Italian (or not) Bread

Italian (or not) Bread

This recipe comes together easily and pretty quickly, as far as bread recipes go… two things I appreciate when it comes to bread making!
It can also be tweaked and personalized very easily to go with whatever flavour you’re looking for 👌🏻

Enjoy and not only good luck making it but also in doing your best to not eat a whole loaf or two yourself, once they are out of the oven 😉

 

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 tbsp yeast
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
5 1/2 cups flour
1 egg white / oil (I used rosemary infused olive oil)
2 tbsp Italian seasoning*
1 tbsp everything bagel seasoning (optional…but nice 😉)

*the seasonings can easily be adjusted to suit personal preferences and make other flavours of bread, so go ahead and play around with combinations!

 

 

Instructions:

Pour the water, sugar and yeast into a bowl and let it sit for 10-15 minutes until the yeast has activated.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix it all together until well blended.

Move to a warm area, cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450°

Punch down the dough and then divide and form into three loaves.

Using a sharp knife, score the tops of the loaves and then brush with either egg white or oil.

Let the loaves rise another 5 minutes.

Bake for 12-15 minutes.

 

 

I brushed a little butter over the loaves and ground some corse salt on top, once I removed them from the oven.

I’d love to know if you make this/enjoyed it!
Tag me on Instagram @Jemstory or drop a comment here ☺️💕🥖

 

Repetitions Of Our Past

April 26th –

 

Another morning filled with writing and posting etc, before heading out for a walk with Inge, while Mich, you guessed it, painted 🤪

 

Here is an outlining of the little journey Inge and I went on☺️

It was rather windy at times but the sunshine was warm and the pace steady, so it was a nice day for a walk.

The birdsong in Holland always sounded so tropical to me and the spring here is much more summer like then a Saskatchewan spring ever is, so that’s a big bonus 🤪👍🏻

 

 

We trekked by the highway, in the trees and by the river, taking a ferry across at one point and then eventually stopping for ice cream 😉🍦

A couple that Inge knew actually showed up at the ice cream shop and it just so happened they were headed back to Doesburg afterwords as well, so we were able to get a ride back from them, rather than take the bus 💁🏻‍♀️

We sat outside awhile, enjoying some more of the sunshine within the wind guarded walls of the seating area outside and then an assortment of food was ordered for dinner. Chinese spring roll for them and more nasi balls for me 🤪

 

April 27th –

I finally had the hubby find his moms old coffee pot and brew me some coffee using the Starbucks coffee grounds we had brought with us 💕

The big mug filled with the non foamy topped coffee made my Saturday morning 👌🏻🤪

It was Kings Day in Holland… when markets happen and celebratory entertainment goes on.
Usually 🤪
But it was raining and Doesburg isn’t a huge town, so not much at all was happening 🙈

 

To sooth Mikes disappointment in the lack of his hometowns patriotism, we went to the snack bar 😂👌🏻

Being the kind supportive wife I am, I also ate with him so he wouldn’t feel alone 🤪

 

Since the weather was glum and house painting couldn’t be continued, we drove to another town to see if anything was happening and when that lead to nothing too, we decided Ikea would be a nice place to wander 💁🏻‍♀️

Which is true but not so much when only a suitcase sized piece of furniture would be the only purchasable option 🙈

After renovating two houses, one can’t help but see possibility and design all the more often when shopping or simply out and about, so the trek through Ikea held many ‘this would work here’, ‘that would be better this way or that way’ conversations.

That evening was the time to strike Greek cuisine off our of list 🤓
We, along with the parents, drove to Emmerich to dine at Syrtaki, the Greek restaurant we’d eaten at many a time before when still living in Europe 👍🏻

It was as good and as largely portioned as we recalled, all but Mich having some to pack up to take home  🤪

As we left there and walked to the ice cream shop, a double rainbow was spotted across the Rhine, making for a lovely moments pause to enjoy it ☺️

 

April 28th –

Mich and I drove to Krefeld, Germany to attend church where we had previously and since it was actually a Canadian preacher speaking, I didn’t even need the translation headphones which was very nice 🤓👍🏻

It’s also the church Mich’s sister and her family attend, so we planned to spend some time with them, after enjoying the service and another Greek lunch at Poseidon 😉

It was even tastier than the previous evenings dinner and not at all too much, too soon 🙈

We then relaxed at the sister-in-laws, giving out some little gifts to keep us near and dear in the hearts of the nieces and nephew, even if we aren’t literally near them often 😜🤞🏻

We sipped coffee, ate chocolate, walked and then eventually left after what had been a pleasant day of visiting 😉

The autobahn was a good portion of our road back to Doesburg and though I don’t drive and I generally fall asleep whilst Mich drives us anywhere that takes longer than 28 minutes to get to, I did enjoy the once again freedom of speed that the German highway allows 😉

Oceanic Observing’s

April 17th –

 

We awoke with no real plans for the day… the gusting winds had woke us a couple of times during the night and they had carried on into the morning/day as well.

We decided to go check out the penguins at Boulders Beach, as it wasn’t long after they open and we figured it would be less busy.
Our assumption was correct thankfully and we paid to go see the penguins. Paying around $15 per person, since we weren’t local… the locals pay only $3 😏

Walking down the path to the beach with large towering rocks, which were creating a sheltered, cove like area, we spotted our first few penguins 😏👍🏻
Unfortunately for me we had to crawl through a mini tunnel created by two boulders, to get to the good spot.
Though it was really rather wide and fairly short in length, it was enough to cause shortness of breath, as I hate enclosed spaces 😬

Which is so dumb… it would make more sense if Mich, the larger of us 🤪 wasn’t a fan of tight spots but no, it’s me 🙈

 

We hung out with the penguins awhile, laughing at their comical shuffle/sway of a walk and then we walked a higher boardwalk path, to view them at the other part of the beach. Continue reading “Oceanic Observing’s”

Luxuriating

luxuriate
/lʌɡˈʒʊərɪeɪt,lʌɡˈzjʊərɪeɪt,lʌkˈsjʊərɪeɪt/
verb
gerund or present participle: luxuriating
To enjoy (something) as a luxury; take self-indulgent delight in.
Synonyms: revel, bask, delight, take pleasure, wallow, indulge oneself, enjoy, relish, savour, appreciate, lap up.

 

April 15th –

Our last morning in Johannesburg.

We packed up all of our things, including the freshly washed and ironed clothing that our hosts did that morning, before enjoying one last breakfast together, served in the open patio area.

We were truly served like royalty during our time at their home 💕

Before being taken to the airport we stopped at a ‘biltong’ shop…which translates to jerky 😉
There was meat hanging to dry from a good portion of the ceiling and Mike was almost too tall to walk under it 🤪🙈
We got to taste test many different flavours and meat mixtures and we did leave the store with some vacuum packed pieces in hand 👍🏻 Continue reading “Luxuriating”

Mall-Nourished

April 13th –

We arose and readied ourselves to leave with one our personal driver/tour guide/shopping companions, to meet the other, for breakfast 😉

Eating at Lacoco C Food Purveyors was a very enjoyable experience 😁
The restaurants and food that we held in memory, were indeed the same as we recalled and that’s pretty impressive because I feel like usually people either build up, or tear down in their recollections 🤪

The decor and overall ambiance was so enjoyable and the eye could wander they entire time, catching some new detail or feature that begged for further attention 👌🏻💕

I ordered French toast, Mike got an egg and bacon breakfast sandwich and I also got my first juice of grapefruit, pineapple and mint 🤤🍴🍍 Continue reading “Mall-Nourished”

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