… but I don’t bake!

Christmas day and we were invited to friends. Unfortunately, Joel was sick, so I sailed down to the OC in an hour. Ahh, holiday traffic.

My friends had a visitor, Minh from up north, she was busy making bialys. Despite saying that I’m a cook, not a baker I got roped in. I was immediately reminded why I don’t bake. I was doing everything wrong. So I bit my tongue and listened carefully to Minh, followed her orders exactly!  She had started the dough from scratch the night before, I had to weigh out the dough exactly and forming them into balls was no easy matter. Here they are, ready to proof one more time.

Proof the did!  Look how the yeast is working its’ magic.Henry had carmelized the onions earlier. I let Minh shape the dough, my job at this point was to press the onions into the center. Can you see the air bubbles here?  They will help make incredible bialys.Out of the oven! Beautiful and oh my! So Good!  The crust was crunchy, inside they were soft and moist!  Well worth all of the effort.  Will I be baking again soon? No, unless Minh comes back to town and ropes me in.My hosts treated themselves to VR as their Christmas gift. It is funny watching someone else doing it. I have to admit, it is a lot of fun. One really is surrounded by a three D world. Since it was a small group, we all enjoyed the experience. Henry had given me these orchids weeks ago at my party. I can’t throw them away, so he recommended removing the spent stalks, cutting back the good ones. Then emersing them in ice water and fresh water in the vase.  It’s been almost four weeks and they still look great!