Homemade Italian Bread with Italian Bread Dipping Oil

You know when you go to an Italian restaurant and they bring out fresh bread with an oil dipping sauce? Yeah? Well, I attempted and succeeded in doing that here at home. I have been good at making yeast breads for quite awhile now, having perfected my own pizza dough recipe. So this bread wasn't difficult for me. I know some people anguish over making homemade bread but it really is getting used to the feel and texture of the dough... and letting it sit and rise. I'm sure there is some impatience to this process for some but if you baby it and leave it alone - the result is well worth it.

I used this Homemade Italian Bread recipe and I thank MysteryGirl over at the GeniusKitchen site for submitting it.

Here are my tasty-looking results!

In addition to the bread, I made this Italian Bread Dipping Oil that I found on the Albertsons website. I have no clue who the contributor of the recipe was. I believe this is some sort of store but this oil dip for the bread was as delicious as the bread was. Hands down one to make again!!

I hope someone else attempts to make these and lets me know what they think. 

Gold Star on both from me!! 

Mom's Salmon Mousse - Not MY Mom's, though!!

Actually, I don't know if my mom has ever made a salmon mousse. I'll have to ask her. I know this is a first for me. I have done salmon cakes and salmon croquettes but never a mousse but I found this Mom's Salmon Mousse recipe and thought I'd check it out. As always, my thanks goes out to Terri Otteni for sharing the recipe on Allrecipes.

I admit, I was expecting this to turn out entirely different. I thought it would be more than an inch high. I thought it would be light and airy - like a mousse. Maybe I did something wrong but I followed the recipe exact.

The flavor, though, it was tasty. I actually liked it. I think it would be great toasted between two slices of bread with cheese. That would make a good lunch. A sandwich with this plus a bowl of the New England Clam Chowder I made.

Here's what my version looked like: