Soft Honey Oats Bread

Though I kept this post (recipe and pics) ready before my holidays, I didnt have the write up  and by no means I wanna miss sharing the experience of baking this wonderful bread with you!

I used to bake bread regularly 2-3 years ago, then somehow that phase faded out gradually. For the past one year or so, I had this persistent “itch” to bake a bread. I googled every now and then and bookmarked recipes. But none of those recipes called out to me.

A few days before my India trip, when I was neck deep in some packing / organising stuff, somehow “the bread baking itch” overtook me and I found myself sitting in front of my computer googling again! May be the timing was right, I landed straight on this recipe, stopped all the other work and went ahead with this. When I first read this recipe, I was doubtful whether I read it correctly. Most recipes had some unusual ingredients or techniques, but this one was pretty straight n simple. I kept my fingers crossed hoping for this recipe to work out, because if it did, it'd be simply great! Also, I was doing this experimentation when I was really pressed for time and I really didnt want my time and effort to be wasted!

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I did each step of the recipe with extra precaution and with child like excitement and when I saw the end product I couldnt help myself but do a victory dance ;) Apart from the great joy of baking a bread at home from scratch, it also brought back many good memories. Bread,butter and jam was a staple tea time snack during my childhood days. If I close my eyes, I can still see the whole picture.. the dining table in my parents place with fine bread crumbs, greasiness of Amul butter and stickiness from the sweet Fruitoman's jam, all over the place.

Family sitting around, slicing the bread making a butter and jam sandwich and talking, giggling, sometimes raising voices in frustration with mouthful of the bread, sharing the day's highlights! The whole place would be messy at the end of it but somehow nobody bothered about it!

To say I love this recipe is an understatement! It gave me a soft bread with a beautiful crust and brought back so many beautiful memories. Please excuse me if I tend to overuse the word “love” here, I cant help it ;) I  LOVED the texture of this bread! In fact I was pretty pleased with myself and decided to treat myself with “n” number of slices of bread smothered with butter as a reward ;) The taste, feel and smell of freshly baked bread is something that you should experience to know it!

If you are into baking, I'd strongly recommend you to try this.

Here's the step by step pictures and recipe…

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the flour, oats, yeast, and salt. In a small bowl,warm the milk so that it’s hot enough to melt the butter, but not boiling. Add the butter, stirring until melted, then stir in the water and honey…

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Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, mixing with a dough hook until it just comes together to form a dough…

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Knead in the mixer, with the dough hook attachment, for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and allow to rise until doubled, about 1/2 to 1 hour.

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Once doubled, place the dough on a clean, dry work surface. With your fingers, flatten the dough into a 9 by 12-inch rectangle. Tightly roll the dough, tucking the ends as needed, into a loaf. Place the shaped dough into a 9×5-inch loaf pan…

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When the loaf is doubled again, brush the top with the warmed honey and sprinkle with the oats. Place the bread in the  preheated oven. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the bread is deep golden brown…

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Recipe adapted verbatim from here.

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Honey Oats Bread

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Servings: 4 -5

Author: Maria Jose Martin

Ingredients

• ▢ 3 cups All-purpose flour ( 381 grams)
• ▢ 3/4 cups Oats (I have used instant and old fashioned, both work great)
• ▢ 2 1/4 tsp Instant yeast
• ▢ 1.5 tsp Salt
• ▢ 1 cup Milk (250 ml (almond or soy milk for vegan/dairy free))
• ▢ 1/4 cup Lukewarm water (62 ml)
• ▢ 2 tbsp Unsalted butter or margarine (28 grams)
• ▢ 1/4 cup Honey (agave for vegan )
• ▢ 1.5 – 2 tbsp Honey or agave (warmed )
• ▢ 1.5 – 2 tbsp Oats

Instructions

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  In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the flour, oats, yeast, and salt.
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  In a small bowl, or two cup (450 ml) measuring cup, warm the milk so that it’s hot enough to melt the butter, but not boiling. Add the butter, stirring until melted, then stir in the water and honey.
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  Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, mixing with a dough hook until it just comes together to form a dough. Knead in the mixer, with the dough hook attachment, for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic (if you’re making this recipe by hand, the dough will be very sticky at first; flour your hands and work surface generously and be patient). If the dough is still very wet and sticky after 5 minutes of kneading, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough is barely tacky. If the dough is too dry, add water, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) at a time, to soften it up.
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  Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1/2 to 1 hour.
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  Once doubled, place the dough on a clean, dry work surface. If the dough is too sticky, lightly flour the surface before continuing. With your fingers, flatten the dough into a 9 by 12-inch rectangle. Tightly roll the dough, tucking the ends as needed, into a loaf. Place the shaped dough into a 9×5-inch loaf pan, cover with a clean dry towel, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1/2 to 1 hour.
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  Preheat oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Place an empty loaf pan on the bottom rack of the oven and bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
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  When the loaf is doubled again, brush the top with the warmed honey and sprinkle with the oats.
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  Place the bread in the oven and pour the boiling water into the empty loaf pan on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the bread is deep golden brown and the internal temperature is about 190 degrees.
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  Transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before serving.

Notes

Make sure you read the recipe carefully before starting. I used Quaker quick cooking oats (the regular oats) and full fat milk.

My bread was baked in 50 mins. Let the bread cool completely before cutting it. I didnt add any extra flour or water. Stop kneading when the dough is soft and not sticky.

Tried this recipe? Let others know by…mentioning @mariasmenu or tagging #mariasmenu

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