The easiest bread ever...

I got this recipe from a friend of mines blog SpiceDish.  It seems like it was created just for me ~ it's foolproof! ...well sorta, when you see a side by side comparison hers is much prettier (however, mine has a nice little slope to it...no idea how that happened!) and I'm pretty sure the bottom of her loaf was intact! (Side note ~ adding butter to the crust stuck on the bottom of the pot and eating it with a fork was delightful, although the way I was hovering over it with a protective arm ready to pounce like a jungle cat if necessary wasn't my most shining moment.)



(Hers)



(Mine)







Sooo here we go...

No Knead Olive Bread

1 3/4 cups of room temperature water
1 tsp of yeast, 1 tsp sugar & 1 tsp of salt
4 cups of all-purpose flour (plus 2 tbs extra)

1/4 cup olives pitted and chopped

In a medium or large, non-stick pot [I "cheated' and used my Kitchen Aide with dough hook.] add the water, yeast and sugar. Stir. Add the flour (minus the 2 tbs) and salt. Using a wooden spoon mix thoroughly (it will be a bit 'wetter' than most bread dough. Don't add flour. It's meant to be this way!) 

Let it sit in the pot [I used a stoneware casserole dish.], uncovered, at room temperature for an hour and a half. [I didn't read ahead this far the first time so when I started this little project late at night I was not happy about having to set my alarm for olives...plan accordingly.] Press the olives between paper towels to remove any surface moisture. Sprinkle with the 2 tbs flour. At this point your dough should have some bubbles [Bubbles?  What bubbles?] and be a little puffy. Add the olives and stir the dough again.

Cover the pot and put it in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours. [Again, I hadn't read ahead and I'm an instant gratification girl, so I was a little bummed that I was going to have to wait.]

When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Bake bread for 40-45 minutes. [The top of my bread was quickly passing golden and headed towards burnt, yet the middle wasn't quite done yet (just check with a toothpick).  If this happens to you cover it with foil before it gets too dark.]

Let the bread cool in the pot for a few minutes before turning it out onto a baking rack.

It was mouthwatering...with Adele crooning through my speakers, my JDusi Zin and a chunk of cheese I had all a girl could ask for! 

~ Now for the good news...no GREAT news!!!! ~

MY SECOND GO AROUND TURNED OUT FRICKEN FANTASTIC!!!
so please don't let the above comments scare you away.

The other evening after a couple glasses of pinot, squeezed on the couch between two of my favorite people, I started zesting a lemon.  Not my normal routine but it was a Wednesday, next I plucked teenie little leaves of thyme.   I didn't exactly measure but it was almost a whole lemon zested to the whites (except for one spot that I practically grated to the core while laughing my ass off at Modern Family). I mixed the zest and kept plucking leaves until I visually had an even amount.  I added about 5 teaspoons, squirted with lemon juice and a dash of salt and added it where the above recipe asks for olives (don't flour the lemon and thyme!).  The next morning I popped the bread in the oven and by the time I was done showering and dressing it was ready.

This time used the wooden spoon & bowl not the Kitchen Aide, it was pretty sticky but came together nicely.  I also oiled the bottom of my baking pot with basil flavored extra virgin olive oil before putting the dough in both times.   The loaf didn't stick, it was cooked all the way through and the top was nice and golden.

FYI hot tea and Lemon Thyme bread is one of the best breakfasts I've ever had! 

My masterpiece didn't last 24 hours...but I have a picture of the time we spent together and I admire it often!  The bottom line is you can throw anything you want in here and it will be incredible! Check it!

Goddess's gift to bread lovers!

Eggs - 4 Carissa - 0 (goose egg)

Breakfast...my favorite meal! {morning, noon & night}

May's Bon Appetit, the Italy Issue, had a trick to poaching eggs I have been wanting to try. My parents have a special pan.  I have a cheesy microwavable egg cup, but this seemed better...easier.  Pour a 1/2 cup of water in a mug, drop in egg, cover with saucer and microwave for 1 minute.  Sounds like a cinch.

Egg #1 - (1 min) (15 sec, 15 sec, 15 sec) It looked lovely after 1 minute but the white wasn't cooked all the way so I nuked it at 15 second intervals until I reached the point of no return.  Half was well-well done and half was still runny...it went to my darling co-eaters [MacKenzie & Lucy a.k.a. my dogs].

Egg #2 - (1 min, 20 sec) When I slid my precious little microwaved egg onto a slotted spoon almost instantly the yolk exploded with a pop... A loud, LOUD pop! {I didn't realize they cooked from the inside out.  Lame, I know...now} So I brushed yolk shrapnel off my face, out of my hair, off the front of my shirt and drudged over to the peanut gallery.  I fed the egg bomb to Mac & Luc....since their first taste of gooey goodness have lost their ever-loving minds hoping that I fail and the eggs prevail! (See picture below)

Egg #3 - (1 min, 15 sec) [armed with an oven mitt ~ goalie style]  Whites were done, yolks were way over done. Damn it! ... I swear the girls high pawed & snickered as I set down their bowls.

Egg #4 - (1 min, 10 sec) Ugh..really?! REally?! Atleast the toast was good.  Now my furry angels are in a food coma, I'm snappy due to semi-starvation and we're out of eggs...frankly don't care if I see another edible orb in a while.

Actually, that's not true...I love eggs! I soon after left for the market.

Mac is laughing and Luc is rolling her eyes....can you see it?

Mother-in-law's trick: Boil water in a saucepan then gently break eggs into water.  When whites look firm remove with slotted spoon...perfect every time.

Lesson Learned - Microwaves don't make everything easier, sometimes they just force you to have to take another shower!