Love from the kitchen

Bread – glorious bread! Keep your ice cream, your candy, even your cookies. I am happy with a nice chunk of bread, slightly warm, with a nice schmear of butter. Mmmm…

Last night my husband & I were on a book store date. Wandering around a book store is perhaps one of my favorite activities of all time, and A. indulges me now & then. I sat and perused cooking magazines and cookbooks, looking for inspiration for a weekend filled with cooking. Last time we were at the book store, my hubby pointed out this book to me…

Kneadlessly Simple: Fabulous, Fuss-Free, No-Knead Breads, by Nancy Baggett

Over the past few months I have fallen in love with the No-Knead Bread recipe that many fellow bloggers have shared. As mentioned, I love fresh bread, but frequently my schedule doesn’t really allow me to spend the time kneaded (really, I couldn’t pass that up!) to bake it on a regular basis. Once I found the No Knead recipe, I suddenly had the time. I am able to start the bread at night, let it rise over night, and then finish it up in the morning before work. I love how forgiving the recipe is – it truly doesn’t matter if you let it rise 14 hours, or 24 hours, you still end up with a delicious, crunchy, airy loaf of bread at the end of it.

Crusty Portuguese-American Yeasted Cornbread (left page) & Pull-Apart Butter-Top Rolls (right page)

So imagine my excitement when I found (thanks to A.) an entire book dedicated to no-knead breads! There is Focaccia with Fennel Seed & Oregano, Swedish Limpa Bread, Nutmeg Chocolate Bread, Cornish Saffron Bread, and tons others. I just don’t know where to start!  (There are even a handful of no-knead gluten free recipes for those of you with sensitivities.)

Crunchy-Munchy Pumpkin, Sunflower & Flax Seed Boule (left page) Crusty White Peasant-Style Pot Bread w/ Rosemary & Olives (right page)

Luckily, my parents arrive on Saturday to spend the holiday weekend together before heading on to my sister’s house a couple of hours up the road in Greensboro, NC. I’m thinking that I can bake quite a few loaves and share them with our guests. This will give me the perfect opportunity to test the recipes, sample the goods, and then send them on their way.

After all, I don’t know about you, but my favorite part of baking is sending the treats to friends and family. There is nothing quite like sharing love from your kitchen…

Stay tuned for future postings detailing the successes and inevitable failures of various recipes from this book. Fingers crossed that there will be significantly fewer failures!

Now, if only I could get my hands on some of these adorable bread bags from SouleMama… 🙂