Bread Machines

I just got a bread machine from the resale shop.

It's a $10.99 wonder from our local, wonderful resale shop. All purchases benefit needy hospice care recipients, and that's something I am all for.

Well, at least that's the vision. I mentioned it to my gardening neighbor Mary yesterday and she said "I just do it by hand", not at all disdainfully. We kept talking as I planted some heirloom daikon radish seeds from a few years ago when Shmal's wonderful crop was flourishing. That's a photo of 'em above.

There's Shmal, the day we met up at idyllic McRorie Community Garden. That's a whole 'nother story. I gave Mary a few seeds, so maybe soon, we'll have more sushi handroll fixin's.

Zoobird started out as a blog. Click here if you're interested in seeing what this zesty community looked like way back in the single digits (2008).

I looked up a recipe to give it a try. Here's what I found right off the bat:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/best-bread-machine-bread/

So, here's what I'm doing as we speak. I had some Fleishman's yeast (do I need bread machine yeast?), so it's soaking (Madge, you're soaking in it!) in some warm water and two heaping tbsp of turbinado sugar. I don't have any veg oil, so I'm going to try olive oil. And, I don't know what bread flour is. I've got some "flour", so that's what I'm using. Stay tuned! This is so exciting...It's 4:11. By 4:20 it should be ready for step two!

Is that Preston Reed I hear on my new Pandora station? Yep! It sure enough is! Dustin set me up with the "Keller Williams" custom station so now I can listen to the same jams at Zoobird HQ as I do at my fav bike shop, 8ABC. Thanks, Dustin! I remember Preston Reed from back when and I just love what he does with that guitar. Good to hear he's still making such music. Dustin customized the Pandora station by "mixing" in some music from the String Cheese Incident. I like it. You ever wonder how Pandora does it's stuff, just listen to the Swampcast Tim Westergren (CEO) or Tom Conrad (CTO) podcasts. Cool! 

Hang in there - it's time to add the oil, flour and turn that baby on! Stay tuned!