Oatmeal Sandwich Bread

There is nothing quite like walking into a house with the smell of freshly baking bread to greet you.  It envelopes you with this warm, safe, delicious smell that brings to mind images of your mom's flour covered hands and beautifully risen loaves sitting on the counter.  Well, it does for me at least.  When I was a little girl, the waiting was the hardest part.  I would wiggle impatiently.  I would often poke at the dough, willing it to rise faster.  (What can I say?  Baking bread is perhaps one of the more difficult kitchen activities for kids.)  It all seemed like waaaaayyyy too much work for that one loaf to come out, and then it would disappear so quickly.

In more recent years, I have come to love the process as much as the outcome.  I love watching such simple ingredients turn into such a beautiful, rustic product.  There is something cathartic about working the dough, watching it transition from a rough, irregular mass to a smooth, supple ball, and later into a beautifully browned loaf.

Sometime last year, I received the book Good to the Grain, and I am ashamed to say that, while I was excited about it, I didn't really look through it.  I absolutely love using whole grains, I just didn't have time.  After all, there are only so many recipes you can make in a year, and I had already gotten two five other recipe books.  Oops.

Just recently, I picked it up, and was delighted by the variety of grains used and the variety of recipes.  And while I already have a fabulous go-to whole wheat sandwich bread recipe, I am always compelled to at least try a new one.  And I was not disappointed.  This bread has both a wonderful crust and crumb, slices well, and has a wonderful flavor.  It is also incredibly easy, which makes it a great bread for a novice bread baker.  If you are nervous about making bread, this could be a wonderful place to start.

Oatmeal Sandwich Bread
Adapted from Good to the Grain

2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon unsulphured molasses (or eliminate molasses and add one additional tablespoon honey)
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups bread flour
1 cup rolled oats, plus more for sprinkling
2 ounces (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 tablespoon sea salt

Add 2 cups of warm water, honey, molasses, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer.  Stir, allowing yeast to bloom for about 5 minutes, until it begins to bubble.  To autolyse, measure the flour, oats, and butter into the bowl with the yeast mixture and stir together with a wooden spoon.  Cover and let stand for 30 minutes.

Attach the bowl and the bread hook to the mixer, add the salt, and mix on medium speed for 6 minutes (alternately, knead by hand until the dough is soft, tacky, and supple, about fifteen minutes).  The dough should slap around the sides without sticking to them.  If the dough is sticking at any time during the mixing, add a teaspoon or two of bread flour until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl.

For the first rise, scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead it a few times.  Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and let rise until doubled, about one hour.

To shape the dough, scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.  Press down on the dough to work out any bubbles, and press the dough onto itself until it begins to spring back.  Pinch the seams together tightly, and place dough into a lightly oiled loaf pan (9x5x3 inches), pressing the dough down so as to fill the pan evenly.  For the second rise, cover the dough in a towel and allow to rise for 1 hour, or until the dough rises half again and puffs up barely or just over the edge of the pan.  While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

When the dough has completed its second rise, brush with water, and sprinkle with oats, if desired.  Bake for 40 minutes, or until the top crust is hard and sounds hollow when tapped.  Remove the loaf from the pan and cool on a baking rack, preferably for a few hours.