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Bread Baking and Eating

Mon, 17 Apr 2023 00:09:59 GMT

Bread Baking and Eating

Flour, water, sugar, and salt. Mix these ingredients together in the right place and bake. The right touch takes these ingredients from humble cracker to masterpiece. It is about the flour. Wheat, bulgur, spelt, or potato. It is about the proofing. Hours spent in a ‘just right’ cocoon that allow the yeast and sugar to find their balance. This duet of patience and fermentation is what makes bread a delight to eat on its own or topped with a spread or butter.

The artisan baker will tell you where the grain is grown. They often know the years spent tending the ground to produce just the right depth of flavor and fragrance of the baked grain. The sparkle in their eye will convey their love of bread. Kneading the dough until its springy to the touch. Shaping the dough until its rise will be predictably perfect is at the heart of the bread maker's design. It is my belief that a good baker is like a trainer of horses. They whisper gently to the dough. They speak to it tenderly as to a nodding babe who does not want to nap. The baker mumbles in hushed tones. Coaxing the ingredients into joyful agreement. Every light stroke and firm press are the work of a maestro. The simple becomes the sublime in the early morning hours of the baker's task.

The baker will rise before dawn to prep their kitchen. Stocked with various flours as an artist palette of choices. Eggs and butter are set out to warm in the early morning light. Flour dusts the cool marble counterspace, the baker's shirt front, and the floor. The loaves, fresh from the oven, are lined up in rows like budding flowers. Placed one against the other, like dominoes, the crusty jewels are displayed. We eat them with our eyes and know at a glance they are delicious!

In the local neighborhood or countryside bed and breakfast inn; someone will be found with their apron tied, hands dusted with flour, and the oven preheating to bake the morning loaf or scone. There is something delightful and inviting about the local patisserie. Their transparent glass window allows the passerby to observe their bread making. Before the dust clears the air, we can smell the loaves perfuming the air with yeasty, sourdough, or fruity aromas. The sound of the rolling pin as it dances with lulling cadence up and down upon the pliant dough is a herald of lovely morsels being made ready to eat. Watching this ballet of motion between the dough and baker looks elegant and seamless.

Like ancient wisdom passed from generation to generation, family to friend, there is an exacting science to the ingredients and a freedom of interpretation and design. Wherever we are from, wherever we are bound, most often we will find and share a bite of bread along the way and when we reach our port or shore. Although, bread is more than flour, water, sugar, and salt; it is with these humbles treasures that bread begins.

Season's Change

Sun, 18 Sep 2022 05:20:22 GMT

Spring from Summer into Autumn...

We are officially in Autumn, can you tell?

It's so interesting, to me, the way the seasons change. To have before you the wet-supple ground in the spring, teaming with life and vibrance; pulsating its way into a hot and humid summertime; then, as commanded, it stretches and wrings its way through autumn until the leaves are crisp; only to hide itself in the brisk-frost of winter. It's absolutely captivating!

I remember as a small girl growing up in San Francisco through the 90's. I was only eleven or twelve years old, but I remember getting up as early as I could to try and watch the sunrise. So breathtaking. If I close my eyes, I can see it now.

I'm on the top of a hill, it's dark, it's quiet, I'm alone only for a cluster of moments. *Inhale* Crisp-fresh-cold air; I shiver. *Exhale* smile, and repeat. I breathe in the morning and exhale all of the nights concerns and troubles, they don't exist here, only the sunrise. I continue this methodical; inhale then exhale for as long as I can until, as if the performance has commenced, the sun scales over the houses, standing upright and at attention, pushing itself into the sky. It reaches upwards until finally; it has sat down in the most prominent seat my eyes can behold.

Now that it is in the sky, the sun challenges me to a staring contest and I lose mercilessly. As I close my eyes with tears running down my face because the sun doesn't play fair, its rays gently caress my skin and place what could only be described as kisses on my cheeks. The sun reminds me that I'm present and accounted for in the rehearsal of morning glories and that just like the flower; I remain.

And oh, my goodness of the morning! With the passing of each season, we dig in a little deeper and grow again. Weathering the storms of life, whether winter, spring, summer, or fall, we dig in and grown again. I love a bountiful harvest and love what is taught during the lean years.
Remember, it doesn't matter which season you're in; there are always going to be things that you can sow and reap a harvest from. Just remember, wherever you are planted; and in this case, whenever you are planted, grow <3

My First Blog Post

Mon, 07 Feb 2022 15:43:07 GMT

It's official, I have a blog and I know how to use it!

Is it possible to be an introvert and an extrovert at the same time? Well, if it's possible, let me introduce my introverted-extrovert self :-)

My name is BriAnna and I am... A wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a granddaughter, a niece, a cousin, a friend, a best friend, a believer, a new business owner, an imperfect perfectionist (which also means I'm a procrastinator lol), a food lover, a chef for little people, a guardian, a keeper of secrets, a reader, a human being, and right now - a blogger.

I anticipate breaking all of the unofficial rules of blogging and when/ if I do break them, please laugh at me but don't judge me too bad. Did I mention I'm a little sensitive?

Moving along... I want to thank YOU so much for taking the time to give my website a look-over and even if you don't get too far in this particular read; thanks for being here. No really, thank you very much!

Did you know that your presence matters to me? So, I have a Bachelor's Degree in Healthcare Administration with a Bio-Medical Clinical Emphasis and a Master's in Healthcare Administration, (Cum Laude). But also, I have been a SAHM (Stay-At-Home-Mom) for the better portion of the last four years now and I have to say, having someone else to talk to other than toddlers, refreshing. I have memorized all of the colorful cartoons that come on KPBS, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and YouTube and really, truly, I don't know how many more repeats I can handle of Baby Shark before my ears melt.

I have always enjoyed being able to work non-stop and receive immediate appreciation for my efforts. Knowing that my contributions are making a difference helped me feel that I was making a significant difference also. I think I put so much weight into earning appreciation that when I started having children back-to-back, the loss of earned appreciation affected me deeper than a paycheck.

That's always been a funny thought too, right? Nobody is going to pay you to watch your own children lol. You are expected to learn/ figure it out and do the best you can every day. It's also said that being a parent, particularly a mother, is one of the most thankless jobs; I tend to agree with this also. Unless I take the time to teach my children the areas where 'thank you' is warranted, I don't believe they will practice saying thank you as a life habit.

So that I don't wear you out with too many of my inside thoughts, I want to repeat something I said earlier. Thank YOU so much for taking the time to view my website, I hope you come back to visit soon. Please feel free to communicate with me as well so I can get to know you ^_^ I'm pretty sure you can relate to at least one of my experiences. If not, please let me know that as well, I'd love to chat about that too ;-)

One last thing, if there is a topic you would like me to talk about, mention it below as well or send a personal message through the site.

Until next time - Hello, and Goodbye for now :-)

Quote of the Evening (QOE):

Proverbs 27:17 HCSB
"Iron sharpens iron. In the same way one man sharpens another."