Cinnamon Twist Sourdough Sandwich bread

I have, as much of the world during this COVID-19 quarantine/shelter-in-place, jumped on the sourdough bandwagon. I'd say I'm sorry, but I am SO not. (And neither is my family.)

I am nowhere near mastering this yet, but I did come up with something on my own yesterday, so I am going to share it with you.

I have been using Melissa K Norris' sourdough sandwich bread, and we love it! (She has a great video for all of us visual learners!) I was in the mood for something a little sweet, maybe a little derivative of Pepperidge Farm's Cinnamon bread, with a little "babka" thrown in, and came up with this.

Not bad, huh?

You'll need:

- standing mixer with dough hook

- standard loaf pan

- rolling pin

Ingredients:

175 grams water (I've been using lukewarm water)

200 grams active sourdough starter

1 tbsp melted butter

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

400 grams all purpose flour

+ olive oil for greasing

++ butter for very end

Cinnamon swirl:

1-2 tbsp melted butter (yep, more butter)

approx. 1/4 cup cinnamon sugar mixture (about 1:1 ratio)

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl combine water, starter and melted butter until fully combined.

2. Add sugar, salt and flour. Combine (by hand) until fully incorporated. Attach to your standing mixer, along with your dough hook, and knead on medium-low for 8-10 minutes. (I have found 9 minutes to be the sweet spot.) The dough should not stick to the bowl or your hands (much).

3. During this time, grease your loaf pan generously with olive oil.

4. Using a rolling pin, roll out into a rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Make sure the shorter end of the rectangle is about the size of the pan.

5. Brush the 1-2 tbsp melted butter onto the rectangle, then evenly spread the cinnamon sugar on top. (I didn't want it to be super sweet, but you could definitely add more cinnamon sugar if you want.)

6. Roll up the dough, just like you would with cinnamon rolls.

7. Using a knife, cut your loaf log in half (longwise), leaving about 1/2 inch connected at the top. 

8. Carefully twist the two sides to create "braid", tucking in the ends. Lift, and place in loaf pan.

9. Cover with a damp dish cloth, and set somewhere warm. (I use my laundry room.)

10. Allow to rise for about 5-6 hours.

11. Bake at 400 F/200 C for 30 minutes.

12. When you take it out of the oven, immediately brush some more butter on top. Allow to cool enough to remove from pan, then rub down the sides with a little extra butter, too. (What can I say!? Butter is awesome!)

13. Make sure you allow your bread to cool at least 30 minutes before you try to cut it. But once you do, and you see those (basically) magical cinnamon swirls... it's heaven!

This bread is perfect for breakfast toast, a not-so-sweet treat, or as French toast bread. Yummmm!

I'm so happy with how it turned out!

If you decide to give this baby a try, please let me know! I would love to know how it goes.

Saturn Peach Galette

It must be the nesting bug (11 days and counting) combined with the longing for Fall - but I've been dying for tasty dessert that made me feel accomplished, and made my family feel loved!

We've recently gotten into quiches, so there's been more pie crust lying around, and I've also now located where the puff pastry is in the grocery store.  

Also, at the beginning of summer we were introduced to a new fruit - the Saturn/donut/flat peach, which if you ask me, is the reigning queen of all peaches.  It's lovely shades of pink and white, and has a crisp sweetness that is addictive.  

So, we bought some at the market on Friday.  Although everything from the market TASTES better, and is most likely better FOR you, it spoils so much quicker.  I had them in a bowl with some nearly-too-ripe figs, which didn't help.

I was searching for a tart, or a pie, and came across something called a galette.  I read a few recipes (I drew heaviest from here), and decided to give it a go.  It seemed pretty dummy-proof, and I had most of the ingredients, so that helped.  Apparently galettes are best with pitted fruits (peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, etc), I'm assuming because they are a little heartier fruit.  I also learned that pretty much EVERYONE'S looks great, because it's supposed to look rustic and home-made.  Score!!  Also, it had cinnamon in it, and it's rainy and cooler out, which to me screams cinnamon!!!

Here we go!

Ingredients:

1 puff pastry (that you've thawed, and had out of the fridge for 10 minutes-ish)

3 cups (approx.) Saturn peach, sliced thinly

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/4-1/2 tsp cinnamon (depending on how cinnamon-y you like it)

1/2 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg beaten

Coarse sugar

Whipped cream/mascarpone/vanilla ice cream - something yummy to top it with.

(Next time, I might add some nutmeg!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F, or 190 C.  (Adjust for convection oven if needed.)

2. Wash and slice your peaches into thin slices.

3. In a large bowl, combine them with the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and lemon juice.

4. Put parchment paper on a baking sheet, then roll out your puff pastry.  Because of its rectangular shape, I decided to cut the end off, and make two little tarts, too.

5. Pour the mixture into the middle of the pastry puff, leaving about 2 inches around the edges.

6. Fold up the edges.  It doesn't have to be perfect.  Just be careful not to tear it, because if you do, your yummy juices will leak out while baking.

7. Brush the egg wash on the crust, and sprinkle the coarse sugar on the crust.

8. Bake for about 35 minutes (adjust time for convection oven, if needed) - until golden brown, and fruit is bubbling.

9.  Allow to sit for about 5-10 minutes, then serve!

Tips:

- For some extra decadence, top with whipped cream.

