This is the second Friday of “bread” posts, spurred on by the discussions I’ve had in real life and on Twitter about the joys of home-baked bread. The first recipe (posted 19 January) was for an “almost no-knead” bread. This week I am posting my recipe for a traditional (read – knead it yourself or with a bread machine) multigrain bread.I make this bread using the knead-only function on the bread machine, and then I finish it in the oven. I love the smell of fresh baked bread. This bread is super – with the honey adding just a nice sweet note to the multigrain. I suspect you could do the whole recipe in the bread machine, but I haven’t tried that (I am not a fan of square bread). Also clearly you can do the recipe all by hand, but I love delegating the kneading to my bread machine.If you take a photo of the finished product, feel free to email me and I will add it to this post: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) – along with your feedback of course.Enjoy!PS: I have halved this recipe (and the half sizing is below) as the full version just doesn’t fit well in the bread machine.Multigrain BreadPublished March 1, 2006 in Cook’s IllustratedMakes one 9 by 5-inch loaf. I have frozen extra bread by wrapping in foil. Defrosted and reheated it is just as delicious as the fresh variety.Also, the original recipe uses food easily purchased in the US as Cook’s Illustrated is a US publication. I have substituting with grain mixes readily available in the UK. Experiment and find a combination which you like.INGREDIENTS3 1/8 ounces 5-grain porridge (oatmeal) , about 5/8 of a cup10 ounces boiling water (1 1/4 cups)7.5 ounces unbleached all-purpose flour (1 1/2 cups), plus extra for dusting work surface3 3/4 ounces whole wheat flour (3/4 of a cup)2 tablespoons honey2 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly1 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast1/2 tablespoon table salt1/2 cup pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds, unsalted (I use a flaxseed / pumpkin seed combination – I bet you could also use Chia seeds too, but I haven’t found a Chia supplier yet in the UK)1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oatsINSTRUCTIONS1. Place cereal mix in bowl and pour boiling water over it; let stand, stirring occasionally, until mixture cools and resembles thick porridge, about 1 hour. 2. Whisk flours in medium bowl.3. Once grain mixture has cooled, add honey, melted butter, and yeast and stir to combine. 4. Add flours, 1/2 cup at a time, and knead until dough forms ball. 5. Place into non-reactive bowl and cover with plastic. Let dough rest 20 minutes. 6. Add salt and knead. Add seeds and knead. Knead until seeds are dispersed evenly and dough forms smooth, taut ball. 7. Place dough into non-reactive bowl. I make sure the bowl is coated in olive oil. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled.NOTE: For Steps 1 – 7 I do this in my bread machine, following the instructions of the machine for the order of ingredients.8. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 375 degrees (about 180C). Spray 9 by 5-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray (I use olive oil). 9. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and pat into 12 by 9-inch rectangle; cut dough in half crosswise with knife or bench scraper. Follow illustrations below to shape loaves and coat with oats. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let rise until almost doubled in size. Dough should barely spring back when poked. Roll bread into log. Pinch log shut. Coat in oats and lower seam side down into pan.Images from Cook’s Illustrated.10. Bake until internal temperature registers 200 degrees (120C) on instant-read thermometer, about 35 to 40 minutes. 11. Remove loaves from pans and cool on wire rack before slicing, about 3 hours.This bread is delicious – I couldn’t wait until it was cool to have it!
