Midday found us playing knights again, downstairs with blocks and figurines, as well as baking Oatmeal Bread, which came out beautifully (though no one tried any but me--Sis objected to the oatmeal, even though she loves oatmeal and had it this morning for breakfast. Whatever.). I like starting bread in the machine on the dough cycle but then baking it "by hand," so to speak, in a bread tin in the oven--it looks better and tastes better, and, frankly, I like that it isn't obviously made in the machine. Besides, I like to watch it rise in the baking tin. The kids also built blanket forts and wiled away the afternoon stocking them. We thought about making valentines, but never got to it.
And then, around 5 pm, I saw one of the worst snow squalls I've ever seen, and I'm no snow virgin having lived in New York for the Blizzard of '96 and for a few seasons in Chicago. The sky darkened in the east and, next thing I knew, I couldn't see our playset out back--white out. Snow blowing horizontally so thick it was like staring at a blank wall. The kids, who are usually at least intrigued by snow, were actually scared of it. And it probably dropped close to an inch in about 40 minutes, which was pretty impressive. Except that it was almost immediately followed by a rapid drop in temps so that everything froze and is difficult to traverse today.
But at least it's pretty . . . .
Except it's also dangerous. And Mama and I had arranged for the babysitter to come so that we could go on a double date with some new friends from her office. And so, of course, we went to Bloodroot, which is off the snowplowed path. It wasn't as icy as our street--did they not get our squall?--and so we made it easily. With time to kill. Which we did delightedly by perusing their bookstore. Where I located a brand new book, Heirloom Beans, by Steve Sando and Vannessa Barrington. It's a compendium of recipes for heirloom beans, which are sold by Rancho Gordo. I wasn't familiar with many of the varieties, legume-lover that I am (my experience is mainly limited to the common Goya varieties), but I'm so excited by all the recipes and will be buying some new beans from them soon (now read: I just did it and can't wait!), as I can't get may of them at the local grocery--Good Mother Stallards or Calypso beans, Yellow Indian Woman or Swedish Brown beans, anyone? At least, I can try the recipes for anasazi beans, which I can find around here, first. That, and I imagine the recipes would work on a variety of beans anyway (once I "vegetarianize" them!). I think soon, though, I'll want an olla de barro, which is a special clay bean cooking pot that supposedly makes the best beans--and if I start with good heirloom ones--well, I just can't wait.
But I digress. Dinner was delicious--marinated tofu salad (very sesame), black bean soup (but not alas made in the olla), spinach noodles with vermouth cream sauce with pignolis and parmesan cheese, a celeriac-apple tartlet with mushrooms and endive, oatmeal bread (not at all like mine, but probably my next attempt. Or Rev. M's.) plus brandied fruit with ice cream and caramel coconut cake. Yum! the conversation was good, too, even though it was the kind of get-to-know-you give-and-take when two people among four know each other. But we had a good time and would like to repeat it (excepting they are both busy working women living in the city and we're out here in CT with childcare restraints).
And so we came home and I desperately tried not to want to blog it all last night.
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Oatmeal Bread
3 cups King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 cup rolled oats (old-fashioned oats)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons brown sugar or honey
2 teaspoons instant yeast OR 1 packet active dry yeast* (I used 1 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast, or 1/2 teaspoon per 1 cup flour)
1 1/4 cups lukewarm milk
3/4 cup raisins or currants (optional)
*If you use active dry yeast, dissolve it in the warm milk before combining with the remaining ingredients.
Directions
1) In a large mixing bowl, or in the bowl of an electric mixer, combine all of the ingredients, mixing to form a shaggy dough. Knead dough, by hand (10 minutes) or by machine (5 minutes) till it's smooth.
2) Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and allow it to rest for 1 hour; it'll become quite puffy, though it may not double in bulk. Shape as directed below.
3) Bread machine method: Place all of the ingredients (except the fruit) into the pan of your machine, program machine for manual or dough, and press Start. About 10 minutes before the end of the second kneading cycle, check dough and adjust its consistency as necessary with additional flour or water; finished dough should be soft and supple. Add the raisins or currants about 3 minutes before the end of the final kneading cycle. Shape as directed below.
4) Shaping: Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled surface, and shape it into a log. Place the log in a lightly greased 9 x 5-inch loaf pan, cover the pan (with an acrylic proof cover, or with lightly greased plastic wrap), and allow the dough to rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, till it's crested 1" to 2" over the rim of the pan.
5) Baking: Bake the bread in a preheated 350°F oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 190°F. If the bread appears to be browning too quickly, tent it with aluminum foil for the final 10 minutes of baking.
Yield: 1 loaf.
King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour bag
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