Ballymaloe Brown Yeast Bread Food

BALLYMALOE BROWN BREAD

Steps:

• Grease an 8in x 2 1/2in (20cm x 10cm x 6cm) loaf pan and warm it in a preheated oven 250¿F/120¿C, for 10 minutes.
• Sprinkle the yeast into 2/3 cup (150ml) of the water in a bowl. Leave for 5 minutes; stir to dissolve. Add the molasses. Leave for 10 minutes, until frothy. Add the remaining water and stir.
• Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the dissolved yeast. Stir in the flour to form a thick batter.
• Use your hands to mix the batter gently in the bowl for 1 minute, until it begins to leave the sides of the bowl clean and forms a soft, sticky dough.
• Place the dough in the prepared pan and cover with a dish towel. Proof until the dough is 1/2in (1 cm) above the top of the pan, about 25-30 minutes.
• Bake in the preheated oven at 425¿F/220¿C for 30 minutes, then lower the oven to 400¿F/200¿C and bake for 15 minutes.
• Turn the loaf out of the pan and onto a baking sheet. Return the bread, bottom side up, to the oven. Bake for a further 10 minutes, until golden and hollow sounding when tapped underneath. Let cool on a wire rack.
• Proofing: 25-30 minutes. Oven temperature: 425¿F/220¿C. Baking: 55 minutes Yeast alternative: 1oz (30g) cake yeast

BALLYMALOE BROWN BREAD

Steps:

• Mix the flours with the salt in a medium bowl.
• Pour 150ml of water into a small bowl and stir in the molasses, then crumble in the fresh yeast, stirring a couple of times. Let stand until it starts to foam on top, about 10 minutes.
• Pour the yeast mixture and the remaining 275ml water into the flour and stir until a batter is formed, which will have the consistency of oatmeal. (If using standard whole-wheat flour, the dough will be sticky, and rather wet.) Let stand 10 minutes.
• Spray a nonstick 9-inch (23cm) loaf pan with nonstick spray and cut a piece of parchment or wax paper to line the bottom of the pan. Scrape the dough into the prepared pan, smooth the top with a spatula or if it's sticky, dampen your hand and use that then drape a kitchen towel over the top (so it's not pressing down on the dough, but just lightly over the top) and let rise in a warm place until the dough reaches the top of the pan, about 20 minutes - although it can vary so just keep an eye on it.
• Before the dough has almost reached the top of the pan, preheat the oven to 450ºF (230ºC). When the dough has reached the top of the pan, bake the bread for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, decrease the heat to 400ºF (200ºC). Run a knife around the outside of the bread to release it from the pan, tip the loaf out of the pan, remove the parchment paper, and place the loaf upside down directly on the baking rack and let bake another 15 minutes, or until done. The bread is ready when you tap the bottom and it sounds hollow. If using an instant-read thermometer, the temperature should read 190ºF (88ºC). Let the bread cool on a wire rack before slicing.
• The bread is best eaten fresh, smeared with lots of good butter, or toasted for breakfast, with jam and butter. It's also nice for open-faced sandwiches, and would be a fine accompaniment to a cheese board, too.

BALLYMALOE BROWN BREAD (ZWT-8)

Steps:

• Dissolve the molasses or treacle in 2/3 cup warm water in a sml bowl. (Around 100F is ideal) Grant calls it "blood heat" & notes the easiest way to obtain this temp (w/o a thermometer) is: Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, add 3 cups of cold water. Stir in the yeast & set aside for 8-10 minutes (or until the yeast begins to froth).
• Put the flour into a lrg bowl & mix in the salt.
• Lightly grease a lrg non-stick loaf pan w/oil.
• Make a well in the flour, pour in the yeast mixture & let it sit for a minute. Pour in about 1 1/4 cups warm water (see above), then form your hand into a rigid claw & stir the liquid into the flour slowly but steadily in a spiral motion (starting in the middle & working outwards to the rim of the bowl). The dough should be soft & too wet to knead (add water as necessary).
• Let the dough rest in bowl in a warm place for about 15 minutes.
• Transfer the dough to the greased loaf pan, cover loosely w/a damp towel & set in a warm place to rise for about 20 minutes. ("The bread should be what we call 'proud,'" says Tim Allen, "just beginning to peer over the top of the pan.")
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°F.
• Bake the bread for 20 minutes, then lower the oven temp to 400F & bake for 35-45 minutes more. If you like a crisp crust, remove the bread from the pan about 10 minutes before it is done, then return it to the oven (placing it upside down directly on the oven rack to finish cooking).