earlier i woke up at 4. my brain was turning and my heart was racing in that anxious way it does. i knew there was no going back to sleep.
it took me back to my bakery mornings, my waking-up-at-3am-is-normal days.
while the nostalgic thoughts always seem to join in, i must say..it is extremely nice to have a break from that. i was cut off from everything those years.
"want to go out to dinner?" "what time? anytime past 6 is tough for me..."
"we could do something chill like go to a movie, it's at 7." "hmm..no."
being hungover working in a hot kitchen is the worst
...Why did you do that again!? i yell and bitch at myself
do you know what a hangover looks like when its 3am? it looks like still drunk.
hungover poaching pretzels in a large pot of boiling lye water. jesus
i remember when i started i didn't know what lye was. i was told, "remember that scene in fight club when poured on the hand and his hand just started melting fucking off? that was lye. always wear gloves."
ANYWAY. i knew i wasn't gonna sleep. and in what seemed like the quickest and easiest decision i've made in awhile, flipped on the light, put on shoes, and went on a run.
wouldn't it be the best world if you could sleepwalk-excercise? wake up at 7 as usual, and have had already spent 45 minutes on the elliptical.
and you'd also showered before you got back into your bed?
and you ate fried eggs with buttered toast every morning.
yes, it would be the best.
i made coconut bread one evening. and the next morning i sliced it thick and toasted it and ate it with salted butter and had it for breakfast instead of eggs.
and did it again the next morning.
you know the loaves that call themselves bread but are really a soft/lighter/cakey texture? this is not that.
this is coconut Bread, deliciously sweetened. heavier and sturdy. i want it hot and toasty and a little crisp on the edges and able to spread dabs of butter on each little piece i pull off.
bread is for toasting. not cake. i don't want my loaf cake toasted.
i want my cake moiiiist.
the butter amplifies the greatness of bread and the bread amplifies the greatness of butter. i'm not surprised at all that this bread is so famous.
the time i took this picture i was eating it with leftover salty caramel.
Coconut Bread
from bill granger, recipe posted everywhere
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups (315g) ap flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp (10g) baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup (200g) sugar
5 ounces (140g) sweetened flaked coconut (about 1 1/2 cups)
6 tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, melted and browned
heat oven 350 degreesF. in a small bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla.
in a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add sugar and coconut, and stir to mix. Make a well in the center, and pour in egg mixture, then stir in dry ingredients and mix until just combined. add butter, and stir until just smooth - be careful not to over mix.
butter and flour a 9x5 inch loaf pan or coat with nonstick spray. spread batter in pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, anywhere from 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, before turning it out onto a cooling rack.
serve in thick slices, toasted, with salted butter. yay, all is right in the world before your slice is finished.