Sourdough bread loaf #1

A peek of the first loaf. One side is a little burnt, but otherwise I am happy with the result. I was so worried it would be a disaster. The crust is rock-hard, but I was a little naughty and cut through a little bit on the side, and to my relief the loaf is nice and cushiony on the inside.

Sourdough bread

Today I got a little present from my friend Marjaana: a sourdough bread starter. I've been wanting to make bread from a starter for a year or so, but never got around to it. When I found out last night that Marjaana was working a starter, I got in touch and she was kind enough to pass on some of her starter to me this afternoon. I've put it into a stainless steel bowl and I'll add some organic whole grain flour and water to it in an hour. I'm very excited about this new project. I can hardly wait til Sunday when I'll be on a strict schedule for kneading and such. Needless to say I will keep Le Pamplemousse up to date with any developments!

PS. A holler of thanks goes out to Marjaana (and Outi, who shared her starter with Marjaana).

Beatriz's rhubarb pie

This is the easiest pie in the world to make. My mother Beatriz has made pies from this dough recipe since I was a little girl, and I'm carrying on the tradition. I think I can do it blindfolded by now, and can also be made with apples and cinnamon, or frozen blueberries. A very Finnish recipe, I put about 400-500g of chopped rhubarb onto a bed of Beatriz's shortbread pastry (murutaikina). Half an hour in the over later, warm pie is served. I do like it warm, but especially when made with blueberries, I like to leave it in the fridge and see how it 'ages' as it gets so much more moist and luscious with every passing day. Fifth day pie is pretty amazing. I've never had any left to try sixth day pie.

A big thank you goes out to my neighbours Sanni and Mikko, who gave me five kilos of rhubarb straight from their own organic country garden!