Day 3 - Sunday
Most of day 3 was spend on my previous blog post. In the evening I started working on a cover page for my new Art Journal.
I love being in my home, it has always been my safe haven. Prior to working at the local Art Shop my family always used to tell me that I am a hermit and after about a week or so my husband will ask me to join him to go to the shop to just get me out of the house a little bit 😆 So given the slightest opportunity I can easily become a hermit again.
Last night I experience the feeling of how surreal life has become. You know exactly what is happening around you and in the world, yet your mind really struggle to comprehend it all as it feels like a very bad dream.
Day 4 - Monday
Another restless night. Having a good night's sleep is not something I really struggled with in the past. The subconscious mind can be very powerful and one has to really guard against negative or worrying thoughts consuming your mind. That is one of the reasons I enjoy creativity as thought patterns are focused on everything around art, colour, patterns and so forth. Creative, intuitive and mindful art journaling remains the best exercise as my focus is in the moment. For example when using watercolours...how the paint flows and intermix with other colours on the page. It really is a pleasure watching paint move, you should give it a try. Then once the watercolours are dry on the page, you take other media for example a fine liner and just draw shapes...you listen to the sound the fine liner makes on the paper and what it feels like when you pull or push the liner across the page.
I completed the front cover for my new Art Journal today.
Perfect imperfection 👉 Interesting observation is that I can never write in a straight line, unless I write on a line and I seem to write from bigger letters to smaller letters and you know what, it's perfect as it's part of me. No judgement or criticism is allowed in my creative space since the end of last year as it is a creativity killer and in the past created too many creative blocks.
I emphasize 👉👉 that it is not the end result that matters, but the journey itself 💙
In the afternoon I had a lovely Skype call with my friend in Germany.
I did quite a bit of research to find some quick and easy dough recipes, planning to try one out tomorrow.
Went to bed at a more descent time for a change ha ha ha.
Day 5 - Tuesday
Well now, what a pleasant surprise when we only woke up just after 11h00am. Even though I had an early night, I kept waking up often.
Jason and Alicia woke up before us and made a pot of coffee that was brewing and ready to drink. I recollected my search for a dough recipe the night before. This recipe really is quick and easy and can be used to make various items from rolls, pizza bases etc. I took all of the ingredients out and started with the easy to follow recipe.
I am pleasantly surprised with the end result and thought to share it with you should you be interested to make the recipe. I will also include the link here to Ashton's website called "Something Swanky" . I'ts definitely worth a visit!
Quick Bread Dough
posted by ASHTON APRIL
18, 2017
361
This quick and easy bread dough is
ready in way less than 20 minutes. It’s perfect for pizza crusts, cinnamon
rolls, and even dinner crescent rolls when you’re in a pinch for time!
So why do I need two perfect
bread dough recipes? Because they each have completely different functions in
my meal planning and baking. For example…
I use my Basically Perfect Bread Dough recipe for a LOAF of bread, always. I would never use this Quick Bread Dough to
make an actual loaf of bread. For whatever reason, this quick recipe doesn’t
bake up quite as nicely in a big loaf as the other recipe does. And it definitely wouldn’t
stay fresh as long as the Basically Perfect recipe does.
That being said, trust me that this is still
a recipe YOU WANT! I make this dough at least 4 times a week.
Why?
Because it takes 10
minutes to prep, mix, roll, and get in the oven. And then about 15 more minutes
to bake. So what do I use this dough that doesn’t bake into great bread for? Everything else.
Pizza Crust and Hot Pockets for dinner most
often. Crescent rolls. Dinner rolls. Pigs in a blanket. Cinnamon rolls.
Doughnuts. Burger buns. Hot Dog buns. Calzones. Sticky rolls.
You can use this
recipe for anything that you are eating the same day you
bake, and it will be soft and yummy. It’s an AMAZING recipe to have on hand for
those nights (like every night if you’re me) you forgot to plan
dinner.
Since you proof the yeast, the dough
rises quickly, and makes for a soft bread once baked. But, be aware, the dough
doesn’t rise as high as other bread recipes do. Which is ok– it still works.
But if you’re not mentally prepared, you might think that you’ve made a
mistake.
You can see by how well it rolls out and
stretches that the dough still has a great elasticity:
This recipe is an absolute staple in our
recipe repertoire, and I’d be in so much trouble on a daily basis without it!
Just remember these dough rules:
Use this recipe for
bread loaves and for any meal you might not be serving same day.(60 minutes
prep, 30 minutes bake time)
Use this recipe for
recipes you’ll be making and eating on the same day when you’re short on time.
(10 minutes prep, 15 minutes bake time)
(10 minutes prep, 15 minutes bake time)
YIELD: 8-16 SERVINGS
Quick Bread Dough
This
quick and easy bread dough is ready in way less than 20 minutes. It's perfect
for pizza crusts, cinnamon rolls, and even dinner crescent rolls when you're in
a pinch for time!
