I am happy to report that I had one person on Facebook co-bitch with me regarding the abundance of pumpkin themed food and food products.  I feel vindicated and thoroughly supported.  This person later sent me a picture of on of our local spot's advertising their homemade pumpkin pie yogurt.  We both had a good laugh about it and my friend told me that pumpkin kefir is probably making it's way to store shelves as we speak.  Yeah - totally vindicated.  All of the rest of you probably think that I'm nuts or you are so busy sipping your pumpkin latte and eating your pumpkin pancakes that you haven't had a chance to tell me off.  I'm sorry for 'not loving' pumpkin.
Of course, the reason for all of the pumpkin crazy is because it's squash season and squash season ends up being Thanksgiving season.  Canada has already had it's Thanksgiving.  I don't know why we have it early and I know that a quick jaunt over to wikipedia would fill me in but the truth is that I simply don't care enough to make the trip.  Whatever the reason, Canada observes Thanksgiving a month and a half before the U.S.  This means that we've got turkey to deal with long before Americans even have to think about it.  At our house this year, it means that if we can get away with it we will not have to think about turkey for a very very long time... well beyond christmas.
Turkey has a reputation for being dry - not entirely unfounded.  I've had some nasty, dry birds at my table.  This year we bought ours from a Mennonite shop where the birds are looked after well and have a happy life and all of that crap.  I think it made a difference.  In addition to that, D painstakingly marinated the turkey with his home concoction of deliciousness that made a huge difference.  He was setting his timer throughout the entire day, taking it out, pouring more sauce over it, sticking it back in the oven.  Painstaking.
My issue with turkeys isn't just the dry texture though, it's also the size.  They're big.  I've seen some at the Mennonite shop that took two people to carry out which I don't quite understand.  Either way, it's hard to get a truly small turkey and no matter, you're still looking at some hefty leftovers.  D took care of the turkey purchasing and I guess decided that 18 lbs sounded like a good idea.  I know what it can be like when you are there in the store.  You kind of get caught up in the moment.  All those other people lining up to pick up their turkey and you want a turkey and you're all celebrating something and it feels all holiday like.  I get it.  However, we are a family of 4.  One of those 4 people is 7 yrs old.  Another one of those 4 people (me) had a stomach bug the entire weekend and could barely stand up for two days let alone eat.  18 lbs of turkey takes a little while to get through for 4 people.


Our very big thanksgiving dinner used up about a half of a turkey breast between the four of us which left us with roughly 17 1/2 lbs of turkey to get through.  We ate leftover thanksgiving dinner - that took up two days.  I decided that I needed to clear out the fridge a bit so I made broth with the bones and all of that stuff - there are now 3 large containers of broth in the freezer.  I made turkey lasagna (Leftover Turkey #1) to mixed reviews but it mostly got eaten - that used up about 3 cups of turkey.  I made Turkey Orzo with cheese and crap (Leftover Turkey #2) to decidedly poor reviews - kind of got eaten - used up about 2 cups of turkey.  I had to get smart.  What are things that kids will eat almost no matter what?  Meatballs - coming in my next post, Pizza - Yes,  Pizza.  So I give you turkey pizza. I don't know what I'm going to do with the 6 1/2 lbs of turkey still in the freezer or or the 4 litres of turkey broth.  I honestly don't know how much more turkey any of us can face.  This pizza helped the cause along a little and I think may have kept my kids from divorcing me.  I would caution that the tomato and goat cheese are essential because turkey quite honestly needs all the help it can get.
For Christmas this year we are having lamb.



Turkey and Ricotta Pizza (my recipe)
Makes 2 medium pizza's

1 batch pizza dough (I used this recipe)
3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp each, olive oil and balsamic vinegar
3 lg cloves garlic
salt
2 1/2 cups ricotta
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp italian seasoning (or a mix of basil, oregano, marjoram)
1 cup chard or kale, finely chopped
1 cup goat cheese, crumbled
2 cups cooked turkey, shredded
2 - 3 cups mozzarella, shredded
1/2 cup shredded parmesan

Preheat oven to 300°F
Combine the cherry tomatoes, balsamic and olive oil.  Place on a lined baking sheet, spreading them out so that they make one layer.  Sprinkle with a little salt.  Roast for about 45 minutes turning down to 250°F for the last 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool a little.

Preheat oven to 475°F
Prepare baking sheets or pizza stones (for baking sheets, I coat them with a little cornmeal to that the crust doesn't stick) and set aside.
Combine the ricotta, Worcestershire, salt, italian seasoning.  Mix well.  Add the chopped kale and mix well.
Roll out pizza dough into the shape of your pan or stone and place the dough onto the prepared pans.
Divide the ricotta evenly between the pizza's and spread evenly around each pizza crust.
Sprinkle each pizza with roasted tomatoes, crumbled goat cheese, shredded turkey pieces evenly around.
Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and parmesan.
Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes or until each pizza is bubbly, golden and the crust is crusty on the bottom.
Remove and cool for a few minutes before slicing.

Let me preface everything I'm about to list off here by saying that this bread really and truly does not need to be sprinkled with a post of the kind of potential fluff that's about to hit you between the eyes.  Nope.  Not at all.
I found this bread recipe while leafing through the pages of 'Nourishing Traditions' and dreaming about making sour dough bread - which will (I hereby solemnly vow) be my next project where things bread are concerned.  The recipe looked like it was one step away from sour dough by literally letting the flour/butter/buttermilk mixture sour for about 24 hrs before adding yeast and all that stuff.  You don't get the sourdough feeling for sure but you do get a damn fine loaf of bread.  FYI - the buttermilk is essential.  Don't skimp.

So.  You and your partner have been planning to do this for a while but you haven't quite plucked up the courage to bite the bullet?  This pizza deal may just tip the balance for you.

A very serious study and subsequent conversation around convenience food saving time... or not.  FYI the convenience food in question here is not of the chips and lucky charms variety but rather the stuff that we use to help us prepare our dinner stuff.  And yeah, it doesn't actually save us time.  If you stick to the chips and lucky charms though, turns out that you will still save time.

The sweet potatoes in my pantry have petitioned to be turned into this quiche crust.  I will oblige.

Our Prime Minister is really into Pandas.  Super Bad.  Serious Panda Thing.

If you want to check out my adventures in Italy (along with the adventures of 250 grade 5 - 12 boys) then check things out here.  P.S. I will not be on a red Vespa.

