Oatmeal Bread

bert's Note:

Foolproof and absolutely delicious!

• Total Time: 2 hrs 40 mins
• Prep Time: 2 hrs
• Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 24

Yield: 2.0 loaves, ...

• 2 cups boiling water
• 1 cup rolled oat
• 1/4 ounce dry yeast (1 packet)
• 1/2 cup lukewarm water
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 teaspoons butter, melted
• 5 cups flour

Directions:

1. Pour boiling water over oats; let rest 2 hours.
2. Sprinkle yeast over lukewarm water; stir until dissolved.
3. Add to oats with molasses, salt and butter.
4. Stir in flour, beating with wooden spoon until well mixed.
5. Shape into ball.
6. Place in a buttered bowl, cover with tea towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
7. Punch down, then beat again until smooth.
8. Divide batter into 2 buttered loaf pans.
9. Let rise until doubled, about 40 minutes.
10. Bake in 375 oven for 40-45 minutes, or til loaves are golden and pull away from sides of pan.

Reviews

[Blessed*One]

I made this with about 3/4 Tbsp. of salt (perfect amount for me), using whole wheat pastry flour. I had to add at least 1 cup more of flour so it would not be sticky, so I could knead it as suggested by another reviewer. It didn't seem to rise very well, so maybe next time I will jut try to bake it sticky, without more flour and without kneading. Although, I think it would be too sticky to even shape into a ball (step 5) as the recipe is. the taste is very good, so it is definitely worth another try.

[ballarat]

I didn't have any molasses and used treacle instead. This still turned out lovely. I sliced it and froze the slices. We just took the slices from the freezer as needed and toasted them - really delicious.

[~heidi~]

Absolutely delicious... although the recipe does not state, make sure you knead the dough until smooth before it rises the first time and also before you place them in the loaf pans. The bread is very moist and has a nice but subtle flavor from the molasses. I used bread flour and it turned out great. Next time I might use a little less salt, however. Thanks for the recipe!