Elusive Ink

Currently Listening
Lose Yourself
Vitamin String Quartet



I woke up tired this morning, always a sure sign of getting sick. I fought something for a few weeks, and now I've got this awful cough, all last night and today. Can't seem to shake it, despite massive quantities of cough drops, and herbal tea. I studied far too little this morning, and then had a decently enjoyable history class. Having no desire to try and cram my already snot-filled head (see? feeling cynical...another sign of getting sick.) with chemistry homework so I decided to venture into the world of leavened breads. Bread is one of the few things I've really no experience whatsoever with, as far as baking goes. I've made cakes, cookies, cheescakes, tarts, pastries, etc. etc. etc. and I decided today was the day to give bread bowls and cinnamon rolls a shot. I was foolish enough to make this spontaneous attempt when I didn't honestly have all of the exact correct ingredients on hand (Mostly the right kind of flour) and had done absolutely no research on breadmaking. But there I dove, right into the midst of a doughy chaos, mixing and kneading the bread for the bread bowls. Oh-so-cleverly adding a little garlic, and a little rosemary. The bread bowls would've been fine, had I not overkneaded the bread. Whups! There went the yeast's power-to-ressurect. "Merry Christmas, Grandma, here's a new doorstop for ya!" My poor breadbowls looked more like heavy rocks, in the end. But I'd learned my lesson, and out came the cinnamon roll recipe.

Instead of kneading by hand this particular recipe called for a bread maker (which conveniently, I had.) so it did all the kneading for me. Well...after kneading the dough for about fifteen seconds in the large bowl, I decided it had been long enough. Because of course, I wanted these to RISE...no overkneading this time! The sticky dough was a lot more like goo than dough at this point, so my mother suggested that I spray my hands, and the dough with olive oil before proceeding to roll it out onto the counter. So despite the fact that the pan they were about to grace was already liberally sprayed...olive oil coated my hands and the dough in front of me. Voila, no more sticking! I followed the directions explicitly, and left the cut cinnamon rolls in a warm place, covered with a damp cloth for forty-five minutes. I eagerly returned to my pan...and still, no rising. Despite this fact, they looked decently fluffy so I put them into the oven at the appropriate time. I proceeded to clean up, and make the frosting for the cinnamon rolls. Finally, I pulled them out, only to find masses of curly-bob thick, doughy, hard lumps in a pool of bubbling cinnamon oil. Ick...

So, after my terribly epic fail learning experience I made a trip to the grocery store, aka Target, to replenish everything I'd used up and grab some necessities. (Praying that no one I knew would see me, despite the fact that I used to work there, because I looked horrible and sick.) I managed to make it out of there with all the necessities, and the ingredients to make a quiche, and cranberry jam. Upon returning home, I decided that I refused to end the evening on a failure, so I pulled out all the quiche making ingredients and whipped them together. Egg, Spinach, Ricotta Cheese, Onions, and I added some garlic and Brie for good measure. (Brie is fantastic in stratas, lasagnas, and quiches.) Finally, a success. The Quiche turned out brilliantly and I'm very very pleased. To the point where...now, I must go to sleep because I have work tomorrow.




More tomorrow.
-Lindsey