Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Easy Multigrain Bread

The dough is rising in the silicon loaf pans.

Ingredients:

1 tsp (5 mL) sugar
1/2 cup (125 mL) water, warm
1 envelope (1 envelope) (8 g) active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp/11 mL)
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) water, warm
1/3 cup (75 mL) molasses
1 1/2 tsp (7 mL) salt
2 tbsp (30 mL)  oil
5 3/4 cups (1425 mL) multigrain flour

Directions:

1. DIissolve 1 teaspoon (5 mL) sugar in 1/2 cup (125 mL) warm water in large bowl. Sprinkle in yeast. Let stand 10 minutes.
2. Add 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) warm water, molasses, salt, oil and 2 cups (500 mL) of multigrain flour.
3. Stir in 2 3/4 cups (675 mL) of remaining flour gradually. If necessary, add more flour to make a soft dough which leaves sides of bowl. Turn out on floured board. Round up into ball.
4. Knead dough until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes).
5. Place a bit of oil on the dough ball, place it in a clean bowl and cover it with a tea towel to keep warm.
6. Let the dough rise in a warm place (75°-85°F/24°-29°C) until doubled in size (about 45-60 minutes).
7. Punch the down down and turn it onto lightly floured countertop.  Divide it into 2 equal portions. Round up each portion. Cover and let rest 10 minutes.
8. Shape each portion into a loaf and place them seam side down in 2 greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" x 2 3/4" (1.5 L) loaf pans. I now use silicon pans so I do not need to grease them first. Cover with a tea towel.
9. Let dough rise again in a warm place until dough rises for another (45-60 minutes).
10. Bake at 400°F (200°C) on lower oven rack for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350°F (180°C) and bake 20 to 30 minutes more. Remove from pans immediately. Brush top crust with butter if a soft crust is desired. Cool on wire racks.

Here are the loaves fresh out of the oven. I've brushed them with butter.

I enjoyed this bread but I really want to try it with seeds and nuts sometime. I want to try a heavier bread so I need to look for another recipe.  I love the idea of multigrain bread because I'm a bread lover but white flour breads are not good for a diabetic.  If any of my readers have a recipe for a heavy, healthy bread, please let me know if you can share it with me. Update November 11, 2011 - Although the bread tasted fine after baking, I have to say, I think the taste of the bread seemed to improve after a day or two. I enjoyed it a lot more!

Make Your Own Flour Mix

If you do not have or cannot find multigrain flour or simply want to make your own  multigrain mix I've reproduced a master mix recipe below.  This recipe comes from the Kansas State University's Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program. I haven't used this recipe yet myself but intend to mix some up for future use. I will likely add some seeds and nuts to this mix to make my bread extra crunchy.

Slices of the finished loaf. You can see the seeds in the sides of the loaf. The bread is soft inside but crunchy with grains. The bottom of the loaf pan makes the diagonal lines across the bottom of the loaf.

Multi-Grain Master Mix

2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose white flour
¾ cup instant non-fat dry milk
½ cup dry rolled oats
½ cup yellow cornmeal
3 Tablespoons baking powder
2 Tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup oil

Stir together all dry ingredients in large bowl
or pan.

Cut in oil with pastry blender or two knives
until mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.

Store in covered containers.


Yield: 5 ½ cups of MIX

18 comments:

Linda said...

Your bread looks delicious! Thanks for sharing your recipe.

Linda

Joyful said...

Thank you, Linda. I've been meaning to make this bread for some time now.

Karen @ Pieces of Contentment said...

I had never heard of multigrain flour. Looks like a nice mix. You could experiment with adding various grains, nuts and seeds. Just the addition of them will make the loaf more nutritious, lower GI and heavier in texture.

A Woman that Fears the Lord said...

Yum! I have 'bake bread' on my Thursday spot on the calendar. I'm making it for Mom but I always keep half a loaf for us. Hubby asked that I make white bread since I haven't made any in a long, long time. :-) We're not eating much bread these days. Only for special treats. I love the way it makes the house smell.

Joyful said...

