Five For...Pumpkin, Pumpkin Everywhere!

When I first came to England, I was dismayed and frustrated at not being able to buy good ole American Libby's pumpkin (in a can). I panicked and wondered how I would ever make my favourite autumn dessert...you guessed it...pumpkin pie.

Eventually, after I calmed down and started breathing again, I got onto my trusty computer and Googled 'how to make pumpkin puree'. After all, the settlers didn't have canned pumpkin...surely they made it from scratch...so why couldn't a 21st century girl from Baltimore do the same? It didn't take long to find what I was looking for. Several years have passed since that day and for a few years I didn't make anything made of pumpkins. (I know, gasp!) One reason was that for at least two autumns, I was pregnant and pumpkins contain one of the highest amounts of Vitamin A of any vegetables. Vitamin A is something that is restricted during pregnancy because in high doses it can cause birth defects and liver toxicity. I'm sure a few pieces of pie wouldn't have hurt anything, but I was slightly neurotic about these things...must have been the hormones.

Anyway, I digress! Back to the pumpkins...

This year, I decided it was time to get the autumn baking going again and 'pumpkin anything' was at the top of the list. Ree from The Pioneer Woman posted this great step-by-step on her blog about how to make roasted pumpkin puree. It sounded ridiculously easy and I love Ree's recipes, so I gave it a try.


Finally, the beautiful puree was finished and next came the fun part~ using it to bake something scrumptious.
I searched around the net, but in the end, I decided to try a recipe sent to me by one of my oldest and dearest friends. (Thanks Janis!) Here is what we ended up with... one loaf of pumpkin bread, one round pumpkin cake and 13 small pumpkin muffins. (!) Let me just tell you, she had warned me that she LOVES this recipe, and it did not disappoint. It is just the moistest, most yummy stuff you have ever tasted. Interestingly, the muffins were not as dense as the cake or bread, but I like that the same batter can give you such variation based on the baking tin.

Five For...Pascha 2009

This year Pascha was a home-made affair in our home. Pascha is another name for Easter in the Orthodox Christian Church. Here is a little photo journal of some of the activities we did to prepare. We did all of this on Holy Saturday before we went to the Pascha Service which is a beautiful midnight candlelight service.

First we dyed our eggs. Easter eggs in the Orthodox tradition are usually red. Red symbolizes the blood that Jesus shed for us and the egg itself has been a symbol of life in many cultures for thousands of years. There also another wonderful explanation for the use of red eggs.

It is said that shortly after the resurrection of Christ, Mary Magdalene traveled to Rome and met with Emperor Tiberius. She denounced Pilate, who had been placed in power by Tiberius, for his handling of Jesus' trial. She began to talk about Jesus' resurrection. She held an egg in her hand and talked about its symbolism of the resurrection- the shell being the tomb which gives way to new life, the resurrected Christ. Tiberius was unmoved and replied that there was as much chance of a human being returning to life as there was for the egg to turn red. Immediately, the egg turned red in her hand! This is why Orthodox Christians exchange red eggs at Easter. It is said that Tiberius removed Pilate from Jerusalem to Gaul, where he died of a horrible sickness.



We also made a traditional Easter bread which is similar to brioche (eggy sweet bread). I have only made bread from scratch once before (it didn't turn out great) and I was especially excited because I got a recipe from Susan at Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy using one of the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes recipes. (Thanks Susan!) This recipe is a no-knead recipe and I will DEFINITELY be using it again!



The results were more than I hoped for. My only little peeve is that the bread came out darker than I would have liked it to. (Possibly from our oven running hotter than the dial says.) But it tasted AMAZING! We gave one loaf to Dh's parents who raved about it after having it for breakfast on Easter morning. We also gave one loaf to our neighbours, but we haven't seen them yet to hear their verdict. After 7 weeks of fasting from meat, fish and dairy during Lent, this bread was just wonderful to have for breakfast! YUMM!!

Five For...Lazarus Saturday...and bread...

Today is Lazarus Saturday in the Orthodox Christian Church. It is the day before Palm Sunday and marks the beginning of Holy Week. The day celebrates the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, showing His divine power and foreshadowing His own resurrection at Pascha (Easter). In the Greek Orthodox tradition, it is customary to make Lazarakia (Lazarus Bread). These are small sweet breads made in the shape of Lazarus in his burial shroud. This year, DH and I made them for the first time and shared them at church today. I would like to give a special thanks to Sylvia at Adventures of an Orthodox Mom for the recipe, as well as for answering my email and giving me moral support! Here are a few pictures:


The dough ready to form into shapes.


Little Lazarus men ready to go into the oven.


The finished bread cooling.


Ready to take to church to share.


At church, ready for blessing of the breads.

Five For...5 Minute Bread

So...I'm intrigued...

I came across the idea on one of the blogs I visit and the thought of baking fresh bread in five minutes a day was just too tempting. I duly googled it and found the website....

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day

Apparently, according to the website, the idea is:

ARTISAN BREAD IN FIVE MINUTES A DAY: The Discovery that Revolutionizes Home Baking, will show you how. The secret? Mix up a lightning-fast batch of moist no-knead dough, save it in your refrigerator, tear off portions over the next week or more, shape, and bake.

Has anyone tried this? Does it really work? I can't actually wait for several days for the book to arrive (I haven't ordered it yet) Does anyone have any recipes and/or experiences they want to share with me? Please, please...pretty please? *grin*

I'll keep you posted on the bread-making adventure.