My workplace is vegan and animal-friendly, so every day I get to work in the company of not just people committed to animal rights but also a number of furry, four-legged creatures who make coming in to work a lot of fun.

We have four cats who live in the office and dogs who come in every day with their parents. It is not unusual for me to walk into my office after a meeting and find my chair taken over by Fergie, a beautiful tabby with grave eyes, and never mind the cat bed sitting right there. Or to be pleasantly startled when Oliver, the handsome black cat, rubs against my legs while I am staring at the computer, trying to deal with a particularly tough problem.

Once in a while I'll hear soft footsteps outside the office and look up to find Bailey the dog making his rounds. He will stop at my feet, give me a soulful look with soft, brown eyes, and then offer up his chin for a good scratch.

Of course, it takes a certain kind of dog-- or cat-- to be comfortable in a workplace. I cannot even imagine taking Opie, who gets inordinately stressed in strange new places (and likes to chase cats) to work. But that's another story for another day.

Is your workplace animal-friendly? Do you wish it was?

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I wanted to make bread rolls this past weekend, and the recipe I came up with sounded like a winner before I had even started: Maple Sourdough Rolls. And here's the clincher: it's partly whole-wheat and wholesome with the nutty goodness of flax.

Maple and sourdough might sound like a strange combination, but these rolls are neither sour, nor do they taste cloyingly sweet. They have just the lightest kiss of maple flavor and the sourdough is only there to help make these rolls tender and give them a great rise. You won't taste it at all.

This recipe makes a lot of rolls-- 24-- so they are great if you are expecting guests -- or an army-- to feed. I shaped them in a spiral for a little cuteness, but you can just roll them into smooth rounds or in crescents. They would also make great slider buns-- halve the size of the rolls and you'd get 48 slider buns out of this recipe.

Here's the recipe. Enjoy, all!

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Looking for more sourdough bread recipes?