Poilâne and embroidered panties... for Sher

In loving memory of Sher, I hope someone somewhere is making you the most beautiful panties to wear for each day the sun rises.

When Tanna and I toyed with the idea of forming a bread baking group, I think we could safely say we hadn't expected to experience such bonding and friendship. Again, over the waves, virtual and real, across boundaries a tight group formed and Sher was -and will be- one of us. Some of our group we already knew, some of us were "new". Before the Babes Sher to me was "the lady with the squirrels" whose posts I read and enjoyed. But just as soon the members were established we hit it off, emails flying, virtual booze flowing and the tone was set. Fun, lively, witty. Sharing personal, serious and crazy stuff measured with a pinch of bitchyness, cups of humor, and equal doses of support. When we struggled to find a common denominator Sher was the one who came up with the "embroidered panties" to fit us BABES. As not to hurt any of our readers sensitiveness we settled on a Badge but the embroidered panties stuck. (Well, not really we do change our panties but you know what I mean).

This is the recipe I would have made to honour her. It's a slice of Poilane bread, toasted with goat's cheese, herbes de Provence and Provencal honey. The devastating news of her passing reached me while we were on holiday. It was my dinner one of the days the week before. Coincidence? I prefer to think not. As we returned from France last Friday I wasn't able to bake again but I will very soon and think of you Sher.

This Sunday we would have been posting our July challenge, instead as a tribute to Sher we were asking any of you, her friends, to become honorary Babes for the Day. I hope today the internet is buzzing with her recipes, quotes and memories from her or her blog “What Did You Eat“. Sher was an avid contributor to Weekend Herb Blogging and of course Weekend Cat Blogging, sharing her or rather Upsies stories about life with "vermin".

Glenna wrote a heartfelt post to remember her friend Sher and she has offered to link the tribute posts to her tribute to Sher in order that Sher's family and friends can find them. Bloggers who would like their tribute linked can send it to marie9949 (at) sbcglobal (dot) net.)

We lost Sher, one of our Bread Baking Babes. Goodbye Sher.

Crowd teaser, mouth pleaser

Just a little something to think about these next three weeks. We're packing our bags and are almost ready to go. Provence here we come!

Will be back at the end of this month, maybe in time for our next Bread Baking Babes challenge, maybe not. See you!!

WTSIM: Tied with a string (strawberry jam / aardbeienjam)

Waiter, there is something berried under my paper hat... and why is that? Because this is another round of Waiter There's Something In My... Berries hosted by Cooksister. Strawberry jam was on my mind when we picked our baskets of strawberries.
The Christine Ferber recipe I used is languishly spread over three days, but the work is minimal and I think it's perfect for the days when that fruit on the counter is to be used right now, but you can't find the time to actually do anything with it. The moment the fruit is mixed with sugar and lemon juice it's safe from spoiling and macerating the fruit does extract a lot of yummy juices. Loved this method.

Recipe:
(Source: Mes Confitures: The Jams and Jellies of Christine Ferber)

1kg strawberry (net)
800g granulated sugar (I used less, around 600 grams)
Juice of 1 small lemon (I used more, 1.1/2 large lemon)
5 fresh mint leaves
5 black peppercorns, freshly ground

Day 1. Rinse the strawberries under cold water. Quickly towel them dry and hull them. Hulling strawberries after you wash them saves them from absorbing water but you knew that right?). I halved the small ones, quartered the really big ones and left the really small ones whole.

In a ceramic bowl, mix strawberries with lemon juice and sugar, stir to combine, cover with parchment paper and let macerate overnight in a cool place or in the fridge.

On Day 2 Tip strawberry mixture in a large pan, and bring to a simmer. Once simmering pour the mixture right back into the dish, again cover with parchment paper, and let rest in the refrigerator overnight.

Day 3 Prepare your jars by washing them and their lids thoroughly, fill and soak them in boiling hot water for around 10 minutes and leave to dry upside down on a clean towel. Pour the mixture through a sieve, and bring the syrup to a boil. Let boil for 10 minutes or until your thermometer reaches 105C (221F). If you wish you could skim the foam on the surface, I don't.

Add strawberries, mint and pepper.

Boil again for another 5 minutes, stirring every once in a while. Test to see if the jam is firm enough by putting a drop of jam on a saucer that has been in the freezer. If it wrinkles when you push with a careful finger it's done. Or, you could tilt the saucer to see if the jam sets. Proceed boiling until the jam reaches the desired consistency.

Pour the jam into the jars until almost full, wiping off any spilled jam with a clean cloth. Close the lids. Set upside down for 10 minutes and let cool completely before storing in a cool and dark place.Strawberry recipes:
- strawberry meringue cake
- strawberry mirror cake
- strawberry mango jam
- peanutbutter-jelly cookies