Bread and Butter

I've been sick with a cold for a few days and all I wanted today was some fresh bread. Last week I made this French bread I found over at Joy the Baker. It didn't rise properly so it turned out kind of dense. I had to try again. I wish I had followed the link from her site to Steamy Kitchen where there is an awesome French Bread tutorial for novices like me. But, I didn't check that out until the bread was cooling. I guess I'll be making this bread again soon.

But even without the tips, today the dough rose beautifully (I used hot water rather than warm- I really need a thermometer in the kitchen....) and it was just what this achy body needed. I warmed up a can of tomato bisque soup with it and, not to my surprise, it didn't quite match up to the bread. Hey, I'm sick. I can only do so much.