I have no link for this but can I just tell you that the crossing-guard lady who cheers me on and wishes me a safe ride everyday as I'm riding through Regent Park is an inspiration and sometimes her encouragement brings a tear to my eye.

I want to read this book soooo hard right now.

Even though we are just peaking at Spring through the door that's only cracked open, there may be some of you out there who are still pining for the glory that was Christmas 2012.  Let Christopher Lee (Saruman/Willie Wonka's Dad - among other roles) help you through.  Take a listen to 'The Little Drummer Boy'.  Go ahead... listen to 'Silent Night' too... you know you wanna.



Whole Wheat, Slightly Soured, Yeasted Bread adapted from 'Nourishing Traditions'
makes 2 loaves

1 1/2 cups spelt flour
2 1/2 cups whole wheat/red fife flour
1 - 1 1/2 cups buttermilk, warm
1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup water, warm
2 1/4 tsp yeast
2 tbsp honey or brown sugar

4 tbsp honey or brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp salt (preferably sea or kosher salt)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup unbleached, all purpose flour

Combine the spelt and whole wheat flour.  Add the butter and 1 cup of the buttermilk.  Mix well and add the rest of the buttermilk in order for the mixture to form a cohesive dough ball.  Put the dough ball in a bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel.  Place in a warm, draft free spot for 12 - 24 hours.
12 - 24 hrs later:
Combine the warm water, yeast and 2 tbsp of honey or brown sugar together and set aside in a warm, draft free spot to proof (get bubbly and yeasty smelling) for about 10 minutes.  Once you know that the yeast mixture is good then add the remaining honey or brown sugar, salt, baking soda and unbleached, all purpose flour.  Mix and divide in half.
Divide the whole wheat flour mixture in half and add to half of the yeast mixture.  Do the same with the other half of both.  Keeping the dough balls divided begin to knead each for about 4 - 5 minutes or until the yeast mixture has mixed thoroughly into the whole wheat mixture.  Once both dough balls have been kneaded then combine them and knead for another 5 minutes or so.  The dough should be silky and smooth.  Place the dough into a buttered stainless steel or glass bowl (make sure that both sides of the dough have some grease on them), cover with a clean cloth set in a warm, draft free spot to rise for 1 1/2 - 2 hrs or until about doubled in size.
Butter or grease two small loaf pans or cookie sheets if you want to make two round loaves.
Turn the dough onto a flat surface and divide in half.
Shape each into either a log or a round ball.  Grease the top of each and place either in the loaf pans or on the cookie sheets.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise for another 1 - 2 hrs or until doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until the crust is hard, golden and sounds hollow when you knock on it.
Cool completely before slicing.

A very interesting thing happened this week.  I had a day off on Friday.  Many of us did because it was a school parent/teacher interview day.  If we had no interviews then we had the day to ourselves.  The kids and I wandered around for a while.  Haircuts were had.  We took in some local bakery treats.  A movie was watched and I went for a run.  Finally - a run.  A run that I've been waiting to take since what feels like forever.  But I still haven't given you the 'interesting' thing.
You see, after all of that I decided to take a bath.  I never take a bath.  Only when I'm feeling sick does the thought of lying in hot water sounds soothing to me.  Whatever the case may be, on Friday I found myself taking a bath.  A wonderful warm/hot bath.  All by myself, nobody daring to disturb me.  This is my chance to steal a few moments alone with my thoughts.  To breathe deeply and let the psychological knots untie themselves a little.  What do I find myself doing?  I start cleaning the bathtub while I'm in it.  I'm whittling away at little spots on the tile.  I rub my fingers on some of the grimy spots to get them off.  I even reach outside of the tub and start to pick up little fuzz things on the floor.  As I'm doing it I realizing how completely ridiculous this is.  I at least have the presence of mind to know that I'm completely missing the point of this 'quiet time'.  Why is it so hard to simply not do anything.  I refuse to believe that this is a 'male vs female' thing or a 'working professionals' issue or a 'parent' problem or whatever else is thrown out there.  I think that in reality it's just damn hard to unplug and sit still with oneself.
In university I spent a lot of time and mental energy (probably too much of both which may explain a little about why my degree took so long) researching, reading about and working at being still with oneself.  It seems silly to use the word 'work' when referring to being still but in my experience that is the reality.  It takes work.  The minimal amount of success that I achieved felt wonderful.  I felt so much better connected both to myself but also to those around me.  It felt like I could listen better.  I could tune in and really focus on something outside of myself which is a paradox really when you think about how much time you spent just 'listening' to yourself.  I know that my 'success' (these word don't really fit) was minimal and it made a big difference but it was a LOT of effort.
I think that it might be our lives - both our outward and inward lives - take on this inertia like being on a treadmill.  If I'm running on the treadmill I can't just stop running without slowing down the whole machine.  I've got to stop the treadmill and I've got to slow it down relatively slow otherwise my body wants to keep going.  In other words, everything has to follow suit.  I can't expect to be able to compartmentalize to such an extent that my quiet bath hour will be my meditation time - it won't work for me.  It was a a real wake up to me about how far away from myself I've gotten.


Honestly, I understand why it would be so natural for monks to make bread.  It's quiet work really.  There is something caring about the whole process beginning to end.  The proofing, the flour, the kneading, the rising.  It's nurturing and comforting and quiet.  It was just what I needed this week.  My kids declared this the best bread I've ever made.  It's got a larger than normal proportion of white flour which is probably why the enjoyed the texture so much.  It just felt amazing to make it, to knead it, to be forced to stay home and take care of it.  I probably won't be hoping into the bathtub anytime soon but I'm thinking about using my bread making as part of my quiet/meditative/focussing routine.


Whole Wheat and Rye Bread adapted from King Arthur Flour
makes 1 loaf

2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour or bread flour
1/2 cup whole wheat or Red Fife flour
1/2 cup Rye flour
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup dry milk powder
1 1/4 cup water, warm but not hot
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp honey
3 tbsp butter (melted) or oil

Butter or grease a medium sized non-reactive bowl and set aside.
Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar together.  Stir and place in a warm, draft free spot to proof for about 10 minutes - it should be bubbly and yeasty smelling and probably will have risen.  If it hasn't then you should start again.
Meanwhile, combine 2 cups of the all purpose flour, the whole wheat flour, the rye flour, the salt and the dry milk powder together.  Once the yeast mixture has proofed add it to the flour mixture along with the honey and the melted butter or oil.  Mix well until it has formed a sticky dough ball.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and begin to knead, adding the reserved all purpose flour if needed, until it forms a silky, smooth and elastic kind of texture.  Place the dough into the greased bowl, turning so that everything gets covered.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise for about 1 hr (dough may not have doubled).
Butter or grease and loaf pan.
Once the dough has risen, gently punch it down and knead just a little to form it into a log form to fit into the loaf pan.  Place in the loaf pan and cover with a clean cloth and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise for about 1 1/4 hr.  The dough should have risen over the top of the loaf pan.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place the loaf into the oven and bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until browned and the crust hardened enough to sound hollow when knocked on.
Let it cool completely (preferably for an hour or two) before slicing.

