I've always loved January, but then I've always loved winter. To me, January is new beginnings plus winter minus the pressures of December.
I have also (mostly) stopped buying rustic loaves of bread because I now make my own. I've been baking bread for many years, but I always used a kneaded recipe. Then, a couple of years ago, I found Ken Forkish's Flour Water Salt Yeast, and I modified one of his recipes to make 100% whole wheat loaves. I don't have banneton baskets or a Dutch oven, but I've gotten great results by putting the dough to rise (for their final rise) in bowls that I line with flour-dusted tea towels (I use the thinnest tea towels I own), and then gently turning the risen dough out onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet and immediately putting it in the oven. I don't do any slashing of the crust before putting the rounds into the oven (if I recall correctly, Ken Forkish doesn't recommend this), and I don't do anything about increasing the humidity in the oven. (It might be worth trying to brush or spray the crust with water, but I haven't done this yet.)
I've loved this month so much I'm feeling wistful about it coming to a close! I think it helps that I get to spend so much more time at home now. And thank you for the bread information! Looking forward to checking out that book. I want to find a way to make a good whole wheat version. Your use of the tea towel is so smart. I'm glad to know you get a good loaf without steam. Because even though my ugly loaves taste good, I still want to make pretty ones!
Since 2020, I've been embracing winter more, and it's been very helpful. Despite everything going on in my life, winter remains a safe haven for me. I'll be sad to see January go, but I welcome February and hope it's a good one for us.
Thank you for the links. Going to read all of them now. 😘❤️
My bread is not aesthetically gorgeous, but the taste of it is! I'm so glad to hear that winter feels like a haven for you. I get it. It has felt so good to hunker down into my little life this year.
Loved this, Rita, and I'm right there with you. The only difference is that I've long loved January. All of winter, really. During my farming years, it was a time to slow down and enjoy each other at a more leisurely pace. I assume my attachment to winter stems from that, but like you, I also find myself less tolerant of heat and appreciative of the cozy, forgiving clothes of the colder months. So, it could be a combination of factors.
The second bread recipe you linked is very similar to one I've used for years, with pretty loaves and good taste as a result. The vinegar and beer give it something closer to a sourdough flavor, which I really like. https://breadtopia.com/cooks-illustrated-almost-no-knead/
Your carefully chosen words came together in a beautiful tribute to this season of rest. Thank you!
Thank you for the link! Can't wait to try it out. I think I'm becoming hooked on baking. Winter is very conducive to baking, isn't it? I'm curious about your farming experiences, and realizing I don't know what part of the country you are in. My great-grandparents were dairy farmers in NW Washington, and the farm was still in the family when I was a child. I have memories of visiting it, but it was no longer a working farm then. I've always wished I had the skills and knowledge to be as self-sufficient as my great-grandparents.
I'm in Maryland, Rita, on what's called the Eastern Shore, a term related to the east side of the great, big Chesapeake Bay. My farming was, to be more precise, 13 years as a market farmer, growing niche crops like salad mix, heirloom tomatoes, fava beans, garlic, cut flowers. We also kept laying hens and sold their beautiful eggs. I still work with farmers for my paying job and love knowing how to grow food though I do far less of it these days.
That sounds so wonderful. I know I have no idea how it really is to do that kind of work, but it sounds very appealing to me. Something concrete. Also, I think I'm going to start thinking of myself as a niche gardener. So far, all I've grown successfully are tomatoes and various herbs. My goal is to grow everything I need to make tomato sauce! Better late and partial than never at all, right?
Oh, wow! Thank you so much for that link! I loved reading your story, and then to have all the info at the end? This is why I write. What a treasure. I especially appreciate the tip to use other local farmers' ingredients in place of my own. thankyouthankyou
Your table looks inviting and the bread looks delicious. I usually like January, I like the spare beauty and the brisk temps, but this year it has been a dreary month. The climate crisis has impacted our weather here, no blue skies, no snow, just rain and grayness. I'm disappointed because I've always considered January to my "recharge" month, the time when I plan the year ahead, but instead, if I am to believe the scientists, this is our new January normal.
