Granary Bread

Approx cost: €2.50
Approx calories (per 100g): ~240
Approx preparation and baking time: 2 hours

I have to agree with Andreas’ sentiments in his recent post here – I love bread! Having recently discovered an online store which ships ~30 kilos of British products to me for just €30 I decided to place an order, although got a bit carried away :). €150, and 1 week later I have my box of goodies delivered, including 6 different bags of flour which just can’t be bought in France, two of which are granary flour. This amazing flour makes a bread which is rich, dark and nutty in flavour and goes just perfectly with some good strong cheese, some pickled onions, or even just spread with some butter and jam or marmalade! Now I know that not everyone has access to granary flour so I’ll make a post for slightly more traditional bread later!

Ingredients

Ingredients you'll need for this dish

– 1kg Granary Flour
– 50g Butter
– 3 tsps Salt
– 4 tsps Sugar (optional, but makes a thicker crust)
– ~15-20g dried, instant Yeast
– ~500 ml warm Water

You’ll also need
– 2 x Loaf Tins

Instructions

1. Start by pouring all the flour, salt and sugar into a large bowl. Take the butter, cut into small chunks and add in to the flour. Rub between your fingers until all butter lumps have disappeared. Stir yeast in well to the flour mix and then pour in the warm water. The water should feel warm to the touch, but not too hot.

   

2. Mix well with a spoon and then get stuck in with your hands, pressing the dough together to ensure all the flour mix is incorporated into the dough. If necessary add a little extra warm water until the dough binds nicely without being sticky.

   

3. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead well for around 10 minutes before separating into two (or more) appropriately sized pieces and pressing into the greased baking tins (rubbing a little butter on the tin will suffice)

   

4. Cover with a clean cloth to prevent the dough from drying out and leave in a warm place for about 1 hour, until the dough has risen to be about double in size.

   

5. Brush the top with an egg which has been beaten with a little milk for an optional glaze and then bake in a preheated oven at around 200 degrees Celsius for about 35-40 minutes.

   

6. Turn out of the tins and allow to cool. Enjoy with some butter – unless you’re going to be giving a lot away or eating it really fast, it’s best to freeze any extra except the first loaf to prevent it going bad or drying out. Enjoy!

Nom nom