Baking and Other Stuff

Well, I guess it has been a while, hasn't it? I haven't meant to be away so long.

Anne is back at pt again, but then I might have mentioned that before. It is coming along nicely. Lisa has put her on the exercise bike twice now, and it seems to help. But the best part of that, of course, is that it helps make her stronger. She was on for 6 minutes today, and was really zipping along, when she finished it said she had gone half a mile. Not bad!!!

So, I spend my days taking her to pt, trying to work on the house, doing some exercise (finally!), and actually, doing some baking. I have started baking bread again. I haven't drug out the bread machine, although I might at some point. I have been making totally scratch bread. I had been thinking about it for a while, especially after seeking and finding my bread book again. I am so glad it wasn't still in a box! Also, Anne had found that the bread we had been buying had been upsetting her stomach. We aren't sure what component of the bread was bothering her, but thought it worth a try to see if home made bread would work better for her. The answer was yes! I made a list of the white bread recipes that took no milk, since that is something that bothers her. I have quite a list, and figured I would work my way through, finding which ones we liked best. Well, I have made that first recipe twice now. We all seem to like it and although it isn't very soft, like a typical sandwich bread, it is still very good and is wonderful toasted. It also slices nicely, which is really good in my book! It is very much like an Italian bread, in loaf form. Although, it is called "An Engish Loaf". Here is a photo of the current loaf:




This photo was taken yesterday, and those cut slices are all gone already. I figure I will be making bread again tomorrow. It is an easy to make recipe, and makes one 8.5 x 4.5 loaf. Yummm!

Yesterday we were home all day, and I made up the recipe for gingerbread scones that Anne found on the computer when Brian and Christine were here. The dough is very soft, and almost impossible to knead that few "kneads" that the directions call for, so I think some tinkering will be called for. The scones are very good, however, and are quite gingerbread-y!




Well, I guess that just about catches me up. Take care and I will try to write more again soon!