A variety of special things

I just got back to regular baking (i.e. for customers) after a couple of weeks 'off', spent with family who were here for our youngest daughter's wedding (Easter Saturday). I baked bread just for us (how unusual!) and also baked for various parties, family gatherings, the wedding shower, and the rehearsal dinner. I baked baguette for a couple of dinners but didn't get any photos of those (too bad; they were quite nice!), but here are some photos of other stuff.

For the shower, I baked a nice crusty white boule (FWSY Overnight White) to be hollowed out and filled with spinach dip:

I also made a couple of olive fougasse to be served with bread dip (olive oil, lots of chopped garlic, Italian seasoning, grated Parmesan and balsamic vinegar:

I also decided to bake Ukrainian Wedding Bread (Korovai) for the rehearsal dinner. We aren't even remotely Ukrainian (pretty much pure English), but it's so pretty that I wanted to give it a try. I used the recipe from King Arthur Flour. The bread itself is a bit difficult to see, but it was a couple of tiers with a triple braid on the bottom, topped with a double twist. I don't make very good bread decorations but thought I'd try my hand at the traditional birds (representing the bride and groom). It's also traditional to decorate with Periwinkle (Vinca Minor) and it just happens to be in bloom right now; nice!