A good day and night

I had a nice day yesterday.  I planted three blackberry bushes, two roses, and three ferns.  The Schnelder lawn is going to look stunning this summer.  These plants were gracious wedding/house warming gifts from our friend and John's boss, Aili.  Thanks Aili!!

I had a good meeting with the partners at Career Investments.  It was more of a brainstorming session to think through how this partnership would work.  We will meet again next week.  It sounds interesting so I hope it works out.  

I also have pics of the brickwork I did at the old house.  My first go at masonry.  It turned out ok!

Last night we had dinner with the two French men from the helium balloon company that Conner Prairie bought their giant balloon from.  Bridget and Andy (friend and head balloon pilot) joined us as well with their sweet girl, Audrey.  It was a nice night.  We grilled steaks, had quinoa salad, salad and I made loaves of bread.  I have the EASIEST bread recipe ever.  Baking is not my favorite but I do enjoy a great loaf of fresh bread so this recipe is perfectly easy for me.  Feel free to steal it and make it your own.  I found it on the website www.italianfoodforever.com

Master Bread Recipe

It makes a really good artisan type of bread with a nice crisp crust and a crumb that is moist and full of small holes, perfect to sop up some extra virgin olive oil or leftover pasta sauce in your bowl. This recipe is so simple, that even someone who has never tackled baking their own bread before will find it impossibly easy. This recipe makes 4 (1 pound loaves) of bread that can be baked one at a time over a two week period, or all together if needed.

Makes 4 Loaves Bread

Printed With Permission

3 Cups Lukewarm Water

1 1/2 Tablespoons Granulated Yeast (1 1/2 Packages)

1 1/2 Tablespoons Kosher Salt

6 1/2 Cups Unsifted, Unbleached, All-purpose White Flour, Measured With The Cornmeal For Pizza

Warm the water slightly. It should feel just a little warmer than body temperature, about 100 degrees F. Add the yeast and salt to the water in a 5 quart bowl, or preferably, in a re-sealable, lidded plastic food container. Mix in the flour, no kneading necessary. Add all of the flour at once, mixing with a wooden spoon, a high capacity food processor, or heavy duty stand mixer until the mixture is uniform, or until everything is uniformly moist, without dry patches.

Cover the container with a lid (not airtight), and allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it collapses, about 2 hours. You can use a portion of the dough to make bread at any time after this step.  Since refrigerated dough is less sticky to shape, it is best to refrigerate the dough overnight (or at least 3 hours) before you try making the bread for the first time. Refrigerate the unused dough in your lidded container for up to two weeks.

On baking day, first prepare a baking peel by sprinkling it with cornmeal to prevent sticking. Sprinkle your refrigerated dough with flour and pull off a 1 pound chunk. Add a little more flour, and pull the dough on all sides around to the bottom creating a ball. This step should not take longer than 30 to 60 seconds.

Allow the dough to rise on the pizza peel for about 40 minutes. It does not need to be covered at this point. It may not rise much before baking, so do not be concerned. Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. with a baking stone on the center rack. Place an empty container to hold water on the rack below the pizza stone.

Dust the top of the bread with a little more flour, and slash a 1/4 inch deep cross, or tic-tac toe pattern into the top using a serrated bread knife. Slip the bread from the pizza peel onto the hot pizza stone. Pour in about a cup of hot water into the container below the stone and close the oven door to trap the steam. Bake the bread for about 30 minutes or until the crust is nicely browned and firm to the touch. Allow the bread to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Store the remaining dough in your lidded container and use it over the next 14 days. Both the dough's flavor and texture are improved as it rests in the refrigerator.

Note: The dough can also be frozen in 1-pound portions in an airtight container, and defrosted in the refrigerator overnight prior to baking day.

 Enjoy!