My mom informed me that “everyone” misses my posts, so here you go. I can’t help if life got too busy and I chose to do other things instead of sitting at my computer writing posts. Things like partying at Anthology and learning what colors I can and cannot wear. Also, I should avoid foundation with the word “beige” in the color title – except every drugstore brand foundation has some variation of beige so I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do, especially since I’m not a “natural” body type who can apparently get away with not wearing makeup to begin with.
Anyway, one of the things I did in my internet absence was bake a loaf of bread. By hand. I was going to test out the new-and-improved no knead bread, but I just never got it started early enough. I also wanted a nice soft bread to use for toast or sandwiches. I turned to my trusty Cook’s Illustrated cookbook and looked at their recipe for sandwich bread. It seemed easy enough, so I gave it a shot, ultimately ruining our chance to go on a hike that day because it would have interrupted my rising and baking process. Poor T.
The best tip I got from the CI recipe was to turn the oven on to 200ºF, let it hold at 200 for 10 minutes, then turn the oven off. By the time I had mixed and kneaded the dough, the oven was at a nice temperature for rising. It certainly rose and doubled quite nicely, then I folded it into a cylinder to fit my loaf pan and it went back into the warm oven for the final rise. All in all, I ended up with a nice loaf of bread.
Now, I think it’s a little denser than what I would consider sandwich bread, but I don’t know if that’s due to my expectations or an error in the process. It toasts up nicely and it actually makes for a good sandwich. My favorite was one I adapted from Sam the Cooking Guy: a tomato and potato chip sandwich. What we did, though, was add a fried egg. You know, to add some protein. It’s just mayo, sliced tomatoes, and potato chips. Smash it all down, cut in half, and enjoy! Oh, wait. We also added leftover bacon. Maybe that’s why it was so good!
Three Dog Kitchen 