Purple Pots

I can hardly stand it... Le Creuset has come out with purple pots!!! I am obsessed with enamel over cast iron cookware. Combine that with my love of purple and this could be a serious situation.

Now, I had a hard time convincing my DH to get my made in China cast iron Dutch oven. However, he did change his tune when he tasted the artisan bread and the beef bourguignon that came out of it, so maybe... but $200 for a glorified frying pan, or excusez moi, a Braiser, I think would be stretching it. I have a better chance of going to Paris for the weekend.

Just think of the fantastic food that would come out of my Braiser. Delectable sauteed veggies, melt in your mouth short ribs, or even coq au vin. Ah yes, I can dream. C'est la vie.

Of Bread, Pots and Grandpas

I never thought I came from a family of bakers. Oh there were cakes, pies and the occasional biscuit and cookie but no hard core baking. Until I found out that one of my grandfather's many jobs during the Great Depression was baker. My aunt told me that when she was a girl, Grandpa would bake bread, cakes and pies for the coming week. I never knew this. He never said a word. He was many things, a coal miner, deep sea diver, (really), vintner, marksman, hunter and conservationist, but I would have never have pegged him as a baker. Although, he did have the arms for it. Have you ever noticed the biceps on a bread maker? Which is one of the reasons I've always used a bread machine.

Now a bread machine makes decent looking bread, and it's edible. However, if you want old fashioned crusty bread or artisian bread, you need a bread oven. I'm not really sure of the mechanics but I think it has to do with steam at some point. Anyway, I read about this new method called No Knead Bread and then I saw a show on Cooks Country about it called Almost No Knead Bread. That's the method I used. It calls for an enameled cast iron Dutch Oven, which I've always wanted and never could afford. LaCrusette/no Monet. Walmart just happened to have a really nice one on sale, it's made in China not France, I'll get over that. I won't include the recipe, because it's not mine and I didn't change it one bit. You can get it from the Cooks Country website.

I must admit this was really easy to make and look at the result. I've never made a prettier loaf of bread. I'd like to think my grandpa would be proud.