Baking Bread

Many of my childhood memories come from time spent in the kitchen. We had an open kitchen with a large island in the middle. The island was great for three boys to run around though it seems as if we picked up some cooking tips along the way. A few years ago during a summer program, I was asked to write about the heart of my home when growing up. I wrote about our kitchen. Currently, our kitchen is located on an isolated floor though the new play kitchen brings the girls down a bit more. Here's to hoping that our future home has a central kitchen to share stories, laugh and figure out the world as we cook, bake and eat.

With some free time during this Chinese New Year break, I finally got around to baking the NY Times No Knead Bread (the spin-off I tried) recipe. There's a lot of waiting time - the dough sat overnight - though not much of my time was taken. As named, no kneading is required but the dough does get folded a few times. Xian was a bit tentative in touching the dough. She got a well floured piece since a sticky one would likely have been too much for her and enjoyed poking holes into the dough. Sage isn't quite ready to play with dough as we aren't quite ready to deal with the aftermath as she eats it.

We're a bit short on pots so I tucked the dough our one-handled (thanks Sage!) stainless pot.

Just out of the oven

The house smelled great and the bread tasted amazing. We're enjoying that the girls are beginning to interact more and more with their environment. They want to do what we are doing and it is fun to watch them experience new textures, tastes and actions.

Typically, Xian does not eat bread. She doesn't like it and begins shaking her head "No" as soon as she sees it. This time, she took a taste and wanted more, more, more.