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This is nothing to do with spelling. Oddly enough I seem to be developing a bit of a reputation at work for insisting on proper spelling (as well as keeping the comms room tidy). Personally I find lines are a very effective method of correction, and 25 lines is just about right for an agile story card. The general lack of ability of some members of the team to spell is not however entirely unexpected, as a couple of them grew up in the bush (Shepherds judging by the accent).

It has been a long while since I have had the time to write a post. Particularly a technical one. And unfortunately that wil have to wait a tad longer. Which is a bit of a shame as there is some good stuff happening in the performance and stability corner of LMAX that I would like to talk about.

By way of mitigation I've been submerged in the business of helping the better half plan our wedding.  This weekend however was all about bread. I'll leave the lovecraftian nightmare of making croissants which has taken over our lives for the past 48 hours to another post, and instead talk about a brief break in the action I took to make a spelt loaf.

Part of getting hitched is losing some weight to fit into my penguin suit, which has required I stick to a high protein diet. This week the scales finally tipped at the desired weight, and bread came back on the menu. Plus I repaired the laser printer.

In celebration, I made a variation of the standard victorian milk loaf - this time with spelt flour, which is something that I have been curious about for a while.

Spelt - according to the bread book - is the grain the Romans used to make bread with and according to the bit on the side of the flour bag they called it "marching grain". Which when ground up into flour presumably makes Roman marching powder (Sorry). It's low in gluten, so it is very sticky and rises more quickly than strong white bread flour.

Ingredients:

• 800g of Spelt Flour
• 8g yeast
• 16g salt
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 300g milk
• 220g water

As a reminder, the water/milk mix should be lukewarm - hand temperature. Mix all the ingredients together and turn out. It will feel as though the mixture is too wet, but resist the temptation to add flour. After about 5 minutes kneading it starts to behave properly and ball up. Having a shiny new dough scraper helped. 15 minutes of kneading/upper body workout later you're ready for the first rise. Tuck in the sides to make a ball, oil the top and pop on top of the recently repaired X543.

Note to self. The next time you hear the printer make that grinding noise - its important. And costly. And messy to clear up. The yellow toner that spewed incontinently from the developer unit went just about everywhere as well as taking the printer out of action for several weeks. So pay attention, because an epson inkjet, whilst a fine stand in printer, just does not generate the same amount of warmth that is essential for a proper loaf.

Spelt rises more quickly, so after a mere 45 minutes the dough was just over twice the size, and was ready for knocking back and shaping. before popping into an oiled tin. Another hour to prove and into the oven for

• 10 mins @ 250 degrees C
• Then: 60 mins @ 170 degrees C

With plenty of steam.

Result.

It's 22:15, and we're still making croissants. Will the nightmare never end?