… Not on purpose, though. It just sort of sunk the minute it made contact with the cooler air outside the oven (it did, honest!) and it needed some cosmetic surgery performed with a handy pairing knife that just happened to have been in proximity of the wire bread rack. This is just to prove that even the most well-written and time-weathered and trialed of recipes can end in a disaster, especially when it comes to dough. Thankfully though, the final product turned out to be a lot more desirable than what you might assume from the picture from the photograph above.
Disaster is as relative a term as any other. This loaf turned out to be wonderfully moist on in the inside and delicately crisp on the outside. There’s no denying it; you really do need to be careful when measuring your yeast and ensure only the right amount of water is put into the mix.
I tried to hide the loaf somewhere in the kitchen (I couldn’t pop it into the cupboard as the steam would have escaped and caused the suspicion of a fire to the untrained eye) before I was scolded for my failed experiment which is reminiscent of something out of a science fiction movie. From memory, I had a hard time explaining to the psychiatrist that I don’t have anger management problems at all and repeating numerous times, “no, those are not creases made by knuckles”. It was still piping hot, especially in the centre, long after it had been cooled on the rack and the harrowing embarrassment of presenting this on the dinner table turned out to be nothing more than a good laugh of the housemates and a slathering of butter over the hurt feelings of my bundle of joy.
This little post is just to say that we don’t need to feel ashamed of “failed” recipes which didn’t quite go according to plan. Some of the most delicious recipes and foods came about by spontaneous accident while attempting to create something entirely different and quite often this paves the way to success the next time around.
And don’t be shy either; if you’re reading this and you have an experience and possibly photographic evidence of a recipe gone haywire, feel free to add your comments to the post.
The Wild Thyme and Sweet Pea project found its roots when it was plucked excitedly from the garden, washed briskly in a basin of water and lovingly left out to dry in a soothing marinade of vision and ambition ... More »
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