INGREDIENTS
·
1
tbsp active dry yeast
·
1
cup warm water (think warm bath water)
·
1
tbsp sugar
·
1
tsp salt
·
2
tbsp olive or vegetable oil (use vegetable for sweet bread recipes)
·
2
1/2 cups flour
INSTRUCTIONS
Proofing
the yeast involves dissolving the yeast with sugar and sometimes oil
(if the recipe calls for oil).
Start
by sprinkling 1 tablespoon of yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar over 1 cup of
warm water– think of warm bath water,
add the oil and it should be about perfect.
Leave it till the yeast activates and ‘grows’. I like
to proof the yeast in a 4-cup measuring cup
2.
Mix
the salt into the flour in a stand mixer bowl.
3.
After
the yeast has proofed, add the yeast mixture to the flour. Knead until a dough
forms, and then continue kneading for an additional 5-6 minutes until dough is
elastic.
4.
Cover
and let rise for about 10 minutes.
5.
From
this point you can roll it out and use it for any recipe calling for dough!
NOTES
The
baking temperature and time you'll need to use will vary depending on what
you're making with the dough, but as a frame of reference-- you'll be in the
neighborhood of 350ºF (180 degrees Celsius) and 15-ish minutes.
*HOW TO PROOF THE YEAST
The
most important part about making any bread is in the yeast and how the dough
rises. I’ve found that proofing my yeast has made all the difference in the world (and trust me, I’ve had my
share of bread failures before I started doing it this way)! Proofing involves dissolving the yeast with sugar
and sometimes oil (if the recipe calls for oil).
Start
by sprinkling 1 tablespoon of yeast over 1 cup of warm water– think of
warm bath water,
and it should be about perfect. I like to proof the yeast in a 4-cup measuring
cup.
My whole family enjoyed the rolls. Thank you Ashton for such a great, easy and versatile recipe, you absolutely ROCK!
The rolls I made using Ashton's Quick Dough Recipe
Day 6 - Wednesday
This morning we decided that Roti's will be on the list for supper. Some people might never have heard of the term Roti, so here is an explanation ... A Roti is a round flatbread with the defining characteristic that is is unleavened and you normally cook it in a pan on the stove top.
After asking Aunti Google for some recipe's I discovered this recipe by Pamela Moodley Padayachee (link included to the recipe). Alicia made a delicious chicken curry filling for the Roti's. Now I have eaten many Roti's in my lifetime, but this recipe is absolutely tops. Thank you Pamela.
I started working on my Wacky Bird drawing last night and did the painting today. This one is called 'Shake A Leg' and is done in mixed media. I started the painting off with Daler-Rowney Artists Watercolours and once dry I added some touches with Sakura Pigma Micron pens, a white Gelly Roll 08, some added touches with my *homemade pearlescent watercolours and some white acrylic paint here and there.
*I just realized that I never mentioned the *homemade pearlescent watercolours before. I will tell you more about them tomorrow and how I made them.
Day 7 - Thursday
As I mentioned in a previous post I will tell more about my home made pearlescent watercolours. A fellow co-worker and artist friend of mine and myself bought some pigments together. The containers comes in 5g tub size and we each ended up with 2.5g of pigment colour. We could order more colours as each colour ended up being half price due to us sharing.
White Lustre
Black Onyx
Midas Gold & Magic Mocca
Chestnut Brown and Very Cherry
Hibiscus Red & Dandelion Yellow
Spring Green & Hunter Green
Peacock Green & Aurora Blue
Egyptian Blue
When I would like to use the above dried watercolour paint, I just wet my paintbrush with some water and it reactivates the paint beautifully.
Just a test run of what the colours looks like.
Last night (of Day 6) I started working on a mixed media 4 x A4 page concertina 'book' that I will glue into my art journal. I have to admit that I have been thoroughly enjoying the different processes involved in this piece. Items used: concertina pages, charcoal, eraser, putty eraser, pencil, scrap paper, ball point pen, acrylic ink, spray bottle for ink and water, white chalk/pastel, white oil pastel, white stabilo pencil, white candle wax, fresh leaves, stick, ink pad/gelly plate, black indian ink, black and white acrylic paint.
Wild Garden 1
Wild Garden 2
Wild Garden 3
Wild Garden 4
I hope you have enjoyed the bits and pieces from Day 3 to Day 7 of lockdown. Please do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions.
I further trust that you are doing well and coping with your lock-down, wherever in the world you are. Now is the best time to get creative as it keeps a busy mind active and mindful in the creative process. I will see you in the next 'episode' of my blog where I will post again a couple of days like I did in this blog post.
Please take care, stay safe.
Love and light
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