Sunday, September 13, 2015

Baking Practice


I know all these photos of brown loaves of quick breads all look alike, but the first was actually an apple crumb cake and the second was a cranberry-banana bread.  Today's koan was carrot bread, and those dark spots you see on the sides are raisins.

The mindfulness part of last week's practice was slicing the cranberries, and the mindfulness part of today's practice was grating 3 1/2 cups of carrots, although the potential to scrape one's fingers against the grater surface certainly helped one stay focused on the task at hand.  The "riddle" part of the koan was in the ingredients and this week I learned the difference between turbinado  sugar and brown sugar.  Also, the recipe called for safflower oil instead of butter, and it took me two stores before I found that particular ingredient at Fresh Market. It's nice living in the city and having the option of so many great stores (Publix Supermarket, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Fresh Market, and more) around me.  No "food desert" here.

I haven't tasted the carrot bread yet (I'm supposed to let it sit overnight before eating), but it certainly smells like it came out alright.  Anyway, the point isn't the product, it's the process. 

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