Baked a big recipe of white and oat bread, mustard seeds on top, some of which you see in this extravagant shot, before the whole wheat flour arrived. More in the freezer.
I made a note to bake banana/walnut/chocolate chip bread today since I finally got my hands on whole wheat flour. Then I thought well, the kitchen's already hot, why not get ahead of the cornbread needs while I'm at it. So I did.
Yet another cornbread recipe, this one with no butter, but with sugar, milk and oil. I was a bit dubious when the batter was so liquid I poured it into the pan, which is why it's an artisanal shape -- it escaped the parchment paper and went rogue.
However what counts is the crumb, seen in both breads here
And the taste, under way here
It's moist but not heavy, so that's okay.
In the garden, a setback on the squash front. Overnight it went from thriving, covering the fence and climbing trees, to a sad little heap of yellowing stems, on the ground. This is the sole surviving bit. It's less than a quarter of the plant from the day before.
I suspect something attacked the roots. The nearby tomatoes are fine, so it may be a squash borer or some such specialized bad guy. That kind of sudden collapse suggests it.
So after flouncing about and sobbing a bit I thought I could make the best of it. At least, now they had nothing growing on them, get my craftsman-made planter boxes safely off the fence and on the deck, ready for whenever they show up to replace the fence. I also took down the temp gauges which were attached, while I was at it.
I had my friend who made and installed the boxes (and built the deck) come and move them. He has a special drill bit for the screws. He was over and done in no time. Refused to be paid. So he and wife D will be recipients of a bit of baked goods. That'll teach him.
The baking frenzy helped me on the day of John Lewis' funeral. Eulogies from three presidents, message from a fourth too old and frail to be there in person. It just makes decent people say I'll do better. If he could, I can. He was just a kid doing these brave moves. He improved our whole country. Still a very long way to go. But still hopeful.
ReplyDeleteYes!
DeleteChris from Boise
You make me want to try cornbread. I’ve never made it.
ReplyDeleteFor years I only made it for my birds, who loved it. Big treat for parakeets and Emily the cockatiel. I found a recipe in Bird Fancy magazine. Eventually I realized humans could have it as well. Perfectly appropriate for human food.
DeleteYour breads look amazing.
ReplyDeleteWow! You were busy. I was proud of my self for making 2 different loaves the other day but now I feel sorta left in the dust. Everything looks yummy!
ReplyDeleteThis was an unusual event. I usually do the as needed response. But now I have a supply in the freezer. I did take some of each across the street as a thanks for the work on the planter boxes.
Deletelook at the base of your squash plant. if it has beige crumbly stuff coming out of the stem it's squash vine borers. I've had some success saving my plants by catching it early, slicing the stem and using a toothpick to remove the larva and then piling dirt over the cut area. another idea is to wrap the stem at ground level with foil or some such as the moth lays the eggs at the base of the plant (I've never done this) or trying to keep the stem covered with dirt as it grows which will stimulate more root growth to support the plant if it gets attacked (I have tried this but it's nearly impossible to bury the stem). the best way to defeat the squash borer I think is to plant like 10 times what you want and maybe a couple of the plants won't get attacked. also, don't plant your squash in the same spot every year.
ReplyDeleteI've never been into baking bread but yours looks good.
Yes on the borer advice. I think this year's crop is done for. Mysterious how the borer finds its target. No other squash growing nearer than the farm s couple of miles away.
DeleteSquash soup sounds good right about now
ReplyDeleteRouge bread is most welcome in our house - because the offcuts often end up arriving, complete with butter, in my sewing room doorway. Yum! So sorry about your squash plants - for sure some sort of horrible bug must be at fault.
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