I LOVE long weekends! Especially, those that come after a long, very long week. This past week was a roller coaster of sorts. Long days, late nights, early mornings and a lot of running around in between! I did not cook any meal, the whole week; the most I did, was fry an egg or toast the awesome breads I baked in class.
The latter was one of the reasons, I was both pooped and invigorated! Evening classes at the ICC are a killer. Six hours of standing in a baking hot room is torture but entirely elevated by the incredible instructors/chefs and the constant snacking on ridiculously awesome bread slathered with butter. Not to mention the pride and happiness of learning to bake perfect loaves that taste just sublime and realising that... I MADE THEM!!!
If you track my
, you would have seen all the amazement I shared in baking gorgeous
croissants (or the
!), crunchy baguettes and crusty country breads!
The trouble was, after all that excitement, it was hard to fall asleep even when I got home well past midnight. I was buzzing with the hum of class and try as I may, could not relax enough and, back I was, on my feet, by dawn! Coffee! Thanks to
for a perfect pour every time and helping me get through the week. Incidentally, I also discovered
right by
.
However, by midnight Friday, when I got home for the fifth time that week, weighed down by 3 bags stuffed with bread, all I wanted was to crawl into bed and sleep through the weekend! And for the most part, that is what I did... with sporadic success.
The unfortunate outcome of all this fun and games is, I really don't want to see another slice of bread anytime soon! I need my palate, appetite and taste buds to settle down into normal and not go zinging on a yeast-high all the time!: :-) I have a
freezer full of all sorts of breads
and croissants (even after generously sharing with friends and their friends!!) and I plan to work my way through them, very very slowly.
I will be sharing lessons, recipes and experiences from the workshop. That will also come later. :)
For now, I am going to leave you with a gluten-free, non-yeast creation that is an amazing complement to a Sunday-Monday Brunch; Millet and Coconut Scones.
Oh! I totally think the best way to start the last day of a long weekend, especially when it is a Monday, is a long, leisurely brunch with all the works! It feels like a sneaky, guilty pleasure.... you know, Sunday meal on a Monday! Wowzers!
Millet and Coconut Scones
100 g millet flour
100 g coconut flour
1 tsp salt
1.5 tsp baking powder
100 g shredded suet, cold (I find suet adds a wonderful flavor. You can substitute with butter.)
140 g sour milk or butter milk
2 tsp fresh coarse cracked pepper
1/4 cup grated aged Pecorino cheese
Pre-heat oven to 450F.
Sift together the flours, salt, pepper and baking powder. Rub in the suet or butter gently, just enough to evenly distribute into the flour. Add the butter milk and bring together into a dough of sorts. It will be crumbly. Do not worry. Just let it go.
On a floured surface, pat the dough out with your palms to 1/2 inch thickness. Using a cookie cutter, cut out scones and place on a greased baking sheet.
Brush the tops with melted butter and bake at 425F for 10-12 minutes until golden brown on top. Cool on rack. Serve warm with eggs and such.