Carpe Your YOLO

Photo: this glorious no-knead loaf, with a thick and crispy crust sits beckoning on a sheet of parchment. You can't see the steam or sniff the yeasty fragrance emanating from this beauty, but I can assure you that first slice was divine! 

I have a hard-and-fast rule when I bake bread - no matter what time of day (or night) the loaf comes out of the oven, you simply must have a slice. It might be right after lunch, or at 10 PM, but that loaf, with a crackly crust and steaming chewy middle, will never, ever be as good as it is right then. 

As soon as it is cool enough to touch, I slice a piece off the end and indulge! I might top it with a dollop of marmalade, or a generous spread of butter, or all on its own.

When my beloved Aunty in London passed away a few years ago, my cousin found a spiral-bound notebook filled her hand-written quotes and sayings. More than proverbs, and probably with her own spin or interpretation, it contained witticisms like: "wear the most audacious underwear under the most professional business suit", but my favorite, which I think of often was "never postpone joy". This is such sage advice that I now apply it to the everyday. Even when baking bread.

A couple of winters ago, my nephew Zane told me he wanted to learn to bake bread. We used the simplest recipe ever - unbleached wheat flour, salt, sugar, yeast and warm water. Those five ingredients are transformed by a little treatment and a bit of time to the most beautiful and deliciously rewarding comestible. After we'd done the mixing, a touch of handling, some rising and punching down, then rising again, we placed the smoothly-formed loaf carefully into a blazing hot cast iron dutch oven. As we prepared the loaf, I'd told Zane about my rule. Just about 40 minutes later, we could smell the delicacy baking - heady and mouth-watering.

When the loaf was lifted carefully out of the very hot pan, he began taking photographs to share with friends and post on social media. He would be the envy of his generation that day - here's a kid who knows how to bake BREAD! 👍👀😍💓🍞

I asked him (it was a test): so, what's the first thing we do? He smiled broadly: we cut a slice and eat it? Yes, siree, bub! By now, Zane's sister, mom and dad, as well as other members of the family gathered round to snag a piece for themselves. When all the "first tastes" were satisfied, the glorious loaf was just a stub-end of crust. Zane and I exchanged a look - time to make another loaf!

Photo: our loaf... minus a slice!