Sunday, November 1, 2009

Yeastie Beasties

Today is a sunny, bright, autumn day; not too hot and not too cold. I can feel the change of the season and it feels wonderful. Am just going with the flow this weekend and the flow pulls me to baking. Something about hearth and home. Likely some primal urge that has to do with putting away food for a long cold winter housebound.

Yesterday I had company and so mixed up some starter to bubble and froth. Today that yeasty beastie joined up to make the dough for some olive bread sandwich rolls for use next week. Lovely artisan dough… salty kalamatas….the house is filled with the aroma of bread.

I saved some of the starter and will feed it daily until the next round of bread making. I want to get back into the rhythm of making all the household bread once more. That crock of starter will serve me well, and I shall call it… Sidonie. Yes – am feeling my Celtic roots so shall call it Sidonie the Starter...it is alive after all; it should have a name. Sidonie lives on the kitchen counter and makes the whole room smell wonderful. I am put in mind of Anthony Bourdain's wonderful book: Kitchen Confidential. In it he describes his baker who would frequently call in sick, actually on a bender, and yell at the staff to feed the starter: "Feed the bitch! Feed her or she'll die!" Sidonie shall never go wanting.

Couldn’t stop the kitchen energy so boiled up a fresh batch of hummingbird nectar for the week ahead, and made frosting for some vanilla bundtlets I’d made earlier in the weekend. They aren’t the most aesthetically pleasing looking baked goods in the world, but they sure are yummy.



Paired with coffee, they are perfect for early afternoon knoshing on a Sunday.


The Full Moon is coming, too and I’ve been hauling crystals outside to get charged up. Every evening a fresh rotation. Last night I put out my bag of crystals that I use for chakra healing work. They have a lot of reiki energy on them already in addition to their own little buzz, but Luna adds to the mix and now the sack fairly giggles with good vibes. Slipped them under my pillow but the cats hauled them out to nap with. Smart kitties. I tried to photograph the stones but they kept whiting out the camera. Powerful little buggers.

Yeah, just domestic today. A good fall day.




3 comments:

  1. Bread making is such an art and a labor of love! It gives one a feeling of coziness and that everything is good with the world! Something quite lovely about a home where the smell of bread is like a welcome mat for the senses!
    ************************
    I remembered that in San Francisco, the Boudin Sour Dough Company states that they have kept the "mother" alive since the beginning!

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    In 1849, the Boudin family struck culinary gold. Wild yeasts in the San Francisco air had imparted a unique tang to their traditional French bread, giving rise to “San Francisco sourdough French bread.” Today, the Boudin family's initial recipe lives on in the hands and hearts of our expert bakers, with a portion of the original mother dough still starting each and every sourdough loaf we make. Boudin history since 1849.
    ***Delightful times of bountiful loaves and a happy heart !
    Hugs,
    Cheryl

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  2. Now that is one old Mother! Ha ha. I love it. The most I have kept a starter going is about eight years, when I was married and making all the bread in our household. Sidonie is now on her third day!

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  3. AND, Ms Cheryl, I hope you noticed the tin of Ghiradelli.........

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