Pho is too hard to make. Let’s bake some bread

December 5, 2011 by Anastasia

The crab season started in San Francisco and last night our neighbor invited us for a crab-fest in his house! Yeeeey! The crab-fest slowly morphed into a wine-fest… unfortunately with easily predictable outcome … severe dehydration… Don’t worry, we are not 21 anymore! We have our tricks, and by 10 this morning, we felt and looked like new! The secret is in Vietnamese Pho! Oh, it’s the best cure!!!!

You think that would be the today’s recipe, but NO! I cannot manage to make a dissent broth! I just cannot! I tried so many recipes online but none taste good enough. The problem is – we are serious about our pho. We traveled to Vietnam to eat Pho. We tried it in every town and neighborhood we visited. Our favorite bowl could be found somewhere in the Old Quarter of Hanoi . Our favorite US equivalent resides in Tenderloin (well, Little Saigon) of San Francisco, and it’s called Turtle Tower. If you are ever in town, and if you are not afraid of… you know.. sketchy neighborhoods – it’s the place to enjoy.

Here are some photos from our trip:

Anyways, even a night of… crab-fest-ing didn’t stop me from doing hot yoga tonight. And oh… what a delight! Hence, I’m still on the right track to fulfilling my vein ambitions. The session even managed to suppress this Russian mom’s appetite for a not-so-light-dinner she started before the class! I was quite satisfied with a grapefruit and some raw veggies. This yoga stuff is incredible!

Well, because of all this hard work, I deserve a reward: my family’s favorite bread!

Print This Recipe

WALNUT-RAISIN BREAD

INGREDIENTS

1 Recipe of the Basic Country dough

1 tsp coriander

25 g molasses

1/2 cup of walnuts, slightly crashed

1/2 cup of raisins

DIRECTIONS

Soak the raisins in 1 cup of hot water for about 15-20 minutes, drain

Prepare the dough according to the basic country dough instructions until the point where salt and water are added. Add salt, coriander, and instead of water add 25 g of molasses as well as the walnuts and raisins.

Incorporate the ingredients by squeezing them with your fingers into the dough.

Follow the directions of the Basic Country dough for proving, and shaping. Once you shape a loaf and ready to place it into the proofing basket, pat the loaf with a wet hand. Sprinkle it with some crashed walnuts, and place the loaf into the basket on a floured towel.

Follow the basic country bread instructions on the final rise and baking.