Pain D'epice: Holiday spice bread, french style
I will get to this, one day. It sounds perfect for a tree trimming party, with hot chocolate. The cumin is also an interesting touch.
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking Spray
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon grated orange peel, minced
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel, minced
2 teaspoons freshly ground Ceylon cinnamon
2 teaspoons freshly ground star anise
1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground cumin
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted and finely chopped
1/3 cup shelled pistachios, toasted and finely chopped
1/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked, and finely chopped
1/3 cup candied fruit, finely chopped
1/3 cup raisins, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups waters
3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 tablespoon baking soda
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 11 1/2 x 4 x3-inch loaf pan with non-stick spray. Whisk the flour and next 8 ingredients in a large bowl to blend. Set the flour mixture aside. Mix all the nuts, candied fruit, and raisins together in a small bowl. Set the nut mixture aside.
Stir the water, honey, sugar, and rum in a heavy medium saucepan over high heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring the syrup to a boil. Immediately whisk the boiling syrup into the flour mixture, stirring just until blended. Whisk in the nut mixture. Whisk in the baking soda.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool the bread in the pan for 5 minutes. Inver the break onto a rack, and cool completely.
I think it’s awesome that they’re so proud of the great product they make. Their blatant mockery of the French is a little concerning, but also wonderfully amusing. Would I pick their product off the shelf, maybe not. But I’d remember it.
November 7, 2009 at 10:25pm
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Apparently you can get into law school without a highschool diploma. You only need to have survived a tramatic life, made huge social change and have a really awesome community who appreciate and supports you. It’s not that difficult to do.
However, getting in doesn’t mean you can afford it, of that you’ll get the funding you need to be able to access basic creature comforts while you attend. It’s no wonder people seriously consider selling themselves in all kinds of ways while they make their way through their post secondary careers.
Nigella’s mum gave her an invaluable insight into nice behaviour. According to Nigella her advice went something like this: “It is better to be charmed than to charm.” By this she meant that what makes people feel good about themselves is feeling as if they have been charming, interesting; in short, have been listened to. For her, the notion that one should oneself be riveting or aim to be quite the most fascinating person in the room was a vulgarity and just sheer, misplaced vanity. Trying to be charming is self-indulgent; allowing oneself to be charmed is simply good manners.
— Charles Saatchi
#NaNoWriMo
I always thought it was a dumb acronym. That didn’t stop me from taking it on. However, I’ve to do a lot better at it. My workcount it terribly low for the fact that we’re more than a week into this. Tomorrow, I think I will devote my entire trin shift to writing. Since I can shalk up about 1000 words an hour I think there is room for progress. Add to that, the fact that I have wednesday off and can potentially fit in some writing there means I might make it past 15,000 words this week. Well see how achieveable that is. One can never really tell what will happen at Trin until it does.
Like all my other lovers, I can’t be honest with you.
I’m afraid of what you’d think of me.
Moreso, that you won’t like what you see.
I’m sorry.
I want someone to love me that much. It’s clearly asking far too much. Perhaps some of us are not destined for this sort of love, this sort of comfort, this sort of intimacy. That doesn’t stop me though. It’s easiest to covet that which is on the other side.
Point being - you should read this series. Maybe as obsessively as I do. It has become another Sunday night tradition, along with the NYT weddings section, PostSecret and late night chinese food.
It’s not a career choice. It’s a compulsion. It’s like an eating disorder. You have to live with it.
— John Irving, on writing, at IFOA 2009
October 24, 2009 at 12:50am
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(Over)thinking
Thigns have happened, and not happened. Both are significant. I’ve been thinking, rethinking and overthinking things. I’ve been contemplating being in and out of love, been toying with desire, snuffing and reigniting it for the pure pelasure of doing so. I’ve been engaging with want and discarding it. The objects, like always, are never important. Easily found, easily out away. It always comes back to the same basic set, the core collection because they are cheap and easy.
I should tell you more…and will the next time I’m in a writing mood.
I’m really tired of being the girl that used to be in love with you.
1.
