Weekend Bread Class...

Brynwood Needleworks - Focaccia and Pretzels

My sister and I had a great time at class on Saturday. We attended my second Artisan Bread class together, along with Kathy D. What we made was completely different from the first bread class I took last fall.

In this class, we made focaccia (topped with caramelized onions, red potatoes, mushrooms and three cheeses), homemade pretzels with a beer cheese dipping sauce, and three bread doughs (French, chiabatta and a sweet dough with raisins). Twelve students shared the doughs, taking our choices home to bake.

Brynwood Needleworks - Chiabatta Rolls

 

I chose the chiabatta dough (which Kathy and I mixed in class) to bring back to the farm. I baked it up after I got home, and it turned into the most wonderful rolls! Unlike most of the store-bought varieties I've tried before, these were so crispy and light that, when I picked up a finished roll, I thought they were empty shells!

 

They were crunchy on the outside, yet soft and chewy on the inside. I waited until they were cooled, and then chose a few small ones to eat with my dinner. The rest were vacuum sealed (along with the pretzels) to mail to Handsome. I froze the focaccia so we can share that as a meal with salad when he gets back home.

 

All in all, I'd say the class was a great success. My sister has a cottage bread baking business, so she learned a lot from our instructor. He was eager to share his vast knowledge of the industry with her, as well as some money-saving tips (that we could all use). We'll likely take another of his classes in the fall.

 

We still have another class this month, taught by a different one of the technical college's teachers, to learn how to make Sheboygan hard rolls. If you've never had this Midwest favorite, you don't know what you're missing. I'll be looking forward to the class, and then making them to hold our summer grilled hamburgers.

 

I worked on my embroidery and knitting over the weekend, but made minimal progress. I attended a musical treat on Sunday afternoon. Steven March-Torme' (Mel Torme's son) performed with the Fond du Lac Symphonic Band in the city's beautiful Performing Arts Center, followed by dinner out. 

 

I wish I could have shared my weekend with you...and Handsome. It won't be long before he's back home (I'll see him in 19 days, but who's counting?), but not soon enough to enjoy this lovely weekend with me. I did purchase two of Mr. March-Torme's cds, and plan to play them while Handsome and I share a meal (to include fresh bread as a side). 

 

Tag is looking forward to chatting with you tomorrow. I'll be working on my embroidery, as I'd like to finish it in the next day or so, to get to the next phase of my project. I'll show you what I've done so far when I come back on Wednesday. 

 

Have a great week!