Artisan-Style French Bread (and a new rain jacket!)

Remember when I said I would be making soap tomorrow? Well, I've decided to put it off. I really want to use Smart Soapmaking by Anne Watson as a guide, but I can't find it in any local bookstores. I'll have to order it online, so I'll make it next weekend instead.

I completed the first step of a new bread recipe today. The artisan-style french bread requires that you make a pre-ferment mixture that sits for 8-24 hours, and I'm excited to see how it comes out. The recipe came from my cookbook, but I found it online and am glad I can share the recipe with you here. The pre-ferment is sitting on top of my fridge now, and I can't wait to pull it out tomorrow to finish making it. Homemade bread is one of my favorite things, and I ought to make it more often. For some reason I always imagine that it is more difficult and time-consuming than it actually is.

This was my first cookbook (thanks Mom!) and is still my favorite. Lots of good, basic recipes.

Pre-ferment mixture

Sitting on the fridge, waiting until tomorrow

And, I got a new rain jacket! The weatherproofing wore off in my old jacket, so a replacement was in order. I got this beautiful Patagonia jacket on clearance at REI last week, and it came in handy on this rainy Sunday. {It is a Patagonia Women's Torrentshell Trench Coat, if you are curious.}

   

I wanted to keep myself out of this post, but you can't really see how cute the jacket is when it is on a hanger.

 

I am in love with it - swoon!

What is your favorite bread recipe? I'm always looking for a new one to try out.