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We had leftover falafel salad from last night's dinner. It was a version of falafel that I made from a Washington Post recipe. We really enjoyed it because it included some frozen vegetables and the recipe said to quickly sauté the veges, chickpeas and spices before transferring to the food processor. We liked the freshness it gave to the recipe.

Sometimes I enjoy reading the comments especially when someone says "that is NOT falafel" or you can't make falafel with canned chickpeas. It's like when people get upset about variations on Philly Cheesesteaks, especially when the recipe poster says this is my version. Oh well. It takes all kinds.

[cwcdesign]

Your comment about the oat milk rings true to me - even though Will had reduce it by half, I thought the 2nd batch was still heavy.

I think Will is going to try half water/half coconut milk - he's worried about it tasting too much of coconut. Do you think he has enough oil in it? Do you think honey or maple syrup would be better than sugar to add moisture?

Thanks again

[cwcdesign]

Happy Anniversary, Mike and Diane! Enjoy your steak.

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I made bread this morning! For the first time in months and I used my Emile Henry long baker which we finally pulled down from the attic.

I made the semolina rye bread from King Arthur, doubled it (except for the yeast which I left at 2 teaspoons and the salt which I used 2 teaspoons instead of the tablespoon it would have doubled to). I left out the onions and the vital wheat gluten I mixed it in the bread machine.

All went well. When it was ½ inch over the rim, I decided to bake it so I wouldn't overproof it and I even did some sort of slashes. When I took the lid off after ½ hour, it had risen beautifully. I took it out after 10 minutes - 5 was too short and I probably could have taken it out at 8 minutes. But then, trouble struck - the directions said to flip it out of the pan to cool and the bread stuck. First thing I realized that the directions to lightly grease didn't mean too lightly - I should have oiled it better. As I struggled to get it out, I broke it - the bottom stayed in the pan. I went off to run an errand and after the pan cooled Will popped the bottom out of the pan. Second lesson learned - leave it in pan for 10 minutes to cool, as I often do.

Good news is that it is really good and I will make it again - Next time I might try it with my sprouted wheat flour from the freezer - it has the same protein as the rye flour.

[cwcdesign]

Yes, BA, I did forget to include it - we use one cup buttermilk. I actually prefer using "real" buttermilk (the low-fat stuff I buy at the store) to using a cup of milk with lemon juice or vinegar to curdle it. The buttermilk does make a difference in the cornbread. BTW, I've been using this recipe for close to 40 years.

I posted the original recipe so you could see what Will was adapting - right below is what he tried for the second loaf (which was better than the first) and also his notes on what he's thinking of trying on the next go round.

I will pass along BA, that you also suggest trying water - he was hoping to mimic the buttermilk flavor - and what do you think of using honey in place of the sugar which would add a little more moisture? How much olive oil do you use in your recipe. I was wondering if he should up that a little bit to add more fat and/or moisture.

One hand right now, we have Bob's Red Mill corn flour which I ended up with when they didn't have the coarser grind cornmeal. It works fine in the gluten recipe, but it probably adds to the denseness in the GF recipe. I much prefer a medium grind cornmeal myself, but it is hard to find here.

Thanks for posting, Mike, it is pretty similar to ours and it includes dairy as well. I will say that Will is on a mission to create a GF DF version of our "family" recipe (it came from a Junior League cookbook from Tucson, AZ).

Thanks for all your comments.

[cwcdesign]

Joan -I hear there was flooding in Valdosta - are you OK?

We got lucky. We did not have as much rain as we had yesterday. Lots of gusts, tree limbs and some trees. Power outages off and on. One part of the island still without. A friend says the roads are a mess, but waiting to hear what happens with the high tide tonight. Very thankful, but devastated for the folks on the Gulf coast.

[cwcdesign]

Last night I made peanut noodles with my favorite no cook peanut sauce. I sautéed chicken and broccoli to mix in. Tonight - leftovers!

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Today I baked The Blueberry Breakfast Bread from KABC. I had bought some blueberries that were that good so I told Will I would bake with them. It's not really a cake - they call it a cross between a clafoutis and a Dutch baby. PJ created it years ago. While it is good and not too sweet, mine was dense as I think I over-beat it. The recipe said to best the eggs and sugar with the whisk attachment until thick and light in color. I reread the blog and PJ said, beat until smooth which I will try the next time. Such totally different instructions which I find annoying. Anyway, we did enjoy it and will definitely make again - it was very easy,

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Yesterday I brought home 2 pieces of salmon and cooked them yesterday, so I have one to put on my salad tonight. I also prepped for an Italian chopped salad - link was from Brown Eyed Baker - that I will toss together after work tomorrow.

I managed to get my walk in this morning and then an early run to Harris Teeter. Came home and puttered. I noticed that I had left the screen door open, so I went out to close and it was really hot. As I sat down to eat at noon, I decided to check Accuweather. It said it was 94 with a "real feel" of 122 and 110 in the shade! Two hours later it was down to 116. Currently 91 with real feel of 107. So glad I didn't have to go out the rest of the day.

[cwcdesign]

A simple salad of romaine, cucumber and chicken with an Asian ginger dressing I bought on the recommendation of my manager. I had the same thing last night. It's too hot to cook and this was light and cooling.

[cwcdesign]

Happy Anniversary, BA!

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We order breakfast pastries based on occupancy - if we do t sell out, they're awful by the end of the day. Sometimes people get upset if we don't have them, but we tell them to come earlier the next time. It's not worth it to order more than we can sell - it's better to sell out (ours are OK, but we have a friend who's a fabulous baker and you want to get to her shop early)

[cwcdesign]

We had lots of brown rice left over, so I googled brown rice salads. Found a nice simple Mediterranean Brown Rice salad that was just posted by the author (?) last week. It's similar to tabbouleh but lighter. We added extra vegetables. Will is sautéing Caprese chicken sausage to go with it.

[cwcdesign]

That's good to know Mike.

Our 5 year old OXO scale died (I did not file the warranty and we have been hard on it). Before I replaced it, I went to Serious Eats to see what they recommended. They recommended the one we have because it's really accurate for one and holds up quite well - if you take care of it.

[cwcdesign]

BakerAunt - how long were you supposed to bake the loaves? I like using the thermometer because I can check it earlier it earlier in the process and adjust a couple of minutes here and there, rather than guessing.

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