have a little jelly, have a little jam.

last sunday our new next-door neighbors, matt & lacee, had us over for dinner. while we were over there, lacee starts cutting up some homemade bread, & ten minutes later our other neighbor, rebecca, comes over with a loaf of piping hot cinnamon bread. duh, i tasted both of them, & duh, they were both delicious.

uh oh, i realized. apparently real wives make homemade bread.

once we got home i started hinting at chase; "do you wish i made homemade bread?"

he must've sensed that i was feeling inadequate & assured me no, no;

but really, who doesn't love warm bread fresh out of the oven?

so this week i earned my first wife merit badge:

the bread badge.

i made two loaves--one was plain french bread, the other rosemary.

seriously, this bread was so good that we ate most of it plain. but the rosemary made super yummy brie & asparagus sandwiches.

and the french bread was lovely topped with parmesan & paired with my favorite butternut squash soup.

it also made perfect peach french toast with whipped cream.

we both have been getting buff lately whisking whipped cream by hand for french toast & hot cocoa & strawberry shortcakes. but the stuff in the can just doesn't compare.

french bread

(makes 2 small loaves or 1 big one)

2 1/4 tsp. yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 tbs. honey

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp. salt

3 tbs. olive oil

cornmeal

1 egg white

1 . mix the yeast with the water & honey. let sit for a couple of minutes.

2 . combine half of the flour with the salt & olive oil. add in the yeast mixture. add in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time. now would also be the time to add anything like rosemary or garlic or sunflower seeds or whatever sounds yummy.

3 . knead the dough on a floured surface for 5-10 minutes, until smooth & elastic. place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, & let rise for 30 minutes.

4 . punch the dough (best part of the whole process) & form loaves. slash them or braid them or do whatever you want to 'em. sprinkle corn meal on baking sheet & place loaves on top. cover & let rise for another 30 minutes.

5 . preheat the oven to 400 degrees. beat the egg white until foamy, & brush over the tops of the loaves. bake for about 25-35 minutes, depending on size of loaf. just watch 'em & take them out when they look perfectly golden brown.

next i'm workin' towards the macaron merit badge. fingers crossed that this hawaiian humidity lets it happen.