A COOKING DAY
It's long been one of my food preparation habits to cook certain things ahead in large batches and freeze them in single serving portions to have them readily available. These frozen portions were my mainstay dinners while I was working. Though I cook a lot more from scratch now, I find that certain things are still handy to have on hand. These include grains such as rice, millet and bulgar; certain meats such as chicken; bran muffins, soups, and of course our daily bread.
Recently I found the freezer falling short in several of these areas and declared A Cooking Day.
First, start the bread.
While the yeast is getting bubbly, put lentils to soak. Recipes never call for soaking either lentils or split peas, but I find at our altitude of 7,000', the cooking time is shorter and the result better if I do.
Add water and flour to the yeast and let the sponge develop. Recipes generally skip the sponge step since yeasts are so lively, but I follow my Mom's recipe. She believed the sponge step made for a better bread, and if it's reason enough for her, it's reason enough for me!
While the sponge is forming, start some rice.
The rest of the ingreients go into the soup pot, and it's covered for simmering.
The bread is now ready for kneading. It's a batch big enough for four loaves, so I divide it in half for easier handling.
Rice is cooked, so I turn it off to let it cool and start the bran muffins.
While the bread rises in the pans, the muffins bake.
Bread's now ready for the oven.
The rice is bagged in portions and ready to go in the freezer.
The soup is portioned and ready for the freezer.
The muffins have cooled and are bagged.
And at last, the bread is baked and ready for slicing before freezing.
If you think my freezer is a happy place...you're RIGHT!
Did I mention there were a few dishes to wash?
He who does not mind his belly, will hardly mind anything else.
