Maker Monday: week 52

Christmas is over so I can finally show off what I've been working on.

For Mary-Claire I made Lombard Street socks. I hated them at first, but the cable and lace pattern eventually grew on me and it was hard to give them away.

For Rowan I made an R2D2 hat. I think it's pretty awesome.

Have you been wondering where my year in picture posts have gone? I quit. It's a pain in the ass to take a photo every day. Kathleen and Sara I salute you.

Challah: Bread of the Week 52

I am ending my year of bread the same way I started it. For the third time this year I made challah. I used the Cook's Illustrated recipe that I started with. This time I rolled the pieces longer so the challah was more baguette than sandwich loaf. The slices were just the right size to accompany a soup and salad.

After weeks of rich Christmas food I'm looking forward to enjoying healthy eating again. Last night for dinner I made a green salad and a turnip, parsnip, carrot, and barley stew. You know you haven't been eating well if you find yourself craving turnip.

I'm shocked that I made it through an entire year baking at least a loaf of bread a week. I'm delighted that I can now whip up bread without much effort. I am going to continue baking bread and sharing it with you. I don't think I'll be as strict as I was this year - there will be 90 degree weekends in August when I'll leave the oven off.

Stollen: Bread of the Week 51

I forgot to blog or take a photo of my bread last week. I made stollen for Christmas. Instead of making one loaf I went with two. That enabled me to bring one home and take one to John's family Christmas.

I thought I had almonds in the freezer. I was mistaken. I usually don't miss nuts in breads, but I did this time. I also soaked the fruit in rum instead of my usual brandy soak. I learned a valuable lesson - I like to drink rum and eat brandy. It doesn't work the other way around.

Maker Monday: week 50

I have a bag I throw the leftover bits of yarn I'm left with when I finish a project. When the bag is full I knit an afghan. The afghan is an odd mix of colors and textures. It's strangely appealing.

Bretzels: Bread of the Week 50

Do you like pretzels? How about dinner rolls? Have I got a treat for you.

Bretzels offer the best of both worlds, and they only take a few hours to make. I'll be making them all winter long. If I weigh 300 pounds the next time we meet it will be the bretzels.

Do yourself a favor, visit the Smitten Kitchen, print the recipe, and make these for yourself tonight.

Frigid 5K and Hot Coffee

On Saturday I was out of the house before 8 for my first Jingle Jam. Jess invited me to join her on a costumed 5k run through the zoo. Even though I haven't run in almost a month I agreed to join her. She ran with me the whole time, which must have been difficult because I'm slow and it was very cold and windy.

After the run we warmed up with some coffee and knitting at Smokey Row. We both made a lot of progress on Christmas gifts.

I am going to start running 5ks again. My t shirt collection is getting old, and signing up for 5ks is a good way to refresh it. It's also a good way to get a workout in and catch up with a friend.

Maker Monday: week 49

I have been furiously working on Christmas gifts, so no photos or descriptions this week.

Or maybe I am lazy and don't want to upload photos.

Dinner Rolls: Bread of the Week 49

Last night was the first annual Curran Family Holiday Party. It was a lovely potluck and game night. My contribution to the evening was dinner rolls.

I used Version 1 of white bread from the Bread Baker's Apprentice. I formed rolls and placed them in a 9 X 13 pan to rise. Once they were out of the oven I rubbed butter over the top (a great trick I learned from my Mom).

The rolls were a hit. I look forward to bringing them to the second annual Curran Family Holiday Party extravaganza.