February 27th, 2009
Years ago, my mother and I stumbled across this book by Joanne Harris entitled Chocolat. A book about a woman who moves around with her daughter setting up a chocolate shop… I found the book to be magical and delicious! Then, the movie came out. Mom and I decided to go. But it was during Lent. We had both given up chocolate for Lent. But we loved the book. So we went… I think we get bonus points that Lent… to sit through two hours of chocolate… dare, I say it… porn! beautiful, delicious, inventive chocolates… it was painful…
I loved the movie! It was excellent! Juliette Binoche and Judi Dench are fabulous actresses. And you can never go wrong with Johnny Depp! What an absolutely delicious movie!
When Marc and Susan announced their new event of Dinner and a Movie, I decided to make a version of Vianne’s spicy hot chocolate. I always imagine it as thick, rich and spicy. I made Lucullian Delights Dense Hot Chocolate with 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne powder. I think I used a little too much corn starch so it came out a little like pudding but tasted good all the same. Check out the round-up for more Chocolat inspired dishes.
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February 20th, 2009
She finds herself pounding out her stress on bread! This semester has reached that point. I have so much work to do that I am not quite sure when exactly it is going to be done… but I keep working…
I have some good news. I have a summer job! I am very excited about it. I love history and art. I also love law especially the legal research, the analytical reasoning and the daily interaction with clients. When I went to law school, I was hoping to find the intersection between these interests. This summer I will be interning at one of the museums here in Chicago learning the ins and outs of museum law. I can’t wait!
In the blogging world, you develop friendships with other bloggers. One particular blogger has really made an impression on my life. She is so sweet and thoughtful. She always unnecessarily apologizes when it has been awhile since I have heard from her. Lately, she has also been under a ton of stress. Although I know she couldn’t eat this bread, I would like to dedicate it to her. This is for Veggie Girl! (when I get my friend’s excellent vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe, I will really dedicate something to you…if I could just track down that recipe)
I made this bread with some leftover pesto and goat cheese. I would like to send it over to Bayleaf’s Bread Mania Event. It was quick and delicious!
Pesto-Goat Cheese Swirl Bread
(adapted from Betty Crocker)
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 package quick active dry yeast
1 1/8 warm water
2-3 tablespoons of pesto
3 ounces of goat cheese, crumbled
1. Dissolve the yeast in the water with the sugar and salt. Make sure the mixture is bubbling so as to assure that you did not kill the yeast.
2. Mix in the flour and olive oil.
3. Mix in enough flour to make dough easy to handle.
4. Knead dough for about 10 min.
5. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise for 40-60 minutes or until double.
6. Grease a loaf pan.
7. Punch down the dough and roll it into a square. Spread with the pesto and sprinkle with the goat cheese. Starting at one end, roll up the dough and place into the loaf pan.
8. Cover and let rise for 35-50 minutes.
9. Heat oven to 425. Bake 25-30 minutes.
Filed under Basil, Bread, Flour, Goat Cheese | Comments (4)
February 7th, 2009
We interrupt your regularly scheduled broadcast to bring you a very important announcement…
The folks at BloggerAid, a group of bloggers dedicated to fighting world hunger, are putting together a cookbook to raise money for this cause. It is scheduled to be sold on Amazon in November/December and they are currently requesting submissions until February 12th. If you have a recipe you want to submit, please check out the details. This is an excellent cause to get involved in! I sent over my recipe for the Chicken-Pear-Brie-Thyme Sandwich that my roommates love so much!
Stay tuned… more details as they unfold!
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