And Still More Bread

We've begun to hear back from grad schools.  I'll be visiting UW Madison and UMN Twin Cities/ Duluth next week.  The week after that, Thayer and I will be visiting U of OK for a little bit.  The visits will be a combination of them seeing how they like us, and us seeing how we like them.  Here's to hoping that the weather cooperates with tiny airplanes.

We went into town today.  I picked up some knitting needles for that red sweater.  Also stopped by the library to get bread books!  I checked out The Bread Baker's Apprentice (which on first glance I LOVE), A Blessing of Bread (Jewish bread traditions), and Mastering the Art of French Cooking Volume 2 (solely for the French Bread recipe, but I'm also intrigued by the vegetable section).  I don't know what I want to try first!  All of the recipes look so fun and different from my other bread books.

But first, I have two new bread trials that I want to report back on.  First, we made James Beard's delightfully garlicky focaccia.  I think my dough wasn't wet enough (which often happens with Beard's recipes....), but otherwise it turned out very tasty.

 

I also made the Italian bread featured here.  Very similar to my "French" bread except for the addition of a bit of olive oil and some milk.  It turned out quite tasty.  I've had problems shaping free form loaves in the past, so I was pleasantly surprised by these loaves.