I'm writing this post while waiting for Kid #1 to get herself to the shower.  This sounds utterly backwards but, if you can believe it, I've scheduled it with her since last night.  Twenty four hours later and my frustration is reaching proportions.  It feels like I'm forcing a dog into soapy water.  You have to hold the dog there, getting yourself thoroughly wet and soapy in the process, just to get it done.  Admittedly, there are many things about twelve year olds that I find perplexing and, as a parent, infuriating.
Here are a few of the things that I find absolutely confusing:
Sleeping - We don't sleep at night, we sleep in the morning.  Unless it's a weekday and then we must get up at 6:15.  If, by some strange fluke, our alarm does not go off and we wake up at 7 a.m. then we must run downstairs in tears using our loudest foot stomp and wailing about how our Mother (saint that she is) was supposed to wake us up because she must know that we get up at 6:15 EVERYDAY.
Eating - We eat all of the meals served to us by our saintly and gorgeous Mother (except maybe breakfast if we've slept in and are very upset) but we also eat snacks.  Lots of snacks. And we like to eat them right after our meal.  Or before our meal.  Or anytime.  We get our own snacks.  We never get our own meals.
Cleaning - Since we have to do our own laundry we choose to simply not do it.  Unless of course, we are threatened with the loss of something we hold dear.  Smelly clothes, especially underthings, do not factor into our decision about when laundry is necessary to do.  The same logic applies to cleaning our room (i.e. 'mess' is not a factor in deciding how much and when we clean) and generally any mess we make throughout the house.
Dress - 90% not important mostly because all of our clothes (decent or otherwise) are either in our dirty clothes hamper, on our floor or under our bed.  It is 99% probably that you will not find any article of clothing that we actually wear either on a hanger or folded and in a drawer.


I could go on but I think that you get my point.  Do I remember being twelve, you ask.  A little.  I remember wearing winter clothes in the middle of the summer (hot summer) because I liked how they felt on my body. (Pin Stripe Jeans were the thing)  I remember eating a whole bag of chips after school.  I remember having incredible amounts of energy when I was with my friends and being overwhelmingly lethargic once I got home.  I do have a certain level of understanding and I know that this is a phase.   Just for the record, I'm ready for the phase to pass so that we can move on to thirteen and see what that holds.
While I wait impatiently I'm making bread.  Bread helps with patience.  It doesn't require heavy labour or deep thought.  Just patience.  That's just what I needed last weekend.  I'm pretty sure that I've posted copious amounts of bread with oatmeal and honey on this blog.  I'm going to justify my repetition by telling you that making this bread made a goodly portion of my day feel a little more sane.  The calmness that it provided my addled nerves with allowed me to complete everything that I needed to with a smile and a sense of balance.  That alone makes it worth posting... and I think that I finally hear the shower running.


Oatmeal Red Fife Bread adapted from 'Good to the Grain'
makes 1 large loaf

2 1/2 cup whole wheat or red fife flour
2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour or bread flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 tbsp salt
2 cups warm water
2 1/4 tsp (1 pkg) dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp unsulphured molasses
2 heaping tbsp honey
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

Combine the flours, rolled oats and salt together and set aside.  (Since I am kneading by hand I kept about a 1/2 cup of the all purpose flour back to save for kneading - if you are using a mixer then you don't need to do this)
Combine the warm water, sugar and yeast together.  Mix and set aside in a draft free spot to bloom (or you could do this in the bottom of the bowl of your stand mixer if you are using one) for about 10 minutes.  It should be bubbly, yeasty smelling and have risen somewhat.
Once the yeast has bloomed combine the flour mixture, the yeast mixture and the melted butter.  Mix together using a wooden spoon until everything is incorporated.  Cover with a clean cloth and set aside for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, start kneading the bread  - by hand: adding the reserved flour as needed for about 10 - 15 min./by machine: adding tablespoon or two if the dough gets sticky for about 6 min. on medium.  The dough should be slightly tacky and soft.
Place the dough in a buttered/greased stainless steel or glass bowl.  Cover and let rise for about an hour (or until doubled in size) in a draft free spot.
To form the dough: Butter/grease a large loaf pan OR line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicon liner.
Punch down the dough and form into a loaf sized log and place in the loaf pan OR into a dome shape and place on the parchment or silicon.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in a draft free spot to rise for about an hour (dough should have risen half it's size again and be just over the edge of the loaf pan)
After about an hour preheat the oven to 400°F.
Bake for about 40 minutes (rotating once through the baking) until the bread is dark on the top.  Use the knock test (the bread should sound hollow if you knock it).
Cool completely before slicing.

I bought myself a present.  It's always a big deal when I buy myself a present.  Well, when could it possibly not be a big deal.  A present implies something special.  It's something that you may not necessarily need but get given to you anyway... or, as in this case, you give to yourself.  In addition, I'm not someone who spends money on herself... except for books... and champagne (I am blushing right now).  This week I bought myself two books.  That's right.  Two books.  Not one book... two books.  They've been on my 'wish list' for quite a while so it was fitting to finally bite the bullet and go for it.  Admittedly, I went to a bookstore downtown to see if I could pick them up 'supercheap' before I bought them online but it was not to be.  The whole thing happened because I got really frustrated last week with baking.  Baking is not something that I normally get frustrated about but there it is, I got frustrated.  I've been trying to incorporate more whole grains into my baking and bread making since discovering the fantastic red fife/Ontario thing (you know - locally grown and milled, whole grain, good for you... blah blah blah).  For the most part my attempts have been successful but limited.  I'm getting more adventurous but I'm looking to really dive in a go deep.  Let's just see how far this goes.  I'm searching for more recipes using whole grains in part or in whole and let me tell you, it takes a lot of time.  A lot of time.  I spent a long time searching through my own (limited - hence the 'present') cookbook collection and then a longer time online scrolling through reems of google search results.  After a while I forget what I was looking for in the first place.  Next thing I know I'm throwing up my hands (and mouse) in frustration, grabbing chocolate and a beer and giving up.
I've heard a lot about this book - all good things... all great things actually.  Now that I've got it in my grubbies I see that it's a little different than I had hoped in that it makes use of quite a few different kinds of whole grain flours (kamut, quinoa, spelt - you get the idea) but I'm going to use this as a base for inspiration more than anything else.  I wanted recipes for whole grain chocolate cookies (it's here), whole grain quick breads (it's here - almost but I can work with it), lots of whole grain and fruit combos (Yup - it's here) and recipes using honey as well as or in place of the sugar - although I'm hearing some rumblings about honey being no better than sugar as a sweetener but I'm going to do some more investigating on that one cause honey at least has some healing and nutritive qualities even if it still is just fructose at the end of the day, right?


