I confess I have had a fear of yeast breads. Reading the ingredients of this weeks Tuesdays with Dorie baking event my breath quickened, I was overwhelmed at the three pages of instructions. I was longing for someone to choose one of the shorter, quicker recipe. But then would it be a challenge? Peabody of Culinary Concoctions by Peabody hosted this weeks event.

I woke up early one morning last week and decided to dive in.

The recipe starts with making one recipe of Brioche dough. As I started through the steps of mixing the dough and then adding in the butter I started thinking this isn’t so bad. I put it in a bowl and waited for it to rise. An hour later sitting in my chilly apartment I realized that would be the true challenge.

I ended up turning on my electric (the only time I have been thankful for electric) oven to 200, opened the door and set the bowl on it. After about 20 minutes things started moving. I left it on the counter for another hour until it had doubled in size.

Then, I moved it to the refrigerator and only once, “slapped it” down because it wasn’t really rising all that much. I had survived step one.

The next morning I was eager for step two and the finished product.

I made the pastry cream, wishing I had done that the day before to allow more time for cooling and setting. I went on to the raisins, which required dousing with rum and igniting. Well, I have a few fire issues. I lived next to two houses growing up, that burned to the ground. Being pulled from the front door of your house at age 6, along with your pregnant mother, leaves you with a healthy respect for fire. Our house survived but not we had watched part of our neighbors burn down. Sorry - back to the snails.

So, I did not ignite the rum but twirled over a hot stove. It seemed to work.

I rolled out the dough which I must say looked like a beautiful thing as I layered the cream, raisin and cinnamon sugar over it. I wound it as tightly as I could, cut my little snails and lined them up ready to bake. Glancing at the recipe again I noticed the words, let rise another hour and a half. That ’s what happens when you skim read! So another round of fighting the morning chill to get the dough to rise.

Finally, I baked them until the tops were golden brown. I drizzled the glaze over the warm rolls and was finally rewarded with the delicious, creamy, crisp brioche snails.

They were worth every minute! My nephews seem to agree as fighting ensued over the small portion I had left. I am baking another batch to deliver this morning. I have conquered my fear of yeast breads!

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Today is St. Patrick’s Day. I am part Irish and just started a food blog. Irish Soda Bread was a must. I saw a recipe by Julia Child and whipped it up while talking on the phone. Not a good idea. It had only 4 ingredients and seemed so easy.

Then I opened the oven to this ugly loaf of bread. I trimmed a piece off and thought it’s missing the raisins. Julia’s did not call for them. This was quite possibly the worst thing I had ever made….sorry Julia.

Now truth be told I know good Irish Soda Bread. Muldoon’s, this adorable Irish pub just a few blocks down in Newport Beach serves up a delicious Irish Soda Bread. I remembered it being a bit sweet so off I went in search of a better recipe and to the store for more buttermllk.

It turns out there are many variations of Irish Soda Bread on the web. Here are a few others you might be interested in.

• Deb at Smitten Kitchen’s made a Skillet Irish Soda Bread

• Elise at Simply Recipes serves up her version of Irish Soda Bread

• Jesse at Cakespy.com serves up fun versions - even green scones

I ended up creating my own from a few recipes I saw. In doing so I created the largest Irish Soda Bread ever made. The bread was tasted much closer to the ones I remember. The outside was crisp but inside was a moist crumb.

My goal - I have one year to get the Muldoon’s recipe and bake it up for you.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

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When I tasted these goat cheese biscuits I knew I had to find the recipe to share them with you. Recently on a visit to Chicago, I visited Table Fifty-Two, a new restaurant opened by Art Smith, Oprah’s chef. You know the power of the O when you try to make a reservation and they tell you they book 60 to 90 days out. I, only 30 days out, settled for lunch.

The day we were to go was a wet, snowy day and so when they opened the doors at 11:30 everyone piled in at once. It was much smaller than I expected. No wonder it is so hard to get into!

It is in an old carriage house and very small, seating only 36. The décor is very warm and inviting. They serve local, organic ingredients.

While we were reviewing the menu, the waiter brought out these biscuits served in the cast iron skillet straight out of the oven. They melted in my mouth. What would be next?

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