samanthabryant: feeling purple (Default)
#smileaday Spoiling Sweetman. We celebrated my husband's birthday tonight. Just a little lowkey night: a lovely bolagnese and a Mexican chocolate cake for dessert. Another episode of The Dragon Prince (we're trying to only watch on episode at a go, to make it last). I guess this is what they call domestic bliss :-)

All work was worth it to see his shy happy smile, my favorite of all his smiles.

taurus

samanthabryant: feeling purple (Default)
I used to bake bread often. But as my arthritis has worsened and my life hit a busier stretch that doesn't often leave me at home for six to eight hours in a row, I've let it go. But my parents are coming to visit tonight and I wanted to make something festive and lovely, so I decided to make a challah. I'd forgotten how soothing making bread is. 

Challah begins with infusing hot water with saffron, beautiful and aromatic. 

infused saffron

Next you wake up your yeast with some honey and prepare eggs and butter to add to the flour and salt. 

challah prep 2

Then you let it rise. The air already smells wonderful, something homey and wholesome about that scent. 
rising bread

When my day is slow paced enough, I love the lingering nearby, waiting for the first rise, the punch-down, the second rise, making the braid, proofing, glazing, baking, reglazing. Mine grew and grew and grew this time. A seriously large challah. The glaze browned darker than is my preference, but it's still beautiful, with golden dough glowing in the under layers. 

challah

Can't wait to eat this! My heart is full of the smells. Well worth a little wrist and hand tenderness. 

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samanthabryant: feeling purple (Default)
Samantha J Bryant

March 2019

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