Being KNEAD-y

I've been kind of obsessed with bread this week. I think the sourdough we picked up from Dill Pickle Food Co-op is to blame. It was so amazing, I probably got it in my head that I could and should be making my own. I found an awesome pizza dough recipe that was SO easy I can't believe I hadn't tried it before. I topped it with grated parmesan, fresh mozzarella, shaved asparagus I'd tossed with a clove of garlic (minced) and red pepper flakes, scallions, a touch of truffle oil, squeeze of lemon AND eggs (I know, I put eggs on everything). Andrew & I died. One bite and it was over, pizza heaven. We don’t even own a pizza stone or pan, just used the back of two cookie sheets and it worked beautifully. Originally I'd planned to make one and share it but upon telling Andrew, he immediately informed me he'd be eating one entirely to himself. I'm so glad I made two! We had enough left over for lunch the next day :)

Even Princess couldn't resist


mmm...
I decided the next logical step would be to make a loaf. I don't have a stand mixer or a bread maker but apparently there's no need for 'em anyway! Thanks to Jim Lahey and The New York Times (way back in '06), I found this insanely simple recipe for no-knead bread. I'm a bit late to the game, oh about 4 years, but whatever... It still works and I can't believe I've made homemade pizza dough & a loaf of bread all in the same week!


Tastes surprisingly similar to sourdough!
I let it rise for an extra 6hrs, totaling a full 24hrs. It was hard to just let it sit and be patient but it was well worth the wait. I finally pulled it out of the dutch oven around 1am and allowed it to cool overnight. The moment the 7:15 alarm went off, we jumped out of bed & started slicing, not so much as a "good morning" was uttered between us.

Tonight is the opening night for category 5 racing (beginners) and I'll be watching alone because Andrew is participating!! I'm so freggin' excited I can't even stand it. I really hope it doesn't get rained out ;(