Right now (and I do mean this very moment) I'm more excited than I have been in months about getting chocolate cookies and pumpkin bread in and out of my oven.  Unfortunately, this recipe is neither one of those things.  It is the bread recipe that I fell on while searching for my pumpkin/whole grain/honey/google/mania a few days ago.  It's nothing like pumpkin bread.  It's very very far from whole grain chocolate cookies too you might have noticed.  It is though one of the best breads that I've churned out in a while and I liked that it was called 'Canadian' although I have no idea why it might have been given the title.  I like it when a post starts out weird and then totally makes sense when you get to the last 4 sentances.  It makes me feel like I've accomplished something and given you, my reader, a little bit of pay-off.


Canadian Brown Bread adapted from 'King Arthur Flour'
makes 1 Big loaf

2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 2/3 cups Red Fife or Whole Wheat flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cocoa
1 tsp instant coffee powder
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 cup honey

Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar together.  Stir just to mix and set aside in a draft free spot to proof for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes there should be quite a bit of foam on top of the water and it should smell very 'yeasty'.
Meanwhile, combine both flours - reserve a 1/4 cup or so of the all purpose flour for kneading.  Add in the salt, cocoa powder and coffee powder.  Stir to mix.
Once the yeast has proofed pour in the melted butter and honey to the mixture.  Stir to mix.  Add the honey/yeast mixture to the flour.  Mix until it forms a dough ball.
Remove to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough using the reserved all purpose flour as well.
After about 6 - 8 minutes the dough should be smooth and soft to the touch.  Place the dough in a lightly buttered bowl, turning so that the entire ball is greased.  Cover and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise for about 1 hr. or until doubled in size.
Punch the dough ball down and form into a loaf shape.
Butter a loaf pan and place the dough into the pan.  Cover again and place in a draft free spot to rise for another hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place the risen loaf into the oven and bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until the crust is just turning brown and sounds hollow when you knock on it.
Let it cool slightly before attempting to slice it.

More about red Fife...
I've been talking about it for a while but it's now time to fill in some blanks on Red Fife flour and why I've started using it instead of whole wheat.


Red Fife is refuted to have hailed from Scotland, brought over by a farmer named David Fife - hence the 'Fife' part of the name.  We don't really know whether the seeds themselves were indigenous to Scotland.  There are rumours that the seeds originated in the Ukraine as well.  Fife settled in Ontario, near Stirling in fact, and farmed using the seeds that he brought over with him.  He discovered that the grain was incredible adaptable to Canada's climate and produced well as a result.  According to 'The Canadian Encyclopedia' Red Fife flour was very popular even in the prairies but eventually fell out of use because even it froze in the fields when there were early frosts (I'm not quite sure what wouldn't freeze in a frost but maybe they're referring to it taking a little too long to mature).  In the book 'Earth to Table' I read that most of the grain that we use presently in Canada comes from Red Fife.  The book also argues that because Red Fife is a heritage grain it may produce a lower yield than more recent grains which would also explain why it fell out of use.
An article in the Ottawa Citizen reported that it might well be the 'Wheat Belly Diet' dude that has prompted more people to go looking for heritage grains that have been unaltered and turned into 'frankengrain' - I think that word is funny.  The 'Wheat Belly Diet' dude believes that so many of us have become gluten intolerant (as well as a host of other diseases) because of the more recent development of easy and reliable growing 'frankengrain' and it's processing.
Me? I like that Red Fife is grown and milled locally.  I like that, at least as far as north america is concerned, it's a grain that hails from where I live.  I like that it's heritage and it hasn't been messed with and that the milling is done by people I can talk to if I want to.
I also like that it's damn fine to bake with.  I've been using it in everything.  It's replaced my whole wheat flour use and has now exceeded how much I ever used whole wheat flour in the first place.  I'm finding out more about this fine grain as I go but for now I'm more happy with the locale and the baking results than I am anything else.


This bread nicely showcases the Red Fife flour.  It's a simple bread.  Not gunked up with oats or molasses or carrots or anything else.  Just plain old bread.  Great for sandwiches or toast... and fantastic when it goes stale for french toast and the tastiest strata you ever did eat.


Honey, Red Fife Bread adapted from 'local milk'
makes two small loaves

2 1/4 cups warm water
1 tbsp yeast
1 tsp honey + 1/4 cup honey
3 cups red fife (or whole wheat) flour
2 1/2 - 3 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tbsp salt (I use sea salt)
1 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp unsulphured molasses

Grease a non-reactived bowl and set aside.
Combine a 1/2 cup of warm water, 1 tsp of honey and the yeast together.  Stir just a little and set aside in a draft free spot for about 10 minutes.  The mixture should be foamy and have almost doubled in bulk.
Meanwhile, combine red fife flour and 2 cups of the all purpose (set the rest aside).  Add in the salt and mix.
Once the yeast has proofed add the butter, molasses and the rest of the honey to it.  Mix just until everything combines.  Add the yeast mixture, along with the rest of the warm water to the flour mixture and mix until it forms a dough ball - if you need to add some extra flour here to get to that 'dough needing consistency' then go for it.  Just add a little at a time though.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 6 - 8 minutes or until the dough is  firm, springy, silky and smooth.
Place the dough into the greased bowl and rotate to make sure all sides get greased.  Cover with a clean cloth and set to a warm, draft free spot.  Let it rise for an 1 1/2 or until the dough has doubled in size.
Grease two small loaf pans (or I used a small baking dish for one of mine).
Gently punch the dough down and knead into 2 small loaf shapes. Place in the loaf pans and cover with  the clean cloth and set aside to rise for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 375° F.
Bake the bread for 30 - 35 minutes or until the bread is solid enough that is sounds hollow when you knock on it.
Remove from the loaf pans and cool completely before cutting.
Freezes well.