You are the second Midwest person I've seen say this today. I get it. Rain and grayness is the normal winter in the PNW, which is why I've struggled with January my whole life. I welcome it when it comes in the fall (later and later, it seems), but it can really get to me by January. I also saw this morning a post from poet Dave Bonta, with a poem/film about climate change: https://substack.com/@davebonta/note/c-48368042?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=yjpee
Warning: It hit me hard. I realized how much I often consciously don't think about it. I realized that we are living through something so profound we probably can't afford to consciously think about it too much. I'm so sorry you're not getting the winter you've always known. I'm sure climate grief is a real thing.
And here I am thinking, "Yes! It's the last day of January!" But I still have to get through February. ;-) Thanks for shedding some positive light into these dark, dreary winter months. I really struggle with them. I'm a summer lover and would much rather be running around in shorts and a t-shirt with bare feet or sandals than having to bundle up for winter.
It is so easy. For best results mix the dough at night and then bake the dough the next day, but I have made the dough in the morning and baked in the afternoon and it turns out fine. I'm very much a set it and forget it kind of person, I don't even dump it out to fold the dough; I just take a spoon of flour and turn it over in the bowl.
I have not, but now I will! I need to get a covered pot that is the right size. Also--thank you for the holiday card! I love seeing your family grow. 🙂
Beautiful! I felt a bit disloyal to January when I wrote about an imaginary escape to a summer garden a week ago. It's good that January is a long enough month for winter appreciation and also an occasional spring thought. Every item on your list is worth giving January the maximum number of calendar days. ☃️
Thank you! I love a garden in early summer myself. (Late summer, not so much!) I see no disloyalty. :-) Really trying to work on staying (mentally) in the place and time I'm in.
I've always loved January, but then I've always loved winter. To me, January is new beginnings plus winter minus the pressures of December.
I have also (mostly) stopped buying rustic loaves of bread because I now make my own. I've been baking bread for many years, but I always used a kneaded recipe. Then, a couple of years ago, I found Ken Forkish's Flour Water Salt Yeast, and I modified one of his recipes to make 100% whole wheat loaves. I don't have banneton baskets or a Dutch oven, but I've gotten great results by putting the dough to rise (for their final rise) in bowls that I line with flour-dusted tea towels (I use the thinnest tea towels I own), and then gently turning the risen dough out onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet and immediately putting it in the oven. I don't do any slashing of the crust before putting the rounds into the oven (if I recall correctly, Ken Forkish doesn't recommend this), and I don't do anything about increasing the humidity in the oven. (It might be worth trying to brush or spray the crust with water, but I haven't done this yet.)
I've loved this month so much I'm feeling wistful about it coming to a close! I think it helps that I get to spend so much more time at home now. And thank you for the bread information! Looking forward to checking out that book. I want to find a way to make a good whole wheat version. Your use of the tea towel is so smart. I'm glad to know you get a good loaf without steam. Because even though my ugly loaves taste good, I still want to make pretty ones!
I love January too, Marian!
That bread is GORGEOUS.
I love your table setup. It is perfect.
Since 2020, I've been embracing winter more, and it's been very helpful. Despite everything going on in my life, winter remains a safe haven for me. I'll be sad to see January go, but I welcome February and hope it's a good one for us.
Thank you for the links. Going to read all of them now. 😘❤️
My bread is not aesthetically gorgeous, but the taste of it is! I'm so glad to hear that winter feels like a haven for you. I get it. It has felt so good to hunker down into my little life this year.
Loved this, Rita, and I'm right there with you. The only difference is that I've long loved January. All of winter, really. During my farming years, it was a time to slow down and enjoy each other at a more leisurely pace. I assume my attachment to winter stems from that, but like you, I also find myself less tolerant of heat and appreciative of the cozy, forgiving clothes of the colder months. So, it could be a combination of factors.
The second bread recipe you linked is very similar to one I've used for years, with pretty loaves and good taste as a result. The vinegar and beer give it something closer to a sourdough flavor, which I really like. https://breadtopia.com/cooks-illustrated-almost-no-knead/
Your carefully chosen words came together in a beautiful tribute to this season of rest. Thank you!
