Bread, plain and simple...

I have recently discovered the beauty of making tuna salad with fresh tuna. On Monday, I bought two Albacore tuna steaks, marinated them in garlic olive oil, tamari, scallions, and lots of fresh grated ginger, and then poached them. When they were cool, I broke them up with a fork, added carrots, scallions, celery, and...

This is one of those fabulous finds. How can you go wrong with chilies, lime, and cumin? Seriously! Of course, as the cook, I had to taste multiple times to make sure the seasoning was right, but then off to the fridge it went. I thought that it needed to sit overnight so that all the flavors could meld. I woke up yesterday morning craving the tuna salad. I knew immediately that the very first thing on my agenda for the day was to make bread. I wanted a tuna salad sandwich on a warm roll with fresh spinach. That's all there was to it...it had to be done!

So here's where the bread comes in. I have been making bread for over 40 years. I started in my teens when I discovered the magic of yeast, the feel of silky dough, the amazing smell that permeates your house when bread is baking, and the glory of eating bread right from the oven....with butter, of course. Now you can go to the supermarket and buy bread. You can find a fancy bakery and buy artisan breads. However, nothing in the world is a substitute for the act of making your own bread (sorry but using a bread machine is cheating).

Do you know that satisfaction and pleasure you get from doing something yourself? When you invest your time and energy into a task and then get to reap the fruit of it? For me, there is something absolutely wonderful about the bread-making process. From the very first moment...measuring out the bread flour, mixing in the salt and yeast, choosing the flavors, the kneading, shaping, forming...that first punch after the first rise, the smell and feel of the dough, its elasticity, the energy it takes to push the base of your palm into the dough, the folding and repeating...turning on the oven light to peak as the bread rises and turns golden brown....and that glorious smell...and then that moment when you cut through the crust or just rip off a piece to check for that perfect consistency inside...the first bite...warm, soft, sweet.

So, here is what I had for dinner last night...

my sandwich accompanied by bean salad with blood orange olive oil, cherry infused balsamic vinaigrette, and harissa, and a Reed's raspberry ginger ale. Often, partaking of good healthy food is a spiritual act. I am so thankful that the earth bears such abundance and variety for us to enjoy.

Tonight, I teach the block-of-the-month class. I take in the square for the next class so that the women can see what they'll be doing next month.

Also, the Spinning Circles quilt is all done.

The pattern for this quilt is from http://equiltpatterns.com/. If you enjoy foundation/paper piecing, this site has very affordable patterns in a wide variety of styles.

Well, it's time to prep for class tonight. Have a great day!