- If making the little tarts, make sure you drizzle/add some of the sugar and cinnamon "juice".  We liked the galette better, simply because it was juicier.

- This tart is one of those things that is best served soon after making - a few hours later it was still scrumptious, but I don't know well it would do overnight.  I imagine the crust would get soggy.

It turned out totally delicious, and when I asked Dan if I should make it again, he said, "yes, every week!"  Sounds like a win to me!

Natural Christmas Decoration Ideas

The Christmas season is in full swing in the Blair household!

For the first time in a few years, we have our own space, and can really realize our own interpretation of Christmas.  For a couple years we lived with a friend, and she was always super generous in letting me put out my Christmas decor, but it's a whole different feeling when it's in your own home.  Add to the excitement of it, that we're finally in Slovenia after nearly 2 years of talking about it - the magic is definitely there.

In the age of Joanna Gaines, DIY and hipsters, it's not revolutionary of me to say that I love natural Christmas decor, but there you have it!  I like looking at 50s-60s inspired Christmas decor, and trees busting with shiny-brite-style ornaments - in fact I have a couple boxes of shiny-brite reproductions from a dear sweet woman who loves me as her own, and they are precious to me.

But in this season of my life, natural beauty is what is really speaking to me.  One of the reasons, I'm sure is that Slovenia is the "Green Capital" of Europe.  People here are really into organic, local, natural, etc.  It's basically hipster heaven.

Another reason probably, is the easy access to a local market.  And then, of course there's just the esthetic of it.  So, this holiday season I've made a few natural Christmas decor things, and thought I'd share them with you, in case you feel inspired to do the same!

One of the best things about this, is you need basically the same 5-6 items for all of these.  Here's what you're going to want to stock up on:

Star anise

Cinnamon sticks

Oranges

Twine

Cloves

Rosemary

Cranberries

Pop corn

Holly, or any other red berries

1. Dried Orange Slices

A couple weeks ago, I wrote a post about making a dried orange slice garland.  The instructions are all there, and we had lots of fun making them.  My garland actually fell the day after I posted about it, so I just kept the slices, and ended up using them later.

2. Okay, a couple things I bought

So, as I mentioned, having a local market is a dream come true.  The produce is local, the flowers are as well, the prices are so affordable, and there is always about 5 ladies selling wreaths they've made.  So, about a month ago, I found some red berries.  The lady selling them told be to spray them with hair spray, and they'd keep.  That didn't quite pan out, unfortunately, but luckily I like how they look dried too.  The next week I bought some branches of cotton, and added them to it.  I love how it looked!

Yesterday we went down again, and I totally fell in love with this wreath.  The sweet man we bought it from gave Aidan a tulip, which our flower-loving-boy is cherishing!

This wreath just screams Christmas, and I can't get over it.  Something like this would be easy enough to make, you would need different types of greenery, berries and pinecones, and you're good to go!

3. Cranberry and Pop Corn Garland

What you'll need:

- Cranberries

- Pop corn

- Fishing line

- A large needle

Instructions:

There's really not to much to say, except to choose a cranberry/pop corn ratio that appeals to you.  I found 2 pop corn kernels to one cranberry to be the prettiest!  This is a really fun one to do together with the littles!  It's a great way to teach patterns!

4. Rosemary/Orange/Cinnamon Ornament

For this you'll need:

- Cinnamon stick

- Rosemary sprigs

- Dried orange slice

- Twine

I tried to think of the yummiest Christmas smells, and put them together.  Our apartment doesn't have many shelves, or places to hang things, so I wanted something that I could hang on our window handles.

So, I arranged about three sprigs of rosemary, with one cinnamon stick, then wrapped it together with twine.  I attached an orange slice, to where it hung off a little, and then made a hook.

5. Potpourri

Okay, when you hear potpourri, I know you're thinking of some great aunt, and a bowl of dusty dried pieces of flower in a bowl.  BUT!  This is not that.  I found a couple recipes on pinterest, and added them together to make something with things that I had, and liked the thought of.  So, here is what you need:

- About 10 cloves

- 2 cinnamon sticks

- 4 star anise

- An orange, cut in slices

- Rosemary sprigs

Other things you can add:

- A dash of vanilla

- Pine branches

- Apple slices

- Cranberries

- Lemon slices/lemon zest

You put it all in a pot, then you fill the pot with water, and let it simmer on a low setting on your stovetop for the day.  It smells divine!  You do have to check on it every once in a while, and add more water, but it'll last throughout the day.  I love how it filled the house with the warmth of Christmas smells.  It's a great way to use ingredients that are about to go bad, like too-soft oranges, or rosemary that is starting to brown.

 6. Natural "stuff" arrangement

To me, there's hardly anything more traditionally Christmas that clove studded oranges!  We always made them in school, and Aidan and I have made them every year of his short life.  So, we made some again this year, and then placed other things in the bowl, such as star anise, cinnamon sticks, rosemary, pine branches, red berries, cloves, dried orange slices... basically everything I had left.

It's simple, yet festive, and of course smells good!

Also, that beautiful runner you see there?  Yes, my amazing mama made that for me for Christmas, and yes, I'm crazy spoiled!

It's just gorgeous, and I love-love-love it!

So, there you have it!  Some ideas for easy natural Christmas decor this year.  Do you have any fun, family-friendly, DIY Christmas traditions?  I'd love to hear about them!

Have a wonderful holiday season, dear friends!