Thank you for the link! Can't wait to try it out. I think I'm becoming hooked on baking. Winter is very conducive to baking, isn't it? I'm curious about your farming experiences, and realizing I don't know what part of the country you are in. My great-grandparents were dairy farmers in NW Washington, and the farm was still in the family when I was a child. I have memories of visiting it, but it was no longer a working farm then. I've always wished I had the skills and knowledge to be as self-sufficient as my great-grandparents.
I'm in Maryland, Rita, on what's called the Eastern Shore, a term related to the east side of the great, big Chesapeake Bay. My farming was, to be more precise, 13 years as a market farmer, growing niche crops like salad mix, heirloom tomatoes, fava beans, garlic, cut flowers. We also kept laying hens and sold their beautiful eggs. I still work with farmers for my paying job and love knowing how to grow food though I do far less of it these days.
That sounds so wonderful. I know I have no idea how it really is to do that kind of work, but it sounds very appealing to me. Something concrete. Also, I think I'm going to start thinking of myself as a niche gardener. So far, all I've grown successfully are tomatoes and various herbs. My goal is to grow everything I need to make tomato sauce! Better late and partial than never at all, right?
I believe in you!
❤️🍅❤️ https://elizabethbeggins.substack.com/p/the-growing-season
Oh, wow! Thank you so much for that link! I loved reading your story, and then to have all the info at the end? This is why I write. What a treasure. I especially appreciate the tip to use other local farmers' ingredients in place of my own. thankyouthankyou
Your table looks inviting and the bread looks delicious. I usually like January, I like the spare beauty and the brisk temps, but this year it has been a dreary month. The climate crisis has impacted our weather here, no blue skies, no snow, just rain and grayness. I'm disappointed because I've always considered January to my "recharge" month, the time when I plan the year ahead, but instead, if I am to believe the scientists, this is our new January normal.
You are the second Midwest person I've seen say this today. I get it. Rain and grayness is the normal winter in the PNW, which is why I've struggled with January my whole life. I welcome it when it comes in the fall (later and later, it seems), but it can really get to me by January. I also saw this morning a post from poet Dave Bonta, with a poem/film about climate change: https://substack.com/@davebonta/note/c-48368042?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=yjpee
Warning: It hit me hard. I realized how much I often consciously don't think about it. I realized that we are living through something so profound we probably can't afford to consciously think about it too much. I'm so sorry you're not getting the winter you've always known. I'm sure climate grief is a real thing.
"All this because I decided to try loving something I’d once thought unlovable."
This is such a huge thing. I'm always boggled by how much better everything is once I decide to love it (or at least embrace it).
Yes Yes Yes
I'm glad to finally be learning this.
And here I am thinking, "Yes! It's the last day of January!" But I still have to get through February. ;-) Thanks for shedding some positive light into these dark, dreary winter months. I really struggle with them. I'm a summer lover and would much rather be running around in shorts and a t-shirt with bare feet or sandals than having to bundle up for winter.
That bread looks delicicous. Have you tried the Mark Bittman bread? https://bittmanproject.com/recipe/no-knead-bread/
It is so easy. For best results mix the dough at night and then bake the dough the next day, but I have made the dough in the morning and baked in the afternoon and it turns out fine. I'm very much a set it and forget it kind of person, I don't even dump it out to fold the dough; I just take a spoon of flour and turn it over in the bowl.
I have not, but now I will! I need to get a covered pot that is the right size. Also--thank you for the holiday card! I love seeing your family grow. 🙂
thank you!
Beautiful! I felt a bit disloyal to January when I wrote about an imaginary escape to a summer garden a week ago. It's good that January is a long enough month for winter appreciation and also an occasional spring thought. Every item on your list is worth giving January the maximum number of calendar days. ☃️
Thank you! I love a garden in early summer myself. (Late summer, not so much!) I see no disloyalty. :-) Really trying to work on staying (mentally) in the place and time I'm in.