xoxoxo

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Happy Valentine's Day!

Homemade Valentines

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They are not finished.  The notes of love and adoration are still swirling around in my head.  I think it would be nice to get one of these in the mail though.  Don't be anti-Valentine's Day.  It's a sweet holiday.  I love hearts!

I'm Sorry Bread

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I was a jerk on Saturday.  And to make it up to my poor husband I made bread on Sunday.  2 loaves.  Deliciously dense and pretty darn good for my first go at white bread. 

• 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 2 cups warm water (110 degrees to 115 degrees)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions 

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add sugar, salt, eggs, oil and 3 cups of flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Divide in half and shape into loaves. Place in two greased 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to cool on wire racks.

Sea Monkey Nerd

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I'm thinking that Seamonkeys seem like they're gonna be way cooler than they really are to a 4 year old.  But man, *I* love watching them!  They don't really look like monkeys and their itty bitty faces are really hard to see but their crazy Seamonkey lovefest is fascinating to watch.  The two in the photo have been going at it for days.  They are the last surviving Seamonkeys of the original family.  I need to do more research on them.  I love it.

sprouts

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Look at these guys.  Heirloom lettuce.  They're my first babies to sprout and they are growing so fast in their egg carton.  Chives, coriander, basil and oregano have popped through the dirt but are not quite as spectacular as these.  More photos next week. 

primroses on the balcony

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The first planting I've done since summertime.  And it feels good.  I hope we don't get some random freeze.  Oh, I've been thinking and reading about global warming.  I didn't realize there were people who don't "believe" in it.  I didn't realize it was like a philosophy or some idea scientists were throwing around.  I guess I have more research to do.    

Naan

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Inspired by my husband's desire for homemade bread this week, I made some garlic naan.  It's not your everyday loafy type bread but it is bread.  And the plan was some some kind of curry dish for dinner... so naan was the perfect complement.  I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and was super pleased with the results.  The curry dish was my own creation of cabbage, red peppers, onions, coconut milk, curry, turmeric... pretty simple and very yummy as well.

Keep your eyes peeled for my bread endeavors in the coming days.  xo

Ingredients

• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 1/2 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
• 1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
3. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.
4. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.                              And...... YUM!