The bees seem thankful for the lovely Salvia. I have several colors of them blooming happily in the front garden.
The Bird's Eye Veronica is a sweet, unassuming plant that adds a delicate touch to my front garden. I am planting more of it very soon.
These deep, bright pink mini tulips grew from some of the bulbs I planted last winter. They add such a cheery note.
These are from my hosta garden with is a shady, wet garden -
A hosta with water droplets.
The water droplets look lovely on the leaf of a Siberian Iris, especially the the red begonias in the background.
Here's another lovely hosta leaf. Hostas are some of my favorite plants.
The tiny blue flowers seem to hoover over the leaves of the Russian Forget-Me-Nots.
The Begonias look nice against the dark leaves.
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In between stints of writing I managed to do a bit of stress relieving baking lately. I am trying to recreate the artisan breakfast sandwiches you can get at Starbucks. I think this ciabatta bun is pretty close, though much lighter and less chewy than the Starbucks version. The recipe comes from the King Arthur Flour website. Their recipes are ALWAYS reliable. If they ever come traveling through your town and offering baking lessons, be sure to make time to attend.
Extra Light Ciabatta
via King Arthur Flour
Sponge
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
Dough*
sponge (from above)
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk
1/4 to 1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil
Mix the sponge ingredients, in a small bowl or in the pan of your bread machine, until well combined (program the machine for Dough, then cancel it once the ingredients are mixed, after a couple of minutes). Let the sponge rest overnight, covered, or for up to 15 hours.
Mixer Method: Place all of the dough ingredients into the bowl of your mixer, and beat it at medium speed, using the flat beater, for 5 to 8 minutes. The dough will never completely clear the sides of the bowl, though it'll begin to acquire some shape. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours; it will get very puffy.
Bread Machine Method: Place all of the ingredients into the pan of your bread machine, program the machine for Manual or Dough, and press Start. Examine the dough about 10 minutes before the end of the second kneading cycle; it should be very tacky, but should be holding its shape somewhat. Adjust the dough's consistency with additional flour or water, as necessary. Allow the machine to complete its cycle.
Transfer the dough to a well-oiled work surface. Lightly grease a large cookie sheet, and your hands. Using a bench knife or your fingers, divide the dough in half. Handling the dough gently, stretch it into a log about 10-inches long, and place it on the baking sheet. Flatten the log with your fingers till it's about 10-inches long and 4 to 5-inches wide. Repeat with the remaining piece of dough. (I made squarish buns so I divided my dough into eight pieces.) Lightly cover the dough with heavily oiled plastic wrap, and allow it to rise for 1 hour; it'll become quite puffy. Oil your fingers, and gently poke deep holes all over the dough. Re-oil the plastic wrap, re-cover the dough, and allow it to rise for an additional hour.
Dust the dough very lightly with flour. Bake it in a preheated 425°F oven, throwing four or five ice cubes on the floor of the oven as you put the bread in. Allow the ciabatta to bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until it's golden brown. Turn off the oven, remove the ciabatta from the baking sheet, and return the loaf to the oven, propping the oven door open a couple of inches with a folded-over potholder. Allow the ciabatta to cool completely in the oven; this will give it a very crisp crust.
* This bread begins with an overnight sponge, which means the finished loaf has just the barest of sour tangs. As the sponge ferments, it creates certain acids that not only give the bread flavor, but affect the gluten, making the bread chewier. The use of a sponge will also increase the loaf's shelf life.
Carol Field, in her wonderful book The Italian Baker, claims that this dough is one that simply can't be kneaded by hand; it's just too sticky. Keep this in mind when you're preparing the dough. During the winter you'll need to use the greater amount of water in the range indicated below. In the dog days of August, when your flour's been in a humid kitchen all summer, you'll use the lesser amount. Your goal is a dough that is very sticky, but holds its shape; when you scoop it out onto your work surface, it will settle into a flattened mound that is best approached with oiled hands and a bench knife or bowl scraper.
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When I was checking for that recipe I noticed that the King Arthur blog was featuring BBQ Brisket sandwiches so I searched for a good recipe for that one, too.
BBQ Brisket
via My Fiance Likes it, so it must be good blog
For the Brisket:
4 lb. beef brisket
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
For the Barbecue Sauce: (I did not have time for this, but I will try it next time. I just used bottled sauce instead.)
1/4 to 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup crushed tomatoes (or you could use ketchup also)
3 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon Sriracha
Coleslaw:
3 cups red cabbage, shredded
3-4 carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Sourdough Rolls, for sandwiches (I used the ciabatta rolls I made using the recipe above.)
To prepare the brisket: In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, salt, cumin, paprika, oregano, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Mix well and then rub mixture all over beef brisket. Cover brisket with plastic wrap and let sit in fridge overnight.
On the next morning, preheat your crockpot onto high and add brisket (you may have to cut it in half to fit it all in there!). Add about 1 cup of beef stock to crockpot and cover. Let cook for about 6 to 7 hours, or until brisket is fork tender.
To prepare barbecue sauce: Combine desired amount of apple cider vinegar (the more you add, the acidic the sauce), tomatoes (or ketchup), brown sugar, mustard, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, and Sriracha. If using crushed tomatoes, run the immersion blender through your mixture until it is smooth, or at your desired texture. If using ketchup, no need to worry about that step.
You can use the barbecue sauce on the side, or like me, add it to the crockpot with the brisket and let it meld for about an hour longer.
To prepare the coleslaw: Combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, and sugar in a large bowl. Add cabbage and carrots and mix well. Let sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature before serving.
To assemble sandwiches, toast your sourdough buns and add a decent amount of pulled brisket on the bottom half (the messier the better!). Top with desired amount of coleslaw (or you can always eat that on the side) and top with remaining bun half.
Dig in and enjoy. You might need a fork for this one - and plenty of wet naps!
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