Super Bread!

Bread has always held a tremendous role in our daily breakfast foods. After all, you need something on which to display fantastic jams and jellies! Dad decided it was time we found a more “healthy” alternative to white french bread for our morning toast.

Recipe included!

After almost a year of trial, error and tweaking, out came my recipe for what I like to call “Super Bread” – the ultimate multigrain sandwich bread. It’s excellent for morning toast, lunch sandwiches and good old hot out of the oven bread and butter.

Have you ever tried Costco’s “Dave’s killer bread“? It’s pretty good, and yet expensive. Because I really wanted my bread to turn out something like it, I researched all the “copy cat” versions, compiled the ideas I liked and started the test batches. Eventually I had my own tried and true recipe that was Dad approved.

It’s fun to put as many different types of seeds that we have in the bread and you can really add whatever you like in. The seeds I use include: Sesame, Pumpkin, Quinoa, Chia, Sunflower, Millet and both ground and whole Flax seeds, along with oats and whole wheat. Overall I’d say this is really a healthy sandwich bread, and yet it is super fluffy and delicious so you’d rather eat this than any sponge-like white bread from the store. The seeds are present but not overwhelming. They are crunchy, and have just the right amount of presence to give a subtle depth of flavor and structure.

Now I would like to share with you the secret to perfect sandwich bread. By perfect, I mean tall, fluffy and soft. The most important part of bread making is to really knead it. I use my kitchen aid dough attachment and once I get to the kneading step I set my timer for 8 minutes and let it knead that dough nice and slow while I stand by and watch. Another trick is to use hi-gluten flour to get the extra height. Also,(trick number 3) let the dough rise good and long. I like to heat my oven up for 3 minutes and then turn it off so I can put my dough in for a nice warm rise.

When Dad first challenged me to make a healthy sandwich bread he invested in some excellent high quality bread pans. These bake correctly and have enough room for the size of loaf we needed – I love them!

When summer comes and you’re flooded with all the fresh garden produce needed for the best of sandwiches, it is important to have a bread you can rely on. None of this tasteless, barely there, dissolving Walmart sandwich bread – you need home made for home grown if you want the best. Our beefsteak tomatoes were particularly wonderful this year, and you need real bread to hold together a really good tomato sandwich. Otherwise, the luscious tomato juice will dissolve your sandwich!

So to sum up, this multi-grain “Super Bread” has been an excellent addition to literally our every-day meal. I routinely make 3 loaves once a week and have finally got the method down.
While the recipe might look hard, it really is just a bunch of simple steps leading to a lovely loaf! I hope you too can try this fun alternative to plain old white bread- if you ever get bored. 🙂

~Jean

Matthew 6:9-13
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Super Bread

This recipe makes 3 loaves of multi-grain bread. Loaves can be frozen for future use.

• Ingredients:
• 6 cups flour- all purpose or high-gluten.
• 3 cups warm water
• 2 Tablespoons white vinegar
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup + 1 1/2 tsp Olive Oil.
• 3 1/2 Tablespoons Yeast
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1-1 1/2 cups extra white flour
• 3 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 cup of each of the seeds of your choice, pumpkin
  sunflower, flax, sesame. etc…
• 1/2 cup oats+ a handful to sprinkle on top.
• 1 egg (optional) for egg wash on top

Step 1) -Sponge
Combine in mixer your warm water, oil, vinegar, sugar, molasses, and yeast. Then add while mixing your 6 cups white flour. Mix until well combined then place covered in warm spot for about 10-15min for proofing/rising this is the “Sponge”

Step 2) Knead
Once well proofed the sponge should be super risen and wet. Now in a different bowl combine whole wheat, salt, all the seeds you want and extra white flour. Then pour into sponge and mix until all together and then the kneading begins!
Turn mixer onto second speed and let it slowly knead for 8 minutes. The end result should be a smooth, elastic, lovely dough.

Step 3) -Rise
Oil your bread dough and transfer into a large bowl with plenty of rising room.
Turn oven to heat for 3 minutes and turn off. Place dough in warm oven. (Be sure to put a sticky note on oven so nobody cooks dough 😉 ) Let rise for 1 1/2 hours

Step 4) -Shape
Once your dough is risen to twice it’s original height, punch down and divide into 3 equal portions and gently shape into a loaf and place into well oiled bread pans. Cover and let rise and rest in warm place for 20 minutes then brush with egg wash and sprinkle with oats if desired.

Step 5)-Bake!
Preheat Oven to 350 degrees, Place risen loaves into hot oven and bake for 30 minutes. Take out of oven and let cool for 10min, then use a butter knife and gently take loaves out of bread pans. Cool and ENJOY!