Homemade Bread and Pot Roast

El Paso seems to have suddenly developed what most other cities have always had: weather/seasons. We’ve gone through years of not being able to distinguish the different seasons based on weather and temperatures. This year has been different. I believe we have gotten more snow than we have in the last 10 years. There is snow on our beautiful Franklins Mountains again this morning.


To keep myself warm and keep the dreaded arthritis aches at bay, I decided to bake a couple of bread loaves and make some pot roast. The house smelled delicious and the kitchen, where I settled in for most of the day, was cozy warm.

I believe the temperature regions are changing. We had a flood a few years ago that resulted in some people actually using small row boats to get across the interstate. We’ve also had about 3 “freak” hail storms that caused a great number of households to have their roofs replaced, car damage that had insurance companies setting up command centers and cars lined up for inspection and settlement. Bob’s car was luckier than most. The Tucson was dimpled all over like a gold ball. Others had their windshields and windows blown out and were determined (by the insurance companies) as being “totaled”.

But, such is life. I’m grateful that these uncommon occurrences can be remedied, unlike the devastation in Haiti. Our prayers go out to them and especially to all the children who find themselves orphans because of the earthquake. Please keep your positive vibes and energy going to our friends and family in the Haitian Islands.

Post Roast is pot roast. You take a delicious piece of chuck roast or rump roast cooked in a slow cooker on low with a variety of vegetables for about 12 to 14 hours and you have a wonderful dinner. Couple that with an amazing fresh loaf of homemade bread and your dinner is complete.

That scowl Bob had on his face when he came home from work soon disappeared after he sat down at the dinner table. His beautiful smile returned telling me he was glad to be home and out of that horrific weather with 65 mile an hour winds and rain. Then of course he ate the rest of the chocolate chip cookies. Guess I’ll make some more. Enjoy the weekend everyone.

Honey White Bread
(Barefoot Contessa at Home)

½ cup warm water (110 degrees)
2 packages dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 ½ cups warm whole milk (110 degrees)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 ½ tablespoons honey
2 extra large egg yolk
5 to 6 cups flour (I used bread flour)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 egg white, lightly beaten

Place the water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Add the yeast and sugar; stir and allow to dissolve for 5 minutes.

Add milk, butter and honey. Mix on medium speed until blended. Add the egg yolks, salt and 3 cups of flour. Mix on low speed for 5 minutes. With mixer still on low, add 2 more cups of flour. Raise the speed to medium and slowly add just enough of the remaining flour so the dough doesn’t stick to the bowl. Knead on medium speed for about 8 minutes, adding flour as necessary.

Dump the dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand for about a minute until the dough is smooth and elastic. Grease a large bowl with butter and put the dough in the bowl, turning it over so that the top is also lightly buttered. Cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel and allow the dough rise for about an hour until doubled in volume.

Grease two 9 x 5 –inch loaf pans with butter. Punch the dough down and divide in half. Roll each half into a loaf and place in prepared pans. Cover the pans again with a damp towel and allow to rise one more time for an hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. When the dough has risen, brush the tops with some egg white. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until they sound hollow when tapped. Turn the bread out of the pans and allow to cool completely on wire racks.