Zen Bread

Someone restrain me. I'm about to go to the year's biggest knitting fair and spend all my life's savings on ridiculously expensive wool and patterns I'll never have time to knit. Even if I started right now, gave up sleep and did nothing else 24 hours a day I still couldn't knit my stash of yarn in the 17,000 days of life I have left (calculation courtesy of a Mac Widget called DeathWatch -- it keeps me on my toes!)

Despite knowing this, I can't resist the siren-like call of the wool. There's something meditative about knitting. As my fingers work my mind unwinds, allowing the yarn to gather up the random thoughts. I truly believe handknit sweaters hold the thoughts of those who made them. Skeptical? Unravel a few rows and watch the thoughts come racing back with a vengeance. But as I knit I feel release. Time slows. The To Do List fades a shade with each stitch until there's nothing left but me and the wool and the possibility I'm creating.

So, what's this got to do with food? Such zen-like moments can be found in the kitchen. The steady beat of the knife as I chop onions, the rhythmic back and forth of my wrist as I grate carrots or the measured waves of motion as I knead bread. It would be a perfect world if one could knit and cook at the same time.

For those who choose bowls and spoons over a pair of Turbo circular needles, here's a recipe for an old-fashioned dense, bread that needs nothing but the thinnest layer of butter to elevate it to full glory. Don't even think of getting out the breadmaker or shoving this in the microwave. This day-long process will fill your home with the intoxicating smell of yeast and empty your busy mind of nagging thoughts. Its slightly sweet and deliciously chewy texture is worth every minute -- much like the rewards of a handknit sweater.

Swedish Rye Bread

Ingredients

• 1 pkg yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 cups rye flour
• 3/4 cups dark molasses
• 1/3 cup shortening
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 cups boiling water.
• 6 to 6 1/2 cups white flour

Instructions

1. Mix sugar with warm water. Sprinkle yeast on top and allow to soften.
2. Mix rye flour, molasses, shortening, salt and boiling water together. Cool to lukewarm.
3. Add softened yeast to molasses mixture. Gradually add the white flour to make a soft dough.
4. Let rest 10 minutes.
5. Knead until smooth.
6. Place dough in a greased bowl. Turn to coat with oil. Cover with a towel and let rise.
7. Punch down and let rise again.
8. Shape into loaves (2 small or 3 large).
9. Let rise a third time in the pans.
10. Bake at 350F for 35 to 40 minutes.