Pita Bread

I found a recipe online, (about.com) but used different flour and changed the cooking time. Here it is... 1 pkg. yeast 1/2 cup warm water 1 tsp. sugar Combine in a small bow (or the measuring cup) and let it get foamy. 1 cup White Wheat Montana flour 2 cups Golden Prairie Wheat Montana flour 1 1/4 tsp. salt Combine in a large bowl, make a well in the center. Add the yeast mixture plus 1 cup lukewarm water. Mix well, knead (I used about 1/4 cup more flour during this process) for about 10 minutes, until elastic. Let rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down, roll into a long snake. Cut into 12 pieces, roll each into a ball and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll out each circle and place on a preheated baking sheet (I used a large cast iron pan), in a preheated very hot oven, 500F. The original recipe called for 4 minutes on the first side, and 2 minutes on the second. After burning 6 of them, I reduced the cooking time to about a minute and a half on both sides. Put into storage bags right away so that the resulting steam softens the bread. (and I have no idea why this is published in paragraph form, it's not how it looks in my draft form... sorry!)

Preserved Lemons

While researching for a class, I came across preserved lemons, used as an ingredient in many North African and Middle Eastern dishes. I've never had preserved lemon, and thought it looked interesting. I have a few more shops to look, but cannot find this in town. So, I decided to make some. One can find many recipes on the internet, just google it. Here's what I did: Wash lemons, not only to clean, but to remove any wax that may have been applied to the fruit for shipping. I used regular, store-bought lemons. Cut the lemons in quarters, almost all the way through. I ended up cutting them in half, then one in quarters, as I was using small jars. Stuff kosher salt into the lemon. Pack into jars. The juice will start to come out, add more lemon juice to the jars to cover. I wiped off the rims of the jars with clean paper towel to remove any salt or lemon residue, then put lids on them. (I used sterilized jars and lids.) I put them in a water bath for 10 minutes, although this step isn't required. I would imagine that one could use a large apothecary jar, or a sun tea jar, or something similar. If using larger jars, keep the lemons "whole" (but sliced almost through). One can also add spices like cinnamon, and a bay leaf. I left mine plain. Let it sit for 3 weeks, turning the jar every day or so, to help the salt redistribute and dissolve. We'll see what happens... check back in a month for a dish where I'll use them as an ingredient.

Fall Picnic

We were driving back from Colorado and stopped at Washington Park in Laramie. We had purchased some cheese, salami, crackers, and amazing double fudge cookies with walnuts at Whole Foods in Ft. Collins. It was great to be in Laramie on a fall day, reminiscent of our time spent there 30+ years ago. Yum.