White Bread

I'm pretty sure there are very few people who share my love of food. That doesn't necessarily mean I love every single piece of food that comes my way, but I do love the fact that there are so many different tastes and styles and variations! To start off my recipes, I've gone a little out of order already...oops. Mainly because my family had a need for these things. I have a feeling a few more variations will arise due to cravings ;)

The first recipe I decided to try out of the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook was the white bread recipe. My husband and I are lovers of bread. So much so that it was getting ridiculously expensive paying for our favorite bread in the amounts we were eating it. We love the way the Grandma Sycamore's Bread tasted...but since we like quality bread, this was taking out a pretty big chunk of the grocery money! Therefore, I wanted to try this first and hopefully be able to make a ton! (I have found out that we only have one bread pan in the process though...darn)

Since I tried quite a few things over Thanksgiving break, I also went ahead and did the first recipe in the Lion House Bakery Cookbook, which are the rolls. They have similar techniques and skills, so I figured I would talk about both.

Here are the things I have discovered:

1. When it says buttermilk OR milk...use buttermilk! It made a huge difference and it's very easy when you get powdered buttermilk. I used SACO Cultured Buttermilk Blend and it was perfect. It seems weird, but you just mix it with some water and it has instructions right on the container! It's a lot easier than getting liquid buttermilk, because if you're anything like me, you forget about stuff in your fridge and it goes bad before you use it...not fun!

2. For some reason, using a wooden spoon makes a big difference when mixing up bread ingredients, no matter what kind. I just use a normal one from Wal-Mart!

3. Practice your kneading skills! I have become much better at making bread since I've figured this out. If you don't know how, the cookbook say this "to knead dough, fold it over and push down with the heel of your hand. Turn the dough, fold, and push down again." If anything, fond out if any of your friends have ever worked at a bakery. My hubby worked at Great Harvest for quite a while so he helped me figure out the skills!

4. Don't be afraid to use less or more flour than the recipe calls for. It really depends on a lot of different things that a general recipe can't predict. For instance, the humidity is a huge factor, including elevation and temperature. So if you need more than it says to make that bread dough "smooth and elastic" then go for it!

5. One of the biggest things I've noticed that helps keep the bread moist and perfect in the preparation is adding a small amount of oil while it's going through the first rise. Pour it all around the sides of the bowl after you put in your kneaded bread, then turn over the dough until it's lightly covered in oil (I use veggie oil, but it should work with any kind like olive or canola). Then cover it and let it rise until it's doubled. I also choose to put the bowl into an oven where the temperature is controlled. It's not on, but it helps!

6. If you're in a dry environment, place a small bowl (oven-safe) in the oven while you're baking to keep in the moisture. You might also need to take it out sooner than the recipe says.

7. When it comes to rolls, feel free to use a pizza cutter to cut them out. It helps a lot because it moves very easily and is very sharp! You can use the bread knife after they are baked.

Hope that helps everyone in their bread making pursuits! Here are a few pictures of my accomplishments:

A couple loaves of bread...yum!

Lion House Rolls with butter brushed on top

My bread cut up...time for sandwiches!

Recipe Challenge

I've wanted to start a recipe blog ever since I saw Julie and Julia. I have finally decided to convert my old blog into just that! I'll be starting with a cookbook that I've have some good experiences from so far, the Lion House Bakery cookbook.

I think I'll just start at the beginning with the rolls since Tim was the one that did them last time and they are the beginning to a lot of the recipes after that. I'm excited to try out new things and learn a lot! Growing up, I always loved trying new things in the kitchen, so I think now is the best time to start doing more of it. Now that I have my own lovely kitchen :)

I'll probably go through my Better Homes and Garden book next. If anyone has a recipe they would like me to try (or you just want me to make you something), let me know and I'll write about my experience! I'd love to have some guest experiences. Who knows, someday I'm sure my little Piglet will be helping me out! I'll hopefully start tomorrow with some rolls! Wish me luck :)

ENGAGED!!!

I suppose I should tell everyone this story...

It all started long ago in a simple BYU ward. There was a girl and a guy. Except there was another chump and she started dating him. Blast... So the guy waited...and waited...and waited. He stayed by her side through thick and thin. Always wishing for more, but never sure if he would ever have it. The days went by. Then weeks. Then months. He was there through it all.

Then it happened. The chump broke her heart. He knew the day would come (or at least secretly wanted it to...). He hated to see her cry. He took care of her, fed her, made sure she was going to school. Drove her everywhere she needed to be. He gave her everything, and she loved his care. She spent every moment with him. She was healing. Best friends.

She loved the moments with him. Without him, life was not complete. But who was to say he wouldn't do the same as the others? Why would she want to put herself in this danger? Best to just stay...best friends. The days and weeks went by. He was always by her side. Loving her.

They become closer in friendship and trust. Slowly...slowly...realization came to her. He was perfect. Everything about him. But why couldn't she shake this awful fear? What should she do?

She turned to the Lord. Who else would have all the answers? He comforted her and told her everything was ok. If she didn't rush anything and she thought through every little thing she did, it would be amazing. She pondered on this for a long time. She could tell he loved her. Deep down he could see she loved him too.

He took a chance and feared the risk. He knew there was something there, but didn't know how she would react. He tried anyway. She got terrified. She backed away. He was hurt. Time went by...she couldn't stand the separation. How could she ever live without him? Was there any other way anymore? The answer was no. All this time and she finally had the answer. So now she took the chance. She was still scared, but she just remembered how she felt when she was not with him. He was scared, but he remembered how sure he has always been about her.

This started their life together. Trust grew in their hearts. Love grew strong as ever. Even though they had to be patient, they were now together; the way it should have been from the start. One day, he got down on his knee and asked a question that would change their lives: "Will you be my wife?" Her answer was, "Of course!"

