My wonderfully brilliant copyright professor said something in class last week that I won’t forget.

He said that people develop hobbies like cooking and photography because they present opportunities to produce something tangible.  So many people’s work lives, he continued, are spent working on things that produce nothing (See, e.g., Alanna K., Why I’d Rather Watch True Blood Than Read Copyright Law, 1 J. Law & Procrastination 624, (2009)).

It got me thinking.  When Alex and I worked for our daily college paper, I loved waking up each morning knowing that I could physically pick up the product of my previous day’s work.  We started cooking seriously right after our tenures at the paper ended, and while I always thought that interest served to fill the time void, I hadn’t considered that maybe it fills a more psychological gap as well.  (See Alanna K., Why We Continue to Cook When We Have No Time Again, 1 J. Law & Procrastination 945 (2009)).

More than anything, baking bread gives me a sense of productivity.  It doesn’t require much effort (other than some pulses in the food processor and getting up from our desks every few hours to excitedly poke the rising dough for a bit and ooh over its size), but I feel like we’ve created something magnificent.  Professors: they are usually right.

It’s been a while since we baked bread, so we picked a simple recipe to ease us into it.  This oatmeal walnut bread is fresh, warm, and soft with a crispy finish.  With a slather of nutella, it is heavenly.  We took the recipe from a great book called The Best Bread Ever, and made only a few minor adjustments that are posted below (and a major one: we used all-purpose flour instead of bread flour because it was in the cabinet).  Also, note that the book called for baking the loaves on pizza stones, but we used pyrex baking dishes.  If you have a stone, you are lucky, and should use it.

Ingredients:
(oatmeal)
1/2 cup steel-cut oats (this stuff works)
3/4 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 cup water

(bread)
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp salt
1 1/2 tsp instant yeast
1 cup plus 3 tbsp water (the 1 cup should warm water)
1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Instructions:
To make oatmeal, combine both oats and water in a pot.  Cover, bring to a boil, then uncover and reduce heat to low.  Stir and cook until water is been absorbed, about 5-8 minutes.  Let cool.  Add flour, salt and yeast to the food processor, then add cooled oatmeal.  With the machine running, pour the 1 cup warm water through the feed tube and process until dough comes together into a visible ball, adding more flour or water if necessary.  Remove the dough from the food processor and knead in walnuts.  Transfer dough to a large ungreased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise for about three hours.  Scrape dough onto a floured surface, divide into two equal pieces, and shape into two football-sized loves by folding pieces in half and pinching ends together.  Sprinkle a baking sheet with oatmeal, and place loves on sheet.

One hour before baking, preheat oven to 475 degrees.  Place a pan for water on the bottom rack.  Transfer loaves to pyrex containers, brush loaves with water, and sprinkle with more uncooked oatmeal.  Dust surfaces with flour, and use a knife to make a long slash along the length of each loaf.  Pour 1 cup warm water into the pan to create steam, put the bread in the oven, and turn heat to 450 degrees.  After two minutes, open the oven and quickly add another cup of water to the pan for more steam.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, until crust is golden.  Remove loaves, and let cool before serving.

Lately, I’ve been hooked on Trader Joe’s Chocolate Decadence Cereal.

I eat it by the handful or with milk, and it’s sublime over Greek Yogurt.  I go through it so furiously that I figured it might be cost-effective to create homemade Granola with some of the same ingredients: chocolate, almonds, oats, crunch, crunch, crunch.  Not to replace it, of course, just to supplement and slow my consumption of the TJ’s variety.

This recipe isn’t a replication of the TJ’s version, but it’s a similar beast — a platinum to its white gold?  Our granola is definitely not too sweet, but it has a strong honey flavor and a perfectly clustery consistency.  The recipe is inspired by this one from Orangette, with a few tweaks here and there.  We’re already planning to use ours for parfaits later this week, and surely for lots of snacking.

Ingredients:
6 cups rolled oats
1 cup raw almonds, chopped
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup honey
4 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  In a large bowl, stir together oats, almonds and coconut.  In a small saucepan, heat honey and oil over low, whisking occasionally, until the honey is loose, about four minutes.  Pour honey mixture over dry ingredients and stir until coated.  Spread mixture evenly over two foil-covered baking sheets.  Bake for 10 minutes, stir, and then bake for an additional 10 minutes until golden.  Remove granola, let cool slightly, then stir in chocolate and serve or store in an airtight container, like a plastic bag.

Happy belated New Year!

So much has happened since we last posted.  Most notably, we finished exams and accumulated some excellent kitchen gadgets during holiday exchanges, many of which I’m sure we’ll highlight in future posts.

For now, here’s a recipe for some easy scones that we made during our visit to Connecticut over break.  When we first made scones over a year ago, it was love at first bite.  With this second endeavor, we’ve learned that our feelings were no fleeting infatuation, but rather a deep and passionate love destined to last through many, many happy brunches.  These scones are light and buttery, and they dissolve pleasantly on the tongue.  The flavors are fresh and seasonal and bright.

These are prepared mostly the night before, which makes them an excellent candidate for brunches with guests.

