Hair-pulling, tattle-tailing, privacy-disrupting, stuff-stealing. That’s what siblings do best, right? As the youngest of three children, I always felt like I was at a disadvantage. When I was very young, I was easily pushed around by my sister and brother. Naturally bigger and stronger than me, they could take whatever they wanted with little resistance. My only retaliation tactic was to scream and cry loudly until I gained the attention and, optimally, the sympathy of my parents. I hoped for the day when I was not physically inferior to my siblings.
When I grew big enough, the disadvantages did not decrease. They just changed. I was the shadow. I was always the little sister, striving to live up to the high standards that my older siblings had left behind. I remember being amazed and overwhelmed by the things my sister and brother had achieved. My sister was accepted into an Ivy League College and, if that wasn’t enough, graduated a year early. My brother could spout facts about Biology and Genetics with impressive accuracy after merely sitting through a lecture. I was just working my way through high school, competing to match the standards of their achievements. If it wasn’t for the pressure of competition provided by my siblings, I do not think I would have graduated as valedictorian of my high school class. I wanted that one thing that gave me the opportunity to say, “Hey, look at me, look what I did all by myself!”
Turns out, I had been looking at it the wrong way. Sure, my siblings were (and still are) impressive, but I learned to take the initial intimidation I originally felt and turn it into admiration and inspiration. By adopting an open point of view, I found that there were a lot of things I could learn from my siblings. Upon entering college, it was my sister who gave me advice on how to get involved and listened to my troubles when I felt overwhelmed by my new campus life. It was my brother who asked me about the courses I was taking (since we are both studying medicine) and suggested other interesting courses that would improve my college education. Instead of competing to be on their “level,” by speaking with them, they shared their secrets with me and allowed me to feel like their equal.
So, to put it succinctly, I love my siblings, not for the impressive things they’ve done, but for the simple conversations we have had, the exciting things we have seen and done together, and the moments of shared weakness that have made us stronger. Yes, we went through the treacherous years of pinching and yelling, and the countless battles over privacy and property (and sometimes, these still occur), but having two siblings is truly a blessing I count every day.
This Easter, I received a pretty awesome honor. Since my sister was unable to make it back for the holiday dinner, she gave me the recipe of her famous Easter Sweet Bread. Basically, this is the bread made at every major holiday dinner (Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.) and I can’t remember a time when my sister wasn’t the one making it. I would come into the kitchen and smell the warm scent of saffron and milk, the smell of the beginning stages of the bread, and know it was time to make a holiday dinner. I have to admit, I was a little nervous about the undertaking. Don’t get me wrong, I love baking bread and I do it often, but this is not just bread, this is THE bread. I must have read the recipe 20 times, constantly checking and rechecking times and measurements. There were some minor frightening moments, but it turned out OK in the end.
Ingredients:
skim milk 3/4 c.
saffron generous pinch
sugar, granulated 1/2 c.
salt 1 tsp.
butter 1/2 c.
active dry yeast 2 packages
warm water 1/3 c.
eggs 3
bread or all-purpose flour 5.5 – 6.5 c.
Directions:
1. Combine saffron, sugar, salt, and butter in sauce pan. Heat over low heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Add milk and combine. Cool mixture to lukewarm.
2. Warm bowl with warm water, then dissolve yeast in measured warm water. (105 - 115 degrees F)
3. In mixer, combine milk mixture, yeast and eggs with 5 cups of flour.
4. Add remaining flour as necessary. Knead for 6 minutes until the dough is very smooth to the touch.
5. Place in a bowl greased with peanut oil and allow to rise for about 1 hour. (Should double in size)
6. Punch and shape dough into greased pans. Allow to rise again.
*Use the oil from the bowl to grease the pans.
*To Shape:
For individual buns: Grab a decent sized ball of dough—about 2 inches in diameter. Stretch and twist the dough, and then tie into a knot.
For pull-a-parts: Grab a slightly smaller ball of dough—about 1.5 inches in diameter. Smooth out the ball by making a circle with your pointer finger and thumb (like making the "OK" sign) and push the ball through this circle till it has a smooth, round surface. Arrange in pan with a little space in between each ball. (Should make 2 pans of pull-a-parts)
For Easter Braid: Divide dough into two balls. With one of the balls, divide into 3 equal pieces and roll out so each piece measures about 1.5 feet with slightly tapered ends. Pinch ends together and braid, pinching other ends together to finish. Arrange into pan. You can put Easter eggs into the braid as well, but it'll remain a little doughy around the eggs.
7. Brush generously with melted butter or benacol. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until tops are golden.
Looks delicious! I need to taste some of your baking endeavors sometime :)
ReplyDelete