Tag Archives: bread

Russian Black Bread

I tried this out over the long weekend. It’s delicious and has a tender texture (which is a problem I’ve had in the past with whole grain breads). The flavor is robust, so you’ll want to pair it with a topping that can hold up to it. No strawberries and cream here. So far I’ve tried it with sharp cheddar cheese and peanut butter, both to great success. I think it would make a fantastic Reuben.

The recipe is adapted from Allrecipes.

  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 2 tablespoons molasses (Original recipe calls for corn syrup. I highly recommend the flavor of the molasses.)
  • 2 teaspoons (1 packet) baking yeast
  • 1 cup rye flour
  • 2 1/2 cups bread flour (I used whole wheat.)
  • 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon instant coffee
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon caraway seed and 1/4 teaspoon fennel seed (I left these out. Depends on whether you like the flavor of caraway and fennel.)

Warm 1/2 cup of the water to about the temperature of a bath. Add the yeast and molasses and set aside.

Mix all the other ingredients except the butter together in a bowl. Just stir ’em together.

Check that the yeast molasses mixture is bubbly. Mix it into the dough. Move the dough from the bowl to a cutting board and knead until you get bored of kneading it. (The Allrecipes recipe called for 10 minutes kneading. Not going to happen.)

Soften the butter (carefully!) in the microwave and knead it into the dough. Knead for a few more minutes. Then move the dough to a fresh, greased bowl, cover with a towel, and set in a warm place for about an hour.

The dough should have expanded in volume. Punch it down, roll it into a ball, and put it in a greased loaf pan. Let it rise for another half hour.

Bake at 400ºF for about 25 minutes. When done, the underside of the bread should sound hollow when you tap it.

20150524_130838Enjoy!

20150524_130815

Awesome Molasses Wheat Bread

How do I describe the flavor of this bread?  Something along the lines of OMG I never want to buy store-bought wheat bread again.  The flavor is nutty and sweet and strongly of molasses, the texture’s nice and dense, the aroma is so, well, bready.  This bread is so substantial, just a little butter on it and an apple to the side, and you’ve got a lovely meal.  (And if you opt to add the nuts, it provides a complete protein.  Okay, I’ll get off my soapbox now.)  Adapted from James Beard.

  • 1 package yeast
  • 2 cups warm water
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup oatmeal
  • 3 cups all-purpose baking flour
  • (optional) 1 handful of raisins and 1 handful of nuts

Stir together the yeast and 1/2 cup of the warm water in a little bowl and set aside.  In a large bowl, mix the rest of the water, molasses, salt, oil, and whole-wheat flour.  Add the yeast mixture and stir again.  Slowly add the white flour until it looks like bread dough.  Put it on a floured surface and knead until everything is nicely mixed.  Put in an oiled bowl, cover with a slightly damp towel, and let sit for 1 1/2 hour.

Take the dough out and punch it down.  If you like, make a dent in the middle, throw in the nuts and raisins, and knead them in.  Once it’s nice and mixed, put the dough onto an oiled baking sheet.  Or you can split it in half and put it into two oiled 8 1/2 by 4/12 loaf pans.  Cover with a slightly damp towel again and let sit for 1 1/2 hour.

Uncover, bake at 375 for 40 minutes.  The bread’s done when you knock it and it sounds hollow.