There are about 5 things that I want to talk about in depth today.  I can't talk about all five.  They're just rolling around in my head - please tell me that I'm not the only one who has all kinds of crazy thoughts rolling around in their heads... please.  Sometimes it almost hurts.  Sometimes it's just easier to tune it out because I have too much that has to get done and not enough time to do it all and the stuff rolling around in there just makes the 'getting through' of it all the harder.
I've been reading this crazy-ass, awesome, terrifying book.  It's intense.  So intense that there have been times when I don't realize it until I turn the page but I've been holding my breath whilst reading.  Intense.  The mix of emotions runs from fear to frustration, despair to anger.  It's the kind of book that already by page two I knew I would have to read again.  Just the first chapter alone is worth the price of the book.
Then there is work.  I've been ramping up my game.  Getting myself out there more.  Getting my opinions out there more.  Throwing myself into the ring essentially.  What I've realised is that all of this good stuff that's going on means I have to work harder.  I have more responsibilities which require more time.  There are weeks when that is bearable and there are other weeks when it's a complete avalanche.  This week was an avalanche.
Then there is me still pining for summer.  Wishing that the temperatures were just a little warmer, wishing that I could still go out and pick tomatoes.  I'm trying to adjust my expectations but it's hard to motivate myself to get out there for a run or hop on my bike to work when it's cold and rainy.  I'm working on it.  I'm managing to wrap my head around fall and winter veggies again so I'm choosing to look at this as a positive start.
Then, while attempting to post my latest cookie endeavour I discovered that the photo host that google uses couldn't support any more pictures - it was full.  There had not been a notification or anything - it just stopped working.  Although I was totally bummed I set out to fix the problem.  Not being a super-techie it took me a couple of days and set me back with my posts last week.  I was totally bummed about that however, I've figured it out.


And finally, one of my best friends is moving away this week.  Not like another continent far but Toronto to Ottawa far.  Far enough.  Too far for me and I'm bummed about it but I'm trying to stay positive for him.  My other BFF KT has just gotten another beautiful baby to nurture for the next while.   So our plans to do a belated birthday celebration for the two of us (we didn't have a chance to celebrate either one of our birthdays when they really happened) - a day of just us - is going on hold.  Sure it's a bit of a drag but I'm determined to be happy for her because it's clear that giving these little babies a loving start is what is keeping her going these days.


So with these things 'rolling around' I made bread.  I've been using red fife for everything lately and I promise that in a near future post I will explain why I've fallen in love with using red fife so much.  This bread has combined my fave red fife, my love of honey and KT's favourite - Oats.  I was so sure that she would love it that I gave her the better part of one of my loaves.  She told me that this was by far the best bread I've given her yet.  That's cool.


Red Fife, Honey and Oats Bread adapted from epicurious
makes 2 loaves

2 1/2 cups Red Fife or Whole Wheat flour
2 1/2 - 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tbsp salt
2 cups milk
1 cup oats (not the 'quick cooking' stuff)
1/2 cup water
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp dry yeast (2 packages)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup honey

Butter a bowl for rising and set aside.
Warm the milk just enough to feel warm but not simmering.  Remove from the heat and add in the oats.  Stir to combine.  Cool for about 7 - 10 minutes.  Once cooled slightly then add in the melted butter and 1/2 cup of honey.  Stir to combine.
Warm the water just a little warmer than luke-warm (no where near 'tea' water) and combine with 1 tsp of honey and the yeast.  Stir just to combine and set aside for about 5 minutes to get foamy and yeasty smelling (if it doesn't get foamy then it's no good - start the water thing over).
Combine the Red Fife flour and 2 cups of the all purpose together with the salt.
Once the yeast is all foamy and perfect add it to the milk and honey mixture.
Add all of the liquid to the flour and mix well to form into a wet dough ball.  Add a little more all purpose flour here if necessary.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 6 - 10 minutes.  I ended up using about 3 cups of all purpose at the end of the day just to give you a ball-park for what you might find you need to add.  Add all purpose flour a little at a time and keep the surface lightly floured.  Once the dough ball  is firm but still a bit tacky to the touch place the dough into the buttered bowl.  Turn it over so that the whole ball has been greased.  Cover with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm, draft free spot (my oven with the oven light on) for anywhere from 1 - 1 1/2 hrs or until doubled in size.
Butter 2 med/sm loaf pans.
Punch it down and knead just enough to divide it into 2 balls.  Form each into a loaf shape and place into a buttered loaf pan.  Cover each and let rise for another hour - or until doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 375˚F.
(Optional: Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with oats)
Bake the bread for about 35 - 40 minutes or until nicely golden brown and sounds hollow when you knock on it.
Let it cool for 15 - 20 minutes before slicing.

You might have noticed that I haven't been posting a lot of baked goods around here lately.  This is a relatively new thing.  In the past I've done my best to keep things as balanced as possible between the sweet and savoury.  The thing is that I'm kind of experimenting.  I'm trying to use less sugar.  I think that you all deserve an explanation and it involves some true confessions.  Have a seat, grab a carrot stick and a beer and settle in for the story.


