Ever since watching the Marketplace episode about “Made in Canada” foods, I’ve been reading labels like mad.  This led to the bread machine purchase… and now, the ice cream machine.  (Most store-bought ice cream doesn’t even have milk in it!  Link)

How better to break in the new machine, than by participating in Ice Cream Ireland’s ice cream taste tests!  The testing starts tomorrow!

We’ve had this recipe bookmarked since it was the cover recipe on the July issue of Delicious magazine.   This recipe seemed like it was going to be a superstar recipe, but in the end, it wasn’t true love.

I think it was the sage.  I don’t really like the smell of sage … or for that matter, the taste.  I liked the idea of pumpkin between the noodle layers, but it was just too mushy and sagey.  The buttery walnut topping almost made up for the sagey-mush.  Almost.  I probaby wouldn’t make it again, though it did look good.

No boyfriendly rating.

The boyfriendly household got a new appliance - a bread maker! I’m getting old and getting fussy about my food (especially bread). I grew up eating brown bread - a recipe passed down from my New Brunswick relatives. I’m not even sure the New Brunswick side of my family even makes any other type of bread! Then again, why would they? This bread is awesome.

I probably like it because of the molasses. I love molasses - maybe even more than I love parsnips.  Don’t make me choose between the two.  I can’t.

This bread may not prove to be a boyfriendly recipe since the resident boy isn’t too fond of molasses. He prefers salty yeast paste (Vegemite). Yuck.

The first loaf turned out great - next time I’ll set the crust to “light” rather than “medium”.

New Brunswick style brown bread
(make a 2lb loaf in your bread maker)

• 1 1/4 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 1/2 Tbsp butter
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3 1/4 cups flour
• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• 2 1/2 tsp. yeast