I like to give credit where it's due-- especially when it comes to creative inspo. A handful of years ago my now sister in law started baking sourdough bread. She's an incredible cook and baker, and there was something so beautiful about the care and love she puts into her bakes especially. In recent times her bread has been an inspiration to me to also chase the life of the open crumb, which has been a NSFW (Not Safe For Waist) pursuit indeed. While most of the time my bread couldn't come close to the drool-worthy loaves Kim makes, she continues to be the measuring stick I bring to my efforts. I have a secondary inspiration which goes a lot deeper as a tradition of bread in my life, and that is my Mom. Growing up, my mom would bake bread every Saturday. She knew the recipe by heart and the results of her labor would be gone in a matter of days. The crumb was soft, nutty and slightly sweet, thanks to the honey she added from a 5 gallon bucket from the flour mill, and the bucket had a permanent place in the kitchen. Sometimes she would bake rolls as a door prize at family birthday parties and the attendees would fight over the winning ticket. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on homemade whole wheat bread is a luxury I didn't even fully realize as being all that special, until I had bread from the store and learned the difference. When I text my mom photos of my bread I know it makes her proud... and I'm pretty sure she sheds a sentimental tear of two as well, because that's just how Mom is. Now I get to share that same love of home made bakes with my friends and family, and I hope they get at least a taste of the care in every delicious bite.