The journey will be long. It be trying and hard. But most of all, it will be perfect and eternal.

(Fore more about these two lovebirds, check out timandjanae.blogspot.com)

Hello there!

I should entitle this "boringness." Haha, look at me using a fake word. You know, I think I'm one of the few that would actually be justified in making up a word though. I know all the rules and patterns of the English language. Don't mess wit me!

Anyway, the point of this blog is tell to all my friends of my exciting adventures. Which is none. So you guys will just have to bear with me. At least I'm writing for you, right? =)

Here's the update: I had the opportunity to interview for two different internships this last month. I didn't get either of them, but I thought it was a really cool experience. The first one was a great job that didn't have enough schooling for yet, I just figured I would try since they weren't getting that many applicants. He did like me, so he told another person about me who looked at my resume and my editing test and actually called ME! I've never had that happen, so I was really excited. It turns out I interviewed really well and I had the right skills, but they went with someone with more experience. That was totally fine with me, because I know it's highly unlikely to get an internship at this point in the editing minor anyway. I felt cool.

Other than that, I do actually have a job with one of my professors. He is working on putting up a corpus of 300 million words of Old English. It's a tool to help linguists study the language, so I'm happy that I have a job helping with that. Plus, I get to choose my hours, I get to work at home, and he's a really cool guy. He's so excited about the work he's doing, so even though it is slightly mindless work, I am really interested in Corpus Linguistics now. Not enough to study it, but it seems cool. It gets me more excited to do the projects in his class.

I have been loving my classes, just for the record. I got a little behind recently with my Genealogy class without even realizing it, so that was a little frustrating, but now I will be paying more attention to those blackboard quizzes. My physical science class is pretty annoying because it's all reading...and the test questions are really frustrating because whoever is making them is not very clear. But oh well. I'll probably get a B in that class...grr. Other than those classes, my major classes are going great! It's fun to discuss things with Tim afterwords too, since he's a Linguistics major which is the exact same thing. He just has to have another language in the studying too. I only have to have a 200 level understanding of another language, which I did my freshman year, so I'm done with that!

So basically, I am getting smarter and smarter by the second! I do get pretty stressed sometimes, but I always find a way to figure it out eventually. You all know that. I love how I always find myself in the most absurd situations. I decided that it's because I really do ask for it. Even though I have a hard time remembering when I'm in the middle of a trial, I do regularly pray that I can learn for others. If I go through the most absurd things, I hope that means no one else will have to. In the long run, I am ok with that. As long as I can remember that, it makes everything that much easier.

GO COSMO!

As requested...

I'm basically the worst blogger that's ever existed. I'm ok with that. Although, I've found that people tend to hate you more and more as the months go by without a blog...therefore, I have decided to momentarily reverse said hatred so that it may be used for better purposes.

So...I figured I would update those of you who have asked me to post. Gosh...it's always hard to choose what to put in a blog. Here's my dilemma: I can be completely honest and you would be like "wow, she's kinda weird and I guess I didn't really want to know..." OR I can just lie and tell you I've been frolicking in fields of daffodils this whole time. I like to believe the second one is true. And since I'm the one writing the blog, I win!

Daffodils are pretty. I've found that if you add food coloring to the water you can change the colors. My favorite experiment was when I mixed all the colors together. Yeah, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking "well, wouldn't that just make them turn into that sick vomity color that no one likes?" Well guess again, doubter! I created rainbows! Isn't that splendid?

So not only was I frolicking in daffodils, but they were multicolored majesties! The rainbows were literally coming out of the flowers and into the sky!

That's the jist of my summer. I'm glad I told all of you. For more information, call me up and we can have a little chat. I will be happy to tell you more about my rainbow flowers and frolicking.

Taggity Tag

1. What book have you read recently?

Scriptures, The Key to Midnight, Chronicles of Narnia

2. Given the chance, what special ability/power would you like to have?
I would like to be able to stop time (without growing older while time is stopped) so I can finish things in college and still have a life.

3. List two things you have eaten today:
Cheese
Hot Pocket

4. What's your favorite color? Why?
Royal blue...it's just happy looking

5. Where is the place you want to go the most?
A state of complete bliss, wherever that would be

6. Name two places you have lived:
1. White City, Oregon
2. Boise, Idaho

7. Do you believe in seeing a rainbow after the rain?
Umm...of course! I have actually seen one! I know, crazy huh?

8. What would you do if you were a billionaire?
I would buy presents for everyone I know so I could see them smile.

9. Which type of person do you hate the most?
People who don't acknowledge others' feelings

10. What are two things on your to do list right now?
1. Find a job
2. Be social in my new ward

11. If you have a fault, would you rather the people around you point it out to you or would you rather they keep quiet?
I would like them to warn me first, but I am constantly trying to improve, so I would want it pointed out to me. I've noticed I can't take it well if I'm in a very stressed/depressive state, but otherwise, I welcome criticism!

12. List two jobs you have had:
1. Charity Caller for BYU
2. Workshop rep for StoresOnline

13. What do you think is the most important thing in your life?
Heavenly Father's love for me

14. Is there anything that you have done which you regret?
I used to regret things, but honestly I hate to see it that way now. I try to see my mistakes as ways I have learned about myself and how I needed to improve in my life before I die.

15. Name two of your bad habits:
1. Sometimes when I am alone I'm not very productive (with cleaning mainly)
2. I get really grumpy when I'm tired

16. What are your feelings about the person who tagged you?
Well, I guess technically Weston tagged me and I think he's amazing! What a great guy!

17. Who do you Tag? Why?
I suppose any of my blog friends who haven't done it yet. Let's see...there's Rusty, Julie, Alan, Erica, Emily, Kasey, Amanda, and Lillian! Wow, that was a lot more than I thought!