I have been doing a very good job of this whole school starting, everybody up and washed and out the door thing. We've been riding the bike (mostly) and I've been getting dinner ready and everybody fed by 5 (mostly). This is going to sound absolutely ridiculous to most of you, because, duh, none of those things are very hard, but sometimes that kind of routine (or monotony) becomes the hardest thing to do-- let alone do it well. I started volunteering a little bit in Sam's classroom and while I don't think I'm too much help most of the time, it has been a great reminder to cut the kid a lot of slack once we get home. He holds it together so well in the face of so much distraction and um, strong personalities. I'm *still* really proud of him.
All this to say, that Hey October! My love for you has not diminished, I've just been distracted! Some of the best things happen in this month and for whatever reason, I always feel my year resetting at about this time. Screw you, New Year's Day. Anyway, the whole month (and this whole winter) was made 100 times better with a phone call from my friend Beth yesterday-- she called to tell me that all my baking dreams had come true. Piper Davis and Ellen Jackson have just come out with their Grand Central Baking Book. (How did I not know this was coming? I'm talking to you certain in-the-know peeps of mine.) Grand Central Bakery is among many great bakeries in town, but as far as I'm concerned they are hands down the best at certain things-- like Cinnamon Rolls. They are the cinnamon rolls of my dreams (quite literally) and I've tried several times to recreate them at home and have been completely lost. My friend dropped off her book for me to copy down the recipe (I have one waiting for me at Powell's but I couldn't freaking get down there today-- see above blah, blah about routine) and no wonder I couldn't figure it! Molasses! Currants! 8 grain cereal! That sound you heard this afternoon? That was my mind blowing.
They take about a day and a half to make (I'm almost not joking) and I'm right in the middle of the process. So you're going to be hearing about this again. Besides, the rest of the book is beautiful and full of greatness-- really, I'm sort of terrified about what this is going to mean for my waistline. I thought that Rustic Fruit book was going to do me in, but I had no idea. There's a section in there called "Every Day Fruit Desserts", which I'm taking to mean that I should be making them EVERY DAY. See you tomorrow.
