Nuts and Gum

In "Lisa vs Malibu Stacy," one of the last great episodes of The Simpsons, Homer trots into the kitchen, makes some comment about being in the golden demographic of males ages 18 to 35 whose every whim and desire was met by manufacturers worldwide. He then pulls out a cannister of nuts and gum--"Two great tastes finally together!" or something like that.

Yeah, we all know that bringing together two great tastes into one product is always a smashing success. Here's a fine example of this principle:

German French Toast

Yes, that's right, Gentle Reader--it's an irresistible combination of French toast and muenster cheese. As the person (afflicted with a strange disorder that rendered his or her taste buds dead) who submitted this recipe and photo to AllRecipes.com noted, "I know it sounds weird, but you have to taste it!"

Umm, yeah, that'll draw people in for sure.

But here are two great tastes that I can say from experience do go well together: cinnamon and orange. If you don't know this already for yourself, Gentle Reader, bake this bread and discover for yourself!

Whole Grain Orange Cinnamon Bread1 C orange juice
2 T vegetable oil
2 T honey
1/2 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1 1/2 t orange zest
1/3 C old-fashioned oats
1/3 C whole wheat flour
1/3 C rye flour
2 C bread flour
1/3 T vital gluten
2 t yeast

1. Add the ingredients to the bread machine in the order recommended by the machine's manufacturer.
   
2. Select the Raisin, Wheat, Sweet or Basic cycle on the machine.
   
3. If available, select the crust color.
   
4. Press Start.

Yield: 1 one-pound loaf

Nutritional Info
I have nothing to say here.

The Faudie's Futzings
The loaf of bread, Gentle Reader, represents a first: I truly futzed with a bread recipe. Well, I should make that "recipes" since the above is the combination of two entries from Donna Rathmell German's The Bread Machine Cookbook and The Bread Machine Cookbook II for an orange cinnamon loaf and a whole-grain orange loaf, respectively. I at last felt ready to do some mixing and matching, and the result was a towering success...

...literally.

Not only did I get what's probably the tallest loaf produced here at Chez Boeckman-Walker, but I also got a kitchen filled with the mouth-watering aroma of orange and cinnamon that lingered long after the bread had baked. What's even better is that those two flavors have stayed in the bread long after it was baked: That's not something I've been able to achieve, particularly with orange flavor, before in baked goods. Then again, using both a full cup of orange juice and a teaspoon and a half of freshly grated orange zest should infuse the bread with longer-lasting orange flavor.

While the orange flavor was full-bodied, it didn't overpower the cinnamon. Unlike the cinnamon-raisin loaf we made early on in our bread-making misadventures, the cinnamon flavor stuck around in the finished product and was balanced with the orange.

The combination of grains, particularly the rye and oats, helps elevate this loaf beyond just an orange- and cinnamon-flavored white bread. All those grains don't make the bread dense. In fact, it's actually pretty light.

Now, let's all forget our troubles with a big bowl of strawberry ice cream!