in the next few days.  Until then, pictures.

spiced

I have a bit of a thing for quick breads and one of my favorites (aside from the best banana bread ever) is ginger bread.  Particularly, the Soft Gingerbread from Marion Cunningham's The Breakfast Book.  The little dark loaves this recipe turns out taste perfect at this time of year accompanied by some unsweetened whipped cream (or clotted cream if you can find it) and and a cup of Earl Grey tea.  As far as I'm concerned, bergamot and ginger are magical together.

If you're anything like Anna, you'll want to add considerably more ginger than this recipe calls for.  Taking a cue from her, I added 4 teaspoons to this most recent batch and was very pleased with the flavor even though I imagined Anna would've preferred more.  Unfortunately, technology hasn't advanced far enough for smells or flavors to be transmitted via computer so you'll have to make a batch for yourself to decide what the perfect amount of ginger is.  Until then, feast your eyes.

1C sugar
1C dark molasses
1C vegetable oil
3 eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2C all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1C boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and lightly flour the baking pan (I prefer to use small loaf pans for this recipe).

Put sugar, molasses, oil, and eggs in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth. In another bowl, combine the salt, cloves, ginger, cinnamon, flour, and baking soda and stir with a fork until well mixed. Stir into the first mixture. Add the boiling water and beat briskly until smooth. This batter is thin. Pour into pan(s) and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

state fair redux

Admission for two adults:: $18

Two ears of roasted corn:: $6

Scotch egg on a stick:: $5

Corn dog:: $3

Two cups of chocolate milk (unlimited refills):: $2

32 oz of french fries:: $5

Three tickets for the merry-go-round::$6

Two tickets for the river ride:: $7

Two tickets for the big slide:: $4

Twenty four tickets for kiddie rides:: $15

Number of rides riden by Lola:: 7

Number of rides riden by Astrid:: 3

Number of rides riden by Dan & me:: 2 each

Number of dairy goats seen:: many

Number of chickens seen:: countless

Fun had:: lots

last loaf

the best banana bread

Really.  Truly.  This is the best banana bread recipe I've ever made and I've made quite a few.  It's not healthy or fancy.  It's just good.  Dan and Lola made a recipe of it today and half of it was gone before I even thought to take a picture.  We'll see if I can get a picture of the last loaf before it gets eaten tomorrow.

The recipe is from Beard On Bread by James Beard.  I don't remember where I picked up my thrifted copy but it was well loved when I got it and it's even more so now.  Oddly, I think the banana bread is the only thing I've ever made from the book.  The book is worth it for that alone but I've looked at and thought of making many of the recipes.  I just haven't.

Banana Bread (from Beard On Bread)

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter or other shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs

1 cup mashed, very ripe bananas
   (about 2 bananas)
1/3 cup milk*
1 teaspoon lemon juice or vinegar*
1/2 cup chopped nuts, optional

Sift the flour with the soda and salt.  Cream the butter and gradually add the sugar.  Mix well.  Add the eggs and bananas and blend thoroughly.  Combine the milk and lemon juice, which will curdle a bit.  Slowly and alternately mix in the flour mixture and the milk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.  Blend well after each addition.  Stir in the nuts (if using) and pour into a lavishly buttered 9x5x3 inch** pan and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour, or until bread springs back when lightly touched in the center.

*I often replace the milk and lemon juice/vinegar with either sour cream or buttermilk.  Yogurt would work too.
**I actually prefer to use mini loaf pans when I make quick breads.  They bake more evenly and take less time overall.  I don't know the measurements of the loaf pans I use off hand but this recipe yields three of the loaves.

If nothing else, don't you think this recipe is wonderful simply because it contains the phrase "lavishly buttered"?