Ingredients:
4 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar, plus some to sprinkle
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
grated zest of two oranges
3 cups old-fashioned oats
2 cups (4 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 tbsp heavy or whipping cream

Instructions:
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, orange zest and oats. Add the butter and toss. On a low speed, beat the butter into the flour until it becomes a coarse meal. Stir in the cranberries. Add the buttermilk and mix (we used a spoon here) until it comes together as a dough. Scoop the dough onto a floured surface and press it together into a ball, then divide it in thirds. Press each third into a 3/4-inch disk, wrap each one with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (we left it overnight, which is recommended). After refrigeration, pre-heat the oven to 375. Unwrap the disks and cut each one into 6 equal wedges, place them on a greased or nonstick baking sheet (you will need two), keeping the scones 2 inches apart. Brush the cream over them, and sprinkle some more granulated sugar. Bake the sheets one at a time on the center rack for about 25-30 minutes, until lightly golden. Serve slightly warm.

The good news: These were the best pancakes we’ve ever eaten — no exceptions.

The bad news: We didn’t make them.

The other good news: We procured the recipe.

The other bad news: We may not have the magic touch.

The final good news (to end on a high note): We’ve befriended the magician, with hopes that he’ll make them for us again.

This pancake recipe is the product of a multi-year quest taken on by our friend, Jared, to create the perfect pancake.  Jared loves pancakes, so this was not taken lightly.  We’re glad, because the recipe truly produces the fluffiest, tastiest, most perfect pancake we’d ever tried.

Why major league?  Oh just because Jared used to play major league baseball for the Seattle Mariners before becoming a med student.  Our friends are cool.  No biggie.

Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
2 tbsp canola oil
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
blueberries
butter for cooking

Instructions:
Mix all wet ingredients together (milk, egg, oil, lemon juice and extracts).  Combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt) separately, and whisk them into the wet ingredients.  Heat a pan and add butter to coat.  Make the perfect size pancake by ladling 1/3 cup batter onto the pan, and add three blueberries to each cake.  Cook on one side until bubbles form and the edges become crusty, about 3-5 minutes, then flip and continue cooking until pancakes are golden brown.

Why are these scones different from all other scones?

All other scones are crumbly and flaky, whereas these scones are moist and soft.  All other scones contain heaps and heaps of butter, whereas these scones only use 2 tablespoons.  And all other scones require intense preparations, whereas these can be made start-to-finish in under 20 minutes.

Truly, these scones perplex us.  We made them for the first time Saturday, and thought we did something wrong when the recipe produced these warm, chewy little scones.  But after reproducing them again yesterday, we now believe that they turned out precisely as intended — and we love them just as they are.

The recipe comes from a book that we’ve already touted as incredible: Bill’s Food.  His recipe is for plain simple scones, and we spruced them up on our second attempt with a pinch of cinnamon and a perfectly crunchy cinnamon sugar layer on top.

Definitely make these, but don’t expect your typical scone out of them.  They’re so much better than that.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 pinch salt
1 tsp cinnamon (plus an additional 1 tsp for optional cinnamon-sugar topping)
1 tsp granulated sugar (for optional cinnamon-sugar topping)
1 cup milk (we used skim)
2 tbsp butter, softened (plus additional for greasing and optional topping)

Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 425.  Combine flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, salt, and 1 tsp cinnamon in a large bowl.  Pour milk into mixture, and stir together with a fork.  Add softened butter, and knead the butter gently into the dough with your hands until dough is soft (add more flour if it’s too sticky).  Place dough on a floured surface, and flatten until it is a 1 1/2-inch disk.  Use a glass to cut out rounds, and place them on a greased baking sheet.  If you want, you can soften a bit more butter, brush it over the rounds, and sprinkle with a mixture of 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp sugar.  Bake for about 10 minutes, until lightly golden.  Serve with anything, especially blueberry jam.

First fruit cookie pizza then fig pizza, now this. Apparently, we love to eat fruit on dough.

We found this recipe yesterday, on the kitchen counter of a favorite friend and neighbor. She was planning to make it today, but we stole the recipe and made it instead. If she’d answer her phone, we’d love to give her some. And return the recipe (which you can also find online here, courtesy of Oprah)

We weren’t sure what meal this dish would fit most appropriately, so we decided to start baking in the morning, and ate it for afternoon snack around 3. It was just sweet enough and the dough was incredible — the hint of cinnamon makes it unworldly. This would make a delicious breakfast or brunch, but it makes a lot, so we predict that you’ll be snacking on it all day. Plus, it looks sophisticated and beautiful.

Given our recent history of successes with fruit/dough dishes, we’re thinking of experimenting with this recipe in the coming weeks. If anyone tries it other fruit, let us know how it goes!

Ingredients:
1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups warm water
6 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 large egg
6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
vegetable oil, for greasing
2 pints blueberries

Instructions:
In a small bowl, mix yeast and water; set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, combine flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Stir egg into yeast, then pour into flour mixture and mix on low speed. Mix in butter until combined. Knead dough until smooth and pliable but still relatively wet (you can use a dough hook or standing mixer for about 5 minutes). Grease a large bowl and 2 baking sheets with oil; set baking sheets aside. Scrape dough into bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Divide dough in half, and place 1 half on each baking sheet. Stretch out slightly, until dough forms a 1-inch-thick oval; cover with greased plastic wrap. Let rise again about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 400. Dimple surface of each loaf with greased fingers, then sprinkle each 1 pint berries and 1/4 cup brown sugar. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes, rotating once. Slice and serve warm.