T-Bird Anni Rides Again

I made some very lovely bread last week, much better than my usual offerings (which have always been okay but not fabulous) and I am putting it squarely down to the fact that I used better quality bread four.  Usually iI’d use Asda’s own as ti’s cheap but I had some twice the price Dove Farm organic flour in and I think this is one of those times when actually you do get what you pay for. 

After enjoying that first slice, still hot from teh oven, I set some sour dough starter going to show Aprilia how it was done before you could nip to Asda for a packet of yeast balls!  So, mixed organic (and thus unbleached and un-messed with so not going to murder my infant yeast culture) flour with bottled water (as using rainwater didn’t apeal) and put it on top of the dishwasher where it’s usually warm.  I’ve been "feeding" it daily, watching my flour and water goo turn into a bubbly mass and today I made it into a loaf.  I have to say, it’s really rather good.  I was warned that it wouldn’t raise as much as bread made with modern yeasts, that it wouldn’t be as light and fluffy and thta the taste could be quite "challenging".  but you know, it was a pretty close match to my "normal" loaf, although it’s a little dryer as you don’t add any fat to it like my "normal" bread recipe does.  the taste is different but not in an unpleasant way and now I really wish I had kept back a few spoonfuls of starter to keep it rolling as it’s obviously a good culture!  Obviously it was a slight cheat setting it going right after using a modern yeast as that’s what I will have grown rather than genuine "wild" yeasts that it should be but I don’t care, it was still fun!

Just for good measure I also made soda bread which I liked but Aprilia and Duke designated as "like cake but not sweet enough" and not a bread product at all. I like it though and as "head chef" that’s all that counts

And that was today really.  Well, okay so I also phoned LDA to demand a definitive answer on where my books are that I ordered in January and  finally got an e-mail address of someone at the parent company who has assured me taht he will deal with it.  And he better had…. Oh, and Aprilia played on some infernal DS game that I knew I shouldn’t have let her buy but it was her money and she is loving it and I’m sure that the novelty will wear off once she has got through the first few levels and it starts getting hard!

Tomorrow I need to start the Great Back Up Of Everything ready to ditch Vista and welcome XP back into my life as I have a legal and unused disc and password at last.  Oh, and do the Rainbow paperwork taht I’ve had weeks to do whilst we haven’t been meeting but still haven’t done.