George Bernard Shaw once said “there is no love sincerer than the love of food;” I am re-writing that sentence: “there is no love more sincere than the love of bread.”
Sourdough is one of life’s simplest pleasures. How lucky I am to not have gluten intolerance.
It’s a stunning morning with gentle early winter breeze. I could see the tips of my tall bamboo shrubs waving in the yard out of the window in my tea room. Years ago when I was working, racing to the airport on Friday afternoons to see family, rows and rows of bougainvillea that lined the expressway to the airport would dance as my taxi flew by. I used to count the waving bougainvillea, as do I now with the bamboos against the bright blue sky.
What do I bake on this early winter morning? I feel like something that would add some heat, some aroma.
Reflection is a bitter sweet thing.
Why do we have dessert at the end of a meal? Dessert gives us a feeling of happiness. Why do we love coffee? For me, to counter the sweetness that has accumulated in my palate.
On this last day of the year I reflect: Bitterness gives meaning to sweetness.
Boxing Day, a gorgeous day!
All is quiet, on this early morning, except the gentle breeze. The air is crisp and the sky is blue over the tree hills out of my tea room.
The Poinciana in my neighbourhood is firing in red, such colour of celebration.
Recently I re-read the Flour Treatise. On the third chapter entitled [i]The Milling of Flour[/i], there is a very interesting section about wheat extraction in relation to endosperm, aleurone and bran. It says that wheat contains on average 85% of endosperm; however, 100 pounds of wheat yields 72 pounds of flour and 28 pounds of feed material. The article also says that the reason why it is not possible to extract all of the endosperm as flo
It is a glorious day in Brisbane today, the air is crisp and the sky is clear. Where I came from it would be plum blossom raining season now. Have you ever wonder exactly what you miss about a place when you are missing it? My pen is blunt but I have flour in my hand to paint:
Trying a new ingredient or a new formula excites me. If I find a new method or a new ingredient to make my daily bread the next morning, I go to sleep with a smile the night before. I read about the Chia seed in one of Johnny's comments on Sourdough Companion a long while ago and had tried Chia seeds with other grains and seeds several times but never on its own. I was happy with the results each time but never stopped to think why the result
Many years ago our family lived in Singapore and I had a personal trainer. Singapore is a young, vibrant society where sports may not be a big thing but going to the gym is popular. I still remember that on the first day I looked around my gym and felt daunted by what I saw. At the end of my first session, I asked my trainer how often I would have to train to look like her. I like my trainer dearly, she is great; she said, "Oh, just three times a week!"
