warm hands, warm heart.

sorry for the lack of pictures. in the madness of moving, i left my camera at my parent’s and am eagerly anticipating its arrival.

sunday i went running and ended up with a sunburn as a result of the bright sun and 84 degree weather. today i woke up to go running and what should my eyes behold, but snow falling on the ground. no running outside today! the duplex i am renting is old and charming with lots of space, but that also means it is quite drafty and cold in this weather. besides a nice fire, nothing warms up the house like homemade bread.

HONEY-OAT BREAD

• 1 3/4 cups warm water (105°F to 110°F)
• 1 tablespoon dry yeast
• 3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/3 cup honey
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 5 cups (about) all-purpose flour (i substituted 1 cup for wheat)

• 1 large egg, beaten to blend
• Additional quick-cooking oats

Stir 1/4 cup warm water and yeast in large bowl. Let stand 10 minutes to dissolve yeast. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups water, 3/4 cup oats, honey, oil, and salt. Stir in enough flour to form soft dough. Coat another large bowl with oil. Transfer dough to oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel and let rise at room temperature until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Oil two 8 1/2×4 1/2×2 1/2-inch loaf pans. Punch down dough; shape into 2 loaves. (i made one loaf and formed buns from the other loaf) Place 1 loaf in each pan. Cover and let rise in warm draft-free area until almost doubled in volume, about 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush tops of loaves with egg; sprinkle with additional oats. Bake until brown on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool completely.

(source)

foodie friday: salted fudge brownies

if you look at my food posts, you’ll find mostly sweets and breakfast foods, but i promise that i have a well-rounded diet! perhaps one day i’ll share something outside of the carb box.

i recently discovered a love for brownies – not the boxed kind, but from scratch – so many possibilities! on valentine’s day, i made these particular brownies and believe they will have a permanent place in the brownie rotation.

Salted Fudge Brownies
(adapted from food & wine)

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
2 ounces dark chocolate
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
inside of a dried vanilla seed pod (or 1.5 t of real vanilla extract)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 t cinnamon
2 T cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon Maldon sea salt

(other additions could include: cardamom, orange rind, peppermint flakes or extract or pecans)

Melt the butter and chocolate in a large saucepan. When it is completely melted, turn off heat, add eggs and sugar. Sift in the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

pour into a lined 9 inch baking sheet. crumble the cream cheese  (we just put the cream cheese in half of the batter) and stir into the batter. sprinkle the sea salt over the batter.

bake at 350F for approx. 30 minutes or until the edges are set (i like mine to be a little gooey, so i take them out a few minutes before).

these are perfect combined with strong coffee and a person with whom to share. enjoy!

foodie friday: puff pancake

i don’t know if i love any food like i love breakfast food.
scones, muffins, bread and eggs of any kind… yes, please!

my days have been pretty flexible lately and my morning routine is to wake up, make coffee and something good to eat just in time for the “today” show, which is pure relaxation in my book! this morning i made something quick and easy: puff pancake.

2 eggs
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. flour (mixture of white, wheat and flax)
1/4 t. salt
couple dashes nutmeg
2 T. butter

whisk eggs and then add the rest of the ingredients. melt the butter in a pie pan in a pre-heated 400F oven. when melted, spread over the whole pan and pour the egg mixture over. bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned.

the pancake looks amazing when finished – nice and fluffy. i like to cook a sliced apple with butter, cinnamon and brown sugar on the stove and top the pancake with the apple when it is cooked (berries and pears are also great additions).

enjoy!

foodie friday: raspberry muffins

yesterday i went for a walk here:

where i found these:

and today i made these:

(my friend lise bought me this antique plate. she’s a sweetheart.)

ragnhild came over tonight to watch the newest episode of “project runway” and muffins were the perfect accompaniment. as we were enjoying ourselves though, i suddenly realized that i leave norway in 3 weeks. 3 weeks. with everything else that has happened this summer, moving has been secondary. if anything, my heart is more than ever rooted here and i question the timing. but my visa certainly doesn’t. all i can do is enjoy my time and spend it wisely.

or as tim gunn would say, “make it work.”