Pieces of Sunshine, this is the first time I've bought multigrain flour. They only sell it in 5 kg. bags. I thought I would give it a try. Thanks for the tips on making heavier bread. I hope to be trying some new and creative breads this winter.

Joyful said...

Living on Less Money, I totally agree that the smell of bread is heavenly. I'm sure your mother looks forward to home baked bread from you. How nice of you to make it for her. I remember that you said you don't bake much bread these days so it is a nice treat. Enjoy it!

Kilauea Poetry said...

Hi Penny, missed visiting you. Your recipe looks delicious! I haven't tried the multi grain flour but have experimented quite a bit in the past. One you may enjoy is taking wheat berries and sprouting them first then mixing them in for a yummy change. I've always loved bread too. Thanks too for the recipe mix!
I'm sorry your not doing so great either. How's your leg? You still walking much..just slower right? Well, we just got snow early this year and I imagine you must be trying to stay warm.. I think you did mention that? Anyway, try an stay warm! (hugs)

Vores have said...

Hello Joyful.
Delicious bread you have baked.
I have the recipe for these Trekornsbrød - I do not know if it is "heavy" enough for the diabetic.

2 loaves.
Ingredients: 200 g. trekornsblanding (or mix yourself a little sunflower kernels cracked wheat kernels and rye)
3 dl. water
50 g butter
6 cups. milk (water is also quite OK)
50 g yeast
200 g quark el naturel. cottage cheese
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. sugar
1.2 kg. flour
Trekornsblandingen water and boil over low heat for 4 minutes with lid on. The butter is mixed in. Add the remaining ingredients and knead dough. Raises for 1 hour.
Put in the molds. Increases in 1 / 2 hour
Bake in bottom of oven for 35 minutes at 200 degrees C.
Wishing you a good Wednesday.
Hugs Hanne Bente ♥

Jo said...

This looks scrumptious, Penny. I've saved it to my favourites to make soon. Hope you're keeping warm. Blessings, Jo

Joyful said...

Hello Regina, I've missed your visits too and your blogging. I hope you are feeling better soon. Thank you for your tips for bread. I'll have to find wheat berries first. Do you live high up enough to get the snow or did it just snow on the mountains near you? Soon I hope to get some plastic to cover my windows and that will help the draft. I hope you are keeping warm too. Hugs. xx

Joyful said...

Hanne, thank you so much for your recipe! I will definitely want to try it sometime.

Joyful said...

Hi Jo, I hope you'll get a chance to make the loaf. I know you make wonderful bread. I've got to try some of your bread recipes too. I'm not keeping as warm as I'd like but we haven't even got to winter yet. Hopefully before then, I'll have winter proofed the apartment and got the fire place working. There seems never an end of things to do but that is what keeps life interesting ;-)

Angelika Poe said...

ooohhh dear Penny, these bread however, look delicious and they are definitely good taste, let it go well with thee sets out, think of something nice and eat your bread, I'll think of you ... Kind regards, Geli

Joyful said...

Aw, thank you dear Geli for your wonderful compliments. I want to make a good, heavy, healthy bread like they make in Europe. You probably have some in Germany. I still need to find my recipe. Hanne left me a recipe (above in the comments) which I will also try. Have a good day, Geli.

Angelika Poe said...

Hi Penny, I've saved your and Hannes recipe, it will like to try once, but must buy only another form of bread, then it'll go, I had a bread machine, had for years baked my own bread, and now he is broken and I have disposed of him. Now I need to buy only baking pans, do not want a new machine.
Let you taste and best wishes to the day. I will now rid my apartment of dust, vacuuming, and then tinker, so goes the day was over well .... Geli

Joyful said...

I'm so glad you saved two recipes, Geli. I have a bread machine but now that I have more time I can make bread the old fashioned way. Have a wonderful day tinkering. Warmest regards

Katy ~ said...

Gorgeous!

That second recipe you posted reminds me of Anadama bread, which I've made. Haven't had it in ages as I'm the only one here who will eat it.

Joyful said...

Hi Katy, thank for your visit. I've never heard of Anadama bread.

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