Quick and Easy Artisan Swedish Christmas Limpa

This recipe is from the book, Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes A Day. It is recommended to use a baking stone in your oven.

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Yields: 4 1 lb loaves

Ingredients

• 2  cups  hot tap water
• 1  cup  cold  orange juice
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons  granulated yeast
• 1 1⁄2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1⁄2 cup honey (recommend NuNaturals MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend) or 1⁄4 cup stevia (recommend NuNaturals MoreFiber Stevia Baking Blend)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  ground aniseed
• 1  teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1  cup  rye flour
• 5 1⁄2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
•  cornstarch, wash (blend 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch with a small amount of water using a fork, add 1/2 cup water and micro)

• Topping for Each Loaf

• 1⁄4 teaspoon  ground aniseed
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons brown sugar

Directions

1. Combine hot tap water and orange juice. Check temperature of water mixture. Should be lukewarm. Mix the yeast, salt, honey, spices and orange zest with the water in a 5 qt bowl or a lidded (not airtight) food storage container.
2. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon, a 14 cup capacity food processor [with dough attachment], Danish dough whisk, or a heavy duty stand mixer [with dough hook]. If you are not using a machine, you may need to use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.
3. Cover (not airtight) and allow to rest at room temperature until dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2 hours.
4. The dough can be used after initial rise though it is easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 7 days or divide into 4 1-lb portions and freeze in an airtight container for no more than 2 weeks. Thaw 24 hours before usage.
5. On baking day, dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 lb piece (grapefruit sized). Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter turn as you go. Allow to rest and rise on a whole wheat flour covered pizza peel for 40 minutes. Mix together topping ingredients, enough for amount of loaves being made.
6. Twenty minutes before baking time, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, with a baking stone placed on the middle rack. Place an empty metal broiler pan on any other shelf that will not interfere with the baking.
7. Paint the surface with cornstarch wash and slash a cross, scallop or tic-tac-toe pattern into the top of the bread, using a serrated bread knife. Sprinkle with topping mixture. Cornstarch wash can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.
8. Slide the loaf directly onto the hot stone. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray and quickly close the oven door. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until deeply browned and firm. Allow to cool before slicing and eating.