snow day, dreaming of food

Bread progress is happening. I was having trouble getting my sourdough culture off the ground, but I think it's just about ready to rock. The last loaf I made was so flat and misshapen, I was too depressed to take a picture of it. A few days later I made some ciabatta (not using sourdough), which turned out really nicely.



A couple of months ago we started getting raw (unpasteurized, unhomogenized) organic milk from a local farmer (more info on raw milk here). It tastes completely different from store-bought milk, and I feel good about having it for my family. Depending on where you live, it can take quite a bit of sleuthing to track it down, but if you can find a source -- particularly if that source is organic -- it's totally worth the trouble. And it makes the best yogurt.



Also, the farmer from whom I buy milk is Amish. As in, buggy-drivin', straw hat-wearin', Dutch-speakin' Amish. I read a fascinating book that helped me understand their culture a little bit better. It really is a different world, and it captures my imagination every time I visit.

I think I need one of these fancy chocolate bars, but I'm not sure whether I'd pick the A'Chocolypse or the Peanut Butter & Chipotle. Speaking of which, we made some peanut butter ice cream last night (that I totally forgot to take pictures of) and ate it with brownies and hot fudge sauce. Yep.

The Man got a snow day from work today, yee haw! So we are snuggling in by the fire, building trains, cleaning floors, stitching things, baking bread, watching movies, and napping (happy sigh).