Mail & Breakfast

Mail is a wonderful thing.

Yesterday I found some very beautiful mail in my mailbox from a dear new friend, Jaclyn. Decorated all over with roses and flowers, I almost didn't want to open it!

(Indeed, I left it sitting out on the counter - unopened - for most of the morning because I loved looking at it.)

So that morning I deemed it right to send out some pretty mail myself.

Tasha Tudor had a mile long driveway to walk everyday to her mailbox, and though my driveway isn't a mile long, I do have a corgi to accompany me!

I absolutely love sending and receiving mail. I think it is a lost art that is slowly dying out in our fast culture. So you should send some mail today! Really, a thank you note, a little card telling a friend that you're thinking of them, all you need is a stamp and an envelope. And please tell me if you do!

Because finding a letter or a card in your mailbox (amongst all those boring bills) is a true delight.

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Later that day I decided to make one of my most favorite bread recipes. Last summer I had made it quite often (almost every week), but throughout the fall and winter I had prepared other recipes instead.

Like most bread recipes, this one has a rising time, but it's one of the easiest breads to make - I promise! Its an amazing recipe for English Muffin Bread, the only downside is that you'll want to eat it all day long, and not just for breakfast toast!

Another good thing about the recipe is that it doesn't have to bake for a long time, which means it's out of the oven and in your tummy much faster. Haha!

The bread came out wonderfully, so wonderfully that Quinn and I couldn't wait for the next morning to eat some of it. We had some with dinner and oh, how yummy it was!

The next morning of course I had it for toast, and - feeling quite old-fashioned with a new lace robe I received from Abigail for my birthday - I decided to make a pretty breakfast tray for myself while I read my Bible.

Of course, with the smell of toast and hot tea, Greta wanted a taste too. 

Though, she did seem more interested in the tulips...

If you'd like to make your own English Muffin Bread, I'll share the recipe below. It's from my favorite cookbook, the Better Homes & Gardens Cook Book, I hope you try it and enjoy it like I have!

English Muffin Bread

From the Better Homes & Gardens Cook Book

Cornmeal

6 cups all-purpose flour

2 packages active dry yeast

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups milk

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1.) Grease two 8x4x2-inch loaf pans. Lightly sprinkle pans with enough cornmeal to coat bottom and sides; set pans aside.

2.)In a large mixing bowl combine 3 cups of the flour, the yeast, and baking soda; set aside. In a medium saucepan heat and stir milk, water, sugar, and salt just until warm (120F to 130F). Using a wooden spoon, stir milk mixture into flour mixture. Stir in remaining flour.

3.) Divide dough in half. Place dough in prepared pans. Sprinkle tops with cornmeal. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 45 minutes). 

4.) Bake in a 400F oven about 25 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove bread from pans. Cool on wire racks. Eat as is or toasted with lots of butter or jam. 

From Emily's poetry book:

Breakfast comes but once a day

with toast and jam and tea.

But also for lunch and supper?

Oh, that would be great indeed!