posted March 15, 2007 12:55 PM         

a chunk of good solid fresh baked bread, with sparkling mineral water is such perfection!

good with olive oil and fresh pepper...

a meal of substantial bread, some fruit, perhaps figs, dates, oranges....

and a little bit of rich chocolate....

mmmmmmm.

the perfect sustenance.

posted March 15, 2007 12:59 PM         

i think i'd like to make fresh bread every day....

Tuscan olive bread

Ingredients:

- 4 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 cups luke warm water
- 3 tsp dried yeast
- 1/4 cup finest olive oil
- 1 cup black Moroccan olives
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt.

Preparation:
- Take pit out of olives. Prepare yeast by mixing it with sugar and 3 tbsp of water. Let sit for 5-10 miuntes until bubbling. Put flour into bowl and make well. Add yeast mixture and 1 1/2 cup of water. Begin mixing, then add olive oil. Knead for 10 minutes, then add olives. Let rise until doubled (about 1 1/2 hours). Put bread on baking sheet without kneading, tug sides under repeatedly. Let rise until doubled. Ten minutes before end of rising period, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Flour surface lightly, then bake for 20 minutes. Decrease temperature to 375 and bake for another 20 minutes. Test whether bread sounds hollow when you knock on the bottom--bake for 5 more minutes.

posted March 15, 2007 02:31 PM         

. . . artisan bread making in Tuscany

Not everyone can make artisan bread. It's something special, requiring a knowledge of mixing, kneading, fermenting, shaping and baking. Only then can you produce a well textured, aromatic, delicious loaf of bread.

Join our master bakers in rural Tuscany and learn the secrets of baking English and European breads. You'll use fresh local ingredients to bake everything from sourdough to Italian delicacies.

Fresh-baked bread is an essential introduction to every meal. Learn skills that will make you an artisan baker in your own home.

Artisan Bread School offers five day in-depth courses and weekend crash courses.

Artisan Bread School was established by Carl Shavitz to help revive the art of bread making. He has brought together some of Europe's top bakers to teach students how to bake delicious, nutritious and healthy artisan breads in their own kitchens.

The School's hands-on courses will specialize in European and English breads - sourdoughs, as well as a wide-range of English and Italian specialties like focaccia, ciabatta and pane di patate della garfagnana.

Set in the rural Tuscan village of Mercatale di Cortona, in the Val de Pierle, students live in surroundings that will take them back to another time and place.

Introduction to Artisan Bread Making
Monday 7th May 7 to Friday 11th May

Instructor: Emmanuel Hadjiandreou, multi-award winning artisan baker of Judge's Bakery in Hastings, Sussex, UK.

This course is designed for home bakers and those interested in learning the craft of artisan bread making.

The course will cover:

Working with fresh yeast
Mixing, kneading and shaping a loaf
Baking bread in a wood-fired oven
Making a sourdough and a sponge
Fermentation basics
Making different loaves with a wide variety of flours and ingredients that complement the bread
Mysteries and Myths of Italian Bread Making
Monday 14th May - Friday 18th May

Instructor: Hilary Cacchio, international private chef, baker, teacher and author.

This course is perfect for beginners, as well as those who want to expand their knowledge and repertoire.

Learn to bake great Italian breads that feed the soul - Schiacciata con l'Uva (sweet bread with grapes and raisins), Focaccia, Pane di Patate della Garfagnana (famous and heart warming Spelt and Potato Bread), Pane di Noci and more. Some will be made using the traditional Italian 'madre' (a wild yeast culture that was once a necessity for self-respecting Italian housewives).

Students will master the seven stages of bread making, culminating in that all important Italian pleasure - eating. They will also discover the four elements vital to great baking, as they feel the bread come alive at their fingertips. Local and seasonal ingredients will be used, bought at local markets.

posted March 18, 2007 10:47 AM         

does this mean that my time-sensitive, encrypted missives have not reached you then?

oh dear.

posted March 19, 2007 06:17 PM         

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped fine
4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups warm water
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon thyme, chopped fine
1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
Milk, for a glaze

In a saute pan, heat a 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the onions. Cook until lightly browned but not fully caramelized. Set aside to cool.
In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the Sauteed onions to the dry ingredients. Then add the water, olive oil, thyme, and olives. Mix until well blended and a dough has formed. Turn out on a floured board and knead the dough until soft and smooth, about 5 to 8 minutes. Cover with a towel and let sit for about 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Shape the dough into a large ball and place in a greased loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour and until the bread is golden brown. When the bread is 10 minutes out from being done, brush the surface lightly with milk to give it a gloss. Remove the bread from the oven and place on a rack to cool.

posted March 23, 2007 12:47 AM         

quote:

---

I could sing sonnets about the glory that is Bread.

---

lol!!

you 'feel' my love here.

i splurged and bought a fresh pecan raisin loaf the other day....it was my main course all day. that with peppermint tea.

yes...bread warms the heart and soothes the soul. there's a reason the essenes thought wheat a sacred food...that bread is the body of life.

posted March 23, 2007 12:57 AM         

The King asked
The Queen, and
The Queen asked
The Dairymaid:
"Could we have some butter for
The Royal slice of bread?"
The Queen asked the Dairymaid,
The Dairymaid
Said, "Certainly,
I'll go and tell the cow
Now
Before she goes to bed."

The Dairymaid
She curtsied,
And went and told the Alderney:
"Don't forget the butter for
The Royal slice of bread."

The Alderney said sleepily:
"You'd better tell
His Majesty
That many people nowadays
Like marmalade
Instead."

The Dairymaid
Said "Fancy!"
And went to
Her Majesty.
She curtsied to the Queen, and
She turned a little red:
"Excuse me,
Your Majesty,
For taking of
The liberty,
But marmalade is tasty, if
It's very
Thickly
Spread."

The Queen said
"Oh!"
And went to his Majesty:
"Talking of the butter for
The royal slice of bread,
Many people
Think that
Marmalade
Is nicer.
Would you like to try a little
Marmalade
Instead?"

The King said,
"Bother!"
And then he said,
"Oh, deary me!"
The King sobbed, "Oh, deary me!"
And went back to bed.
"Nobody,"
He whimpered,
"Could call me
A fussy man;
I only want
A little bit
Of butter for
My bread!"

The Queen said,
"There, there!"
And went to
The Dairymaid.
The Dairymaid
Said, "There, there!"
And went to the shed.
The cow said,
"There, there!
I didn't really
Mean it;
Here's milk for his porringer
And butter for his bread."

The queen took the butter
And brought it to
His Majesty.
The King said
"Butter, eh?"
And bounced out of bed.
"Nobody," he said,
As he kissed her
Tenderly,
"Nobody," he said,
As he slid down
The banisters,
"Nobody,
My darling,
Could call me
A fussy man -
BUT
I do like a little bit of butter to my bread!"