Last school year (and maybe a bit longer than that) I would frequent a well known coffee chain.  I wouldn't order coffee.  I don't drink coffee and don't plan on starting back full time at any point in the near future.  I wouldn't order tea because it seems to me and abomination to pay that much $$ for hot water and a tea bag.  I would order hot chocolate.  It was an awesome treat.  I would have my 'treat' almost every day I'm embarrassed to admit.  Thanks to KT my order was perfected to 'half sweet/no whip'.  Honestly even the half sweet was a little on the sweet side for me.  Thing is though that sometimes when you are in these places you walk out with other things too.  A cookie, a piece of lemon-raspberry loaf with some kind of chemical ridden addictive substance on top called 'icing' (god... yum).  You know how it is.  I know you do.  I got so many hot chocolates from this place that I would get free drinks all the time.  Unfortunately, I started noticing that my brain felt fuzzy all the time.  I had to work harder to focus (it could be age, who am I kidding) and to stay focussed.  In other words, my energy levels were... weird.
Derek decided in about January or February to cut way back on his sugar intake (which I honestly thought was hardly worth cutting back on all things considered) because of some reading that he was doing around sugar and it's effects on the brain and body.  Hmmmm.  I wasn't convinced.  We've been eating refined sugar for a long long time.  Wait really?  How long really have we been eating it like this.  So often and so heavily.  I read some things too.  It was compelling.  The real clincher for me was summer.  I have no 'well-known coffee chain' in my hood.  Dear me, no.  I would need to make an effort to get that hot chocolate.  Plus it was summer... hot chocolate?  Not really.  I stopped.  Cold turkey done.  I started noticing a few things.  I did feel more energized.  I didn't crave the sweets after a few days.  Then school started again.  This time I bought some tea bags and boiled my own damn water.  No sugar in my drink and no temptation to come back to work with a cookie or cake in my hand.  Yup.  For sure a difference.  Even with my sinus cold brain last week my focus and my energy was better and it was easier to stay focussed than it had been before.  At the moment, I don't even care about the longer term effects on my body.  I'll take the short term energy and focus and pass GO for $200.  That's fine with me.  I could pass all this off as seasonal, or sleep related or stress.  Sure.  The fact is though that less sugar is better for me.  It's undeniable so I'm not going to fight it.
Does this mean that I'm never baking cookies or making a cake again?  NO.  I still think that a celebrations deserves to be celebrated with a dessert.  My kids will still have homemade goodies at home sometimes.  And sometimes you just need a chocolate snacking cake (my favourite) or a red velvet cupcake to make it to the next day.  What I will do though is use honey and maple syrup a lot more often because, let's face it, we've been using those as sweeteners a hell of a lot longer than sugar.  In fact, I've been searching for recipes using honey or maple syrup a lot more.  There are plenty.  Please note though that both honey and maple syrup are not sugar.  They don't act like sugar and can't be treated like sugar.  They sure as hell don't taste like sugar either.  They do have traces of good stuff in them.  They don't seem to drain me of all sense and I don't want to find my bed an hour after ingesting them either.  But if you're looking for a bona fide treat then you won't exactly get the same punch if you use honey or maple syrup in your baking.


This bread is a great example of my new replacement strategy.  I used a pinch of sugar to feed the yeast and that was it.  These look like an artisanal kind of thing which is boosting my ego big time and the crumb is fantastic.  The buns were made because both kids requested buns for school lunches this week.  I have listed every option in the recipe below.  And BTW - I managed to get everything done with a Ninja in my house.  It was quite a day.  Just for the record, this is a 'REAL' Ninja outfit - it's what they really wear.


Red Fife, Oat and Honey Buns adapted from Canadian Living
makes 1 small loaf and 4 buns OR 12 buns OR 2 small loaves

1 1/2 cups Red Fife (or whole wheat) flour
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup boiling water
1 cup oats (not quick)
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup warm milk (I used 2% but you could use Homogenized - not skim)
pinch of sugar
2 1/4 tsp (one package) dry yeast

In a bowl combine the boiling water and oats together.  Stir just to mix and set aside for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine the warm milk and the pinch of sugar together.  Sprinkle with the yeast and stir just to get the yeast moist.  Cover with a clean cloth and set aside in a draft free spot to proof for about 10 minutes - it should get frothy and smell 'yeasty'.
Combine the Red Fife flour with 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour.  Add in the salt and stir to mix.
Once the oats have soaked add in the honey and butter.  Mix well and add to the flour.  Add the yeast mixture to the flour.  Mix everything until it forms a sticky dough.
Turn onto a lightly flour surface and knead - adding as much of the left back all purpose flour as needed - until the dough is silky, smooth and elastic.
Place the dough in a buttered bowl (I turn my dough in the bowl so that it's buttered on all sides), cover with a clean cloth and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise until doubled (1 - 1 1/2 hrs)
Remove the dough from the bowl and punch down.  Knead just a little and form into your choice of 1 small loaf and 4 buns (the size of a small fist) OR 12 buns OR 2 small loaves.  For loaves: place into a greased loaf pan.  Cover with a clean cloth.  For Buns:  Place buns on a cookie sheet covered in parchment and then greased.  Cover with a clean cloth.
Place everything in a draft free spot and leave to rise for another hour.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Bake the buns for 20 - 25 minutes.
Bake the bread for about 40 minutes or until it sounds hollow when you knock on it.
Cool before slicing.

Over the course of the weekend that I was wading my way through 3 bushels of tomatoes (which you may have noticed I'm still a little traumatized by) my friend T came over.  As soon as he walked in he got in there and started helping.  That was awesome because D wasn't around to help at that particular moment and also because I was nearing the end of both the tomatoes and my sanity.
Although he grew up on a farm T had never participated in the canning process.  He talked about having entire days where the boys went out and picked as many __________ (fill in the blank with whatever vegetable you want) and the girls and Mom would get it ready to either freeze it or can it.  So it was kinda a girls job to get things canned.  T was curious about the whole thing and totally ready to get in there and figure it out for himself.
It got us to talking about all of the preserving/gardening/hunting/husbanding/surviving thing.  We agreed that not just a generation ago (ok - let's say 60 years give or take) it would have pretty much everybody that knew how to can or preserve.  Everybody knew what to do with the vegetables at the end of the season.  Everybody knew how to save seeds for next year.  Everybody knew how to make jam or preserves.  And the list goes on.  Whether or not they did it themselves, they knew someone who did and wouldn't have died of starvation if the local grocer went out of business.  The rise of the 'low fat' craze meant that we could no longer rely on the old standby's that got us through in the past.  We had to have the right kind of oil for cooking, margarine can't be made at home, low fat sour cream is not the stuff that comes out of a cow and most certainly tofurky or turkey bacon either.
It also became a status symbol to eat things that came from a large processing company rather than from  a farm.  I remember being in love with chef boyardee ravioli because that's what my Mom bought (my brother love spaghetti o's and beefaroni).  It meant that you could afford it.  It meant that you didn't have to make it yourself.  I get it.
What happened however, is that we forgot.  We've forgotten a lot.  Some people I meet don't even know how to make rice (no joke - and I take that very seriously).  T and I talked about how important it will probably become that those things be remembered again.  The making of butter by hand, the awesomeness of raw milk that you can skim the cream off the top of, the great feeling you get when you open that jar of jam in January and it's... beautiful (and good for your immune system too).  It's sad that those things have been forgotten to be sure but what's more... it's dangerous.  It's important to know that we don't need to buy them from a grocery... we have the option of doing it ourselves... and we know how to do it.


