No Firefighters Were Harmed In The Baking Of This Bread

I was the first rendered bankrupt in this afternoon's cutthroat game of Bookopoly (despite having bookstores on The Great Gatsby and The Grapes of Wrath).  So I wandered into the kitchen.

This is not a good thing.  I am the reason one should regularly check the batteries in one's smoke alarm.

Still, I mean well.

So, with these best of intentions in mind, I unearthed a recipe, "Harvest Grape Loaf," that I first made for a family Christmas dinner way back in high school.  This was a few years ago ("a few years" in this case meaning "several decades").  It's an easy but charming recipe, fragrant with cardamom and nutmeg, and impressive in its presentation.  To wit, the loaf before rising:

And just before baking:

And fresh out of the oven:

It's a deceptively easy celebratory bread, one that I always associate with Christmas and family and love.  I really should bake it more often.  Slathered with butter, there's nothing better than fresh bread.  Baking and eating it today was a satisfying end to the holiday season.

And if I can bake it without incident, anyone can.  So if you'd like the recipe, just let me know.