Saturday Class Pics...

Saturday Class Breads

Saturday's class in Rustic Breads and Soups was wonderful and exhausting. The class was fast-paced, informative, and we stood the entire six hours.

We all came home with samples of everything the class made, so we all got to share our breads and soups. The breads in the photos are (clockwise from left: Crusty French Baguette, Hearth Bread, Rustic Fruit and Nut Sweet Bread, and two small loaves of Rye Bread with Dill.) Each one has its own delicious flavor and texture, and will be healthy additions to my bread making repertoire here at the farmhouse.

Students Listening To Chef Sue

One especially delightful surprise was coming face-to-face with a high school classmate I hadn't seen in decades. The best part was that she recognized me as immediately as I recognized her! She attended the class with her husband (the tall man behind Chef in the next photo), and we had a little time to catch up, too.

Students And Chef Sue

We learned more about bread making techniques - like water/milk temps to add to the ingredients for dough making (115º), and optimum temp for a fully baked loaf (210º).  I also got more practice for shaping boules and long loaves (and the best way to get them from bench to oven). Those things alone were worth the class fee!

Four Rustic Soups Made In Class

We tended loaves of bread from mixing to proofing to baking, while we also created delicious soups. Top to bottom: French Onion Soup (not shown are the tasty slices of baguettes, topped with shredded Gruyere cheese for floating in the hot soup), a delicious Pork Stew, Autumn Squash Soup (with homemade faux creme fraiche and sunflower seeds), and finally the soup created by the team I was on...Chicken and Corn Chowder Stew. 

Everyone sat down for samples of each soup and bread, and we all declared the class a rousing success. This is the last of the classes I signed up for until Spring. I'm already looking forward to that, but will be making new breads and soups to keep us warm through the winter. I'm sure we'll be sharing with family and friends, too! These are all too good to keep to ourselves!

I'm in the studio today. I've got orders to ship and commissions to work on. We've got plenty of bread from Saturday, which means I won't be baking any this week. So, if you're looking for me, look upstairs at the farmhouse! Tag will be here to say "hi" tomorrow. 

Have a great Monday, friends.