That's why I want to teach my kids about all this stuff.  Canning, freezing, growing, preserving, making from scratch and using what's around us and not's thousands of kilometres away... because it's important to know that you have options.  It's important to be able to fend for yourself.  It's empowering to know that you can provide for yourself and that you can make bread.  More than ever I appreciate that I can do this.  That I can put the ingredients together and knead it by hand and my kids can watch me and they can smell the bread baking and know it didn't come out of a bag.  Bread is important and we haven't had enough of it throughout the summer.  Now that it's cooler... bread is back and this loaf was pretty damn near perfect.


Red Fife Honey Bread adapted from Betty Crocker
yield: 1 loaf (can easily be doubled)


1 1/2 cups Red Fife or Whole Wheat flour
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup warm water
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh orange zest
6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature


Combine the warm water, yeast and brown sugar.  Stir and set aside in a draft free spot for about 8 - 10 minutes.  The mixture should be foamy and have almost doubled.
Butter or grease a medium sized non-reactive bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl combine the Red Fife flour and 1 cup of the all purpose flour.  Form a well in the middle of the flour and add the honey, salt, orange zest and butter.  Add in the foamy yeast mixture.  Stir to mix well until it forms a wet dough ball.
Turn out the dough ball onto a lightly flour surface and knead for about 10 minutes until the dough is silky and smooth.  Add in the rest of the all purpose flour as needed.
Place the dough into the buttered bowl.  Cover with a clean cloth and set in a warm, draft-free spot for about 50 - 60 minutes or until almost doubled in size.
Butter or grease a loaf pan.
Remove and knead down just enough to form into a loaf.  Place the dough loaf into the loaf pan.  Cover with the clean cloth and set aside in a warm, draft-free spot to rise for another 45 - 50 minutes or until the loaf has risen over the top of the pan and looks like it's the size it should be.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Bake the bread for about    minutes or until the top is nicely browned and it sound hollow when you knock on it.
Cool before slicing.

And just like that we decide that we're not just going to talk about taking a road trip to Vermont.  We decide that tomorrow we're getting in the car and doing it.  That's the way we roll.  Planning schmanning.  Within and hour D has contacted 3 potential places for lodging and we've mapped a course.
This is the first year since we've been together (and it's been more than a few) that we can road trip absolutely anywhere we want because it's the first year that D has his Canadian Citizenship.  Worth it's weight in gold.  So with an address and probably the world's worst map (which happened to be the only one I could find in Toronto on short notice) we headed out the door and down our street.
We ended up here.  This place is gorgeous.  I can't get you a proper picture of the countryside that we are nestled in right now because a camera quite simply can't do it justice.  Suffice it to say, when we arrived late in the night we had a moment where we both stopped talking and just looked at each other. The only sounds - ONLY SOUNDS - were the crickets going crazy.  Once the kids were in bed (yeah, we did bring them) and we were outside we were astounded once again.  The sky was alive.  I've never seen the big dipper so clearly.  We could actually see the Milky Way.  There are no lights here.  Just none.  Fortunately there is internet access though so I can write about it.


Let me break it down for ya.  In the last 20 hours we have driven across one province and two states, eaten two bags of chips (in transit), 8 homemade cookies, 7 homemade crackers with hummus, listened to way too much music, had the easiest border crossing experience ever, seen the galaxy, woken up to a wonderland of mountains and trees and quiet, eaten breakfast at the weirdest/awesomest restaurant, bought beer,  taken a short hike, gotten in the hottub, spent time in the hammock and met two very awesome lodging owners.  If you are looking for a spot to spend some time that is quiet and charming and beautiful then these are your people.


What we haven't gotten to eating yet are these buns.  But we haven't yet had our bbq which D is threatening to get underway in a very short time.  I suspect that D's burgers will be what goes in between these awesome buns.  I wasn't sure how they would come out but just went for it.  I got nervous because they hardly rose at all for the first rise but by the time they got to the bun-shaped-second-rise stage it was looking much better.  In my opinion they are the perfect size for burgers but I'm a small bun/big burger kinda gal.  Please don't take that in anything but the literal kind of way.


So I'm off to get something happening with these ingredients and I'll keep you updated on the state of my time in Vermont.  I'm hoping to get to a farmer's market within the next day or two and believe my I'm more excited about that than I am anything else.
Enjoy these last beautiful bits of summer as much as you can.


Red Fife Egg Buns adapted from here
makes 6 - 7 medium sized buns

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup red fife flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk, at room temperature or just a little warm
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/4 tsp yeast
1 lg egg, lightly beaten

Mix together the flours and the salt.  Set aside.
Combine the milk, sugar and yeast.  Mix well and set aside for about 4 - 5 minutes.  Add in the egg and butter.  Mix well until the butter is melted in.
Add about 1 1/2 cups of the flour mixture.  Mix well and add in the rest of the flour until it forms enough of a dough ball to turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
Knead on the floured surface for about 5 - 8 minutes until the dough is silky and smooth to the touch.  Try not to add any more flour if you can at all get away with it.
Place the dough ball into a lightly buttered bowl.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in a draft free spot to rise for about an hour or until doubled.
Place the dough onto the lightly floured surface (honestly, I didn't even need to flour it again) and knead for another couple of minutes.  Divide the dough into 6 or 7 equal portions.  Knead slightly and form into flatish kind of bun forms.  Place the buns onto a lined baking sheet (parchment or silicon).  Cover again with the clean cloth and let everything rise again for about 45 - 50 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake the buns for about 15 - 20 minutes or until just turning golden brown.

I'm home.  I'm sitting in my house.  I am on my couch.  I am typing on my couch.  I am in my living room.  I'm not going anywhere outside of my own house for the rest of the day.  The whole rest of the day.  It feels... foreign.
For all my bitching about May and how it's all crazy and busy and overwhelming, June has been just as bad and maybe even worse.  Worse not really because it's worse but just because the expectation was that it would be better and it hasn't been.  That makes no sense when I look at the words but it totally made sense in my head.  Combine the 'crazy' with a heat wave in Toronto and you've got two kids living on cereal and toast.  Fortunately, that's done and we're back to absolute gorgeous summer weather.  Now that I'm still - as in not moving - I'm looking at the kitchen and wondering where to begin.


I have to admit that I almost didn't post this.  I think that the bread looks awful.  I look at other food blogs and the pictures are so awesome and everything just looks perfect.  The bread always rises exactly the way bread should rise.  It's always the right shade of golden/brown.  The cookies are never a little over-baked on the bottom.  There is never too much liquid in the stew.  You know?  The colours are perfect and the cakes look just right.  It's intimidating because almost nothing I make looks like that. It's taken me years to get over that my cooking and baking is best when it looks like crap.  So, I'm swallowing my pride and putting this bread recipe out there... crappy looking bread and all.
It tasted good.  And when we'd used it all up for sandwiches and it was starting to get stale... we made strata.  It was good.  And good for you.  And it was more than just a little ugly.


Whole Wheat and Red Fife Bread adapted from 'King Arthur Flour'
makes 1 loaf

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup red fife flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup dry milk powder
1 1/4 cup warm water
2 1/4 tsp dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp melted butter

Grease a stainless steel or glass bowl and have a clean dish towel handy.
Combine the warm water, yeast and 1 tbsp sugar together.  Stir just to mix and set aside in a draft-free spot for a few minutes (just to make sure that it starts to get foamy and bubbly).
Combine the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour and red fife flour together with the salt, sugar and dry milk powder.  Mix and set aside.
Once the yeast mixture is foamy (about 5 - 7 minutes should be enough) add it to the flour mixture.
Add in the melted butter and stir together until the mixture can form a rough dough ball.  Turn out onto a very lightly floured surface and knead for just a few minutes until the dough ball looks uniform and smooth.
Place the dough in the greased bowl.  Cover with the clean cloth.  Place in a draft free spot for an hour. The dough won't quite be doubled.
Gently remove the dough from the bowl and knead just enough to release the air and form into a rough loaf shape.
Place in a greased loaf pan.  Cover again with clean cloth and place in a draft free spot until the dough gets about 1 inch over the top of the pan (took about an hour for me but could take up to 1 1/2 hrs).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake the bread for about 35 minutes or until the crust sounds hollow when you knock on it.

I really should be sleeping and I promised myself way back in January that I wouldn't do this... write while not having enough sleep.  But sometimes sleep is overrated and there is too much to do in a day.  So even though my eyes really want to close I'm finding myself compelled (it's the best word I can find right now) to continue typing away.
Sleep has been somewhat elusive lately.  It's not that I'm having trouble sleeping - I hit the pillow and I'm out.  It's that I haven't been getting to the pillow for long enough.  Keeping all the balls in the air while D has been gone has taken it's toll.  In a bizarre twist of fate the last month or so of my teaching at home has been picking up.  The timing has just been bad what with May already just being out of control.  So it seems fitting that I write this post at some ridiculous hour of the night and tell you that I made this stuff over two nights.


Had to be over two nights.  The first night I made the bread.  I burnt it.  I decided to make it after taking kid #1 to choir rehearsal.  I kind of wasn't thinking about having to pick her back up from choir rehearsal though and by the time I got home the bread had over risen just slightly.  It was also dark outside and I had to use a flashlight while grilling the bread.  I've discovered that flashlights aren't the best for catching grilled flatbread before it burns.  Live and learn.  I cooled the flat bread and stored it for the night.
The next night I was teaching at home and then taking kid #2 to soccer, teaching a little more and then picking up kid #2 from soccer.  In between there somewhere I finished the topping and somehow managed to grill it before soccer.  I didn't get to eat it until about 3 hours later though when I had a chance to breath.
Burned flatbread isn't the best.  In fact, it's quite close to bad.  However, I find when you throw pesto and goat cheese on pretty much anything it has this amazing effect.  It's restorative.  It's like coconut milk.  Whatever you've made could completely bite but adding this stuff brings it right back to fantastic.  Thank you - because this would have been a disaster otherwise.  The topping is the easy part.  You just need some time to do the grilling.


At the end of the day this stuff tasted really good.  I got kinda excited about it.  I'm pretty sure that I've seen someone out there in cyber space doing something like this but I couldn't find a site to credit at the time so I just went out there and winged it (? - sleep).  Aside from being a total goof about timing the bread was easy and it's worth it to make your own.  I added Red Fife flour to mine and it turned out great (minus the burning) and there is so much less salt and sugar when you make your own.  In times of great heat and more time this kind of meal is totally perfect.
Goodnight.


Red Fife Flat Bread adapted from 'Completely Delicious'

2 1/2 tsp yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup sugar less 2 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp milk
1 lg egg, beaten
1 1/2 cup Red Fife flour
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup (ish) unsalted butter, melted

Combine the warm water and yeast together with half of the sugar.  Stir and set aside in a warm place to rise for about 10 minutes.  Once the yeast stuff is foamy add in the milk and egg.  Mix just until combined.
Add in both the flours.  Mix until it forms a dough ball.  Add another 1/4 - 1/2 cup of flour if the dough is too wet to knead.
Place dough on a lightly floured surface.  Knead until the dough is smooth and silky.  About 6 - 8 minutes.
Place the dough into a lightly buttered bowl.  Cover with a clean cloth and set in a warm, draft free place to rise for about 1 1/2 hrs or until doubled in size.
Punch down.  Divide the dough into however many balls you want to have as flatbread pieces.  Set onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Cover with a clean cloth and let rise for another hour or until doubled in size.
Just before the dough is finished it's second rise, begin to preheat the grill.  I put mine at medium or so which got the grill to between 400 and 500 degrees F.
On a very lightly floured surface roll out each dough ball to about 1 1/2 - 2 inch thickness.  Brush one side of each disc with melted butter.  Grill the bread (buttered side down) for 4 minutes or so.  Brush the top side with butter and grill for about 4 minutes.  Bread should be just golden and have some grill marks.
Remove each disc from the heat and wrap in a cloth until time to use (if using the next day then place then entire mess - cloth and all - in an airtight container).

For the topping:

20 - 25 spears of asparagus, stems removed
1 cup (or so) goat chevre
1 - 1 1/2 cup mozzarella
1 - 1 1/2 cup pesto (I used homemade but store bought is fine)

Bring a large pot with about 2 cups water to a boil.  Add the asparagus and simmer for about 4 minutes.  Remove the asparagus and set aside.
Heat up the grill again, this time to med/high.
Spread some pesto over each flatbread disc.  You can eyeball it.  Assemble and arrange the asparagus over the pesto.  Dollop spoonfuls of the goat cheese here and there.  Sprinkle with the mozzarella.
Place on a cookie sheet.
Grill for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling but the edges aren't burnt.
Remove and cool slightly.  Cut (or not) and enjoy.  I sprinkled some fresh greens on mine and then went for it.  Yup - it works.