Multigrain Honey Oat Bread Recipes

SOFT MULTIGRAIN BREAD

Steps:

• Place cereal mix in a large heatproof bowl (you can also use the bowl of your stand mixer). Pour boiling water on top. Let the mixture cool until a digital thermometer reads about 110°F (43°C). This usually takes 20 minutes. Pay attention to the temperature because if it's too hot, it will kill the yeast. If it became too cool, however, it's not a problem- the dough may just take a few extra minutes to rise.
• Whisk the yeast, sugar, and all of the warm water/cereal mixture in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Cover and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes or until foamy and bubbly on the surface.
• Add the butter, salt, and 1 cup (about 130g) flour. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add another cup of flour. Beat on medium speed until relatively incorporated (there may still be chunks of butter). Add all of the remaining flour and the seeds/nuts (if using), then beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If it seems too sticky, add more flour, 1 Tablespoon at a time until it begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. *If you do not own a mixer, you can mix this dough with a large wooden spoon or rubber spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle!*
• Keep the dough in the mixer (and switch to the dough hook if you used the paddle) and beat for an additional 2 minutes OR knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 2 minutes. Dough is soft, yet heavy.
• Lightly grease a large bowl with olive oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size. (I always let it rise on the counter. Takes about 2 hours. For a tiny reduction in rise time, see my answer to Where Should Dough Rise? in my Baking with Yeast Guide.)
• Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
• When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Lightly flour a work surface, your hands, and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about 8×15 inches. It does not have to be perfect- in fact, it will probably be rounded on the edges. That's ok! Roll it up into an 8 inch log and place in the prepared loaf pan.
• Cover shaped loaf with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until it's about 1-2 inches above the top of the loaf pan, about 1 hour. (See photo above for a visual.)
• Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). (It's best to bake the bread towards the bottom of the oven so the top doesn't burn.)
• Bake for 35-40 minutes- if you notice the top browning too quickly during bake time, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. How to test for doneness- give the loaf a light tap. If it sounds hollow, it's done. For a more accurate test, the bread is done when an instant read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195°F-200°F (90°C-93°C).
• Remove from the oven and allow bread to cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving. Feel free to let it cool completely before slicing, too.
• Cover leftover bread tightly and store at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.

MULTIGRAIN BREAD

Steps:

• Soak 1/3 cup bulgur in 1/2 cup warm water for 20 minutes; set aside. Sprinkle yeast over 1/2 cup water. Add 2 teaspoons honey. Whisk until yeast dissolves. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle or dough-hook attachment. Add butter and remaining 1 1/2 cups water and 3 tablespoons honey. Whisk flour with salt; add 3 cups to yeast. Mix on low speed until smooth. Mix in soaked bulgur, 1/2 cup rolled oats, 1/4 cup flaxseeds, and 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds. Add remaining 4 cups flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing until dough comes away from sides of bowl and forms a ragged, slightly sticky ball. Butter a large bowl.
• Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth and elastic but still slightly tacky, about 5 minutes. Shape into a ball. Transfer to prepared bowl; cover with plastic wrap.
• Let dough stand in a warm place until it doubles in volume (it should not spring back when pressed), about 1 hour. Butter two 4 1/2-by-8 1/2-inch loaf pans. Punch down dough; divide in half.
• Shape 1 dough half into an 8 1/2-inch-long rectangle (about 1/2 inch thick). Fold long sides of dough in to middle, overlapping slightly. Press seam to seal. Transfer dough, seam side down, to pan. Repeat with remaining dough. Brush tops of loaves with egg wash (beaten egg white mixed with water), not butter, and sprinkle with oats and sunflower seeds. Dab tops with egg wash to help adhere. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Drape loaves with plastic. Let stand until dough rises about 1 inch above tops of pans, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees. Bake, rotating pans after 20 minutes, until tops are golden brown, about 45 minutes. Transfer to wire racks. Let cool slightly; turn out loaves. Let cool completely before slicing.

BRAIDED MULTIGRAIN LOAF

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix whole wheat flour, oats, rye flour, yeast, salt and 1 cup all-purpose flour. In a small saucepan, heat milk, honey, water and butter to 120°-130°. Add to dry ingredients; beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Add 1 cup all-purpose flour; beat 2 minutes longer. Stir in rice and enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough. , Turn dough onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into thirds. Cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll each portion into an 18-in. rope. Place ropes on a greased baking sheet and braid. Shape into a ring. Pinch ends to seal; tuck under., Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°., For topping, in a small bowl, whisk egg and water; brush over dough. Sprinkle with sunflower kernels. Bake until golden brown, 30-40 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

MULTIGRAIN HONEY OAT BREAD

Steps:

• Combine boiling water, cornmeal, and steel cut oats. Let stand for 20 minutes.
• Put cornmeal mixture into bread machine followed by the remaining ingredients.
• Set on medium or wheat setting.
• Bake and enjoy!

SEEDED MULTIGRAIN BREAD

Steps:

• Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add wheat berries, and gently boil for 20 minutes. Drain, and let cool. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1/4 warm cup water, yeast, and honey. Let stand until yeast is foamy, about 10 minutes. Add sponge, and mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Add flours, rye meal, cracked wheat, millet, flax, salt, and remaining 2 1/4 cups warm water; mix, using the paddle attachment, on low speed for 2 minutes. Change to dough hook, and mix on medium-low speed for 6 minutes. Add sunflower seeds and cooked wheat berries; mix for 1 minute. Pull dough down from the hook, and press the dough into the seeds at the bottom of bowl. Continue to mix until the seeds are completely incorporated and the dough is wet and tacky, 2 minutes. Alternatively, knead the dough by hand, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Transfer to a lightly floured surface, and knead by hand, four or five turns, into a ball. Place the dough, smooth side up, in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until increased to 1 1/2 times the size, about 2 1/2 hours.
• Punch down dough, and fold it over onto itself four or five times. Turn folded side face down in the bowl. Cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 hour.
• Liberally sprinkle two braided Brotformen, if using, with flour. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface, and cut in half. Cover one piece of dough loosely with oiled plastic wrap. On an unfloured surface, knead the other piece of dough into a ball. Cup your hands around it, and move it on the work surface in small, circular motions, until top is rounded and bottom is smooth.
• Place the shaped loaf, bottom up, in a Brotform. Cover loosely with lightly oiled plastic wrap and then with a towel. Repeat shaping process with the second piece of dough. (If you're not using Brotformen, shape dough in the same way, and place on parchment dusted with coarse cornmeal; coat the bottom and 1 inch up the sides with cornmeal. Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap and then with a clean towel.) Let loaves rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Thirty minutes before this final rise is completed, place a baking stone, if using, in lower third of oven and an empty baking pan on the lowest shelf. Heat oven to 450 degrees.
• Transfer one loaf from a Brotform to a baker's peel or baking sheet sprinkled with coarse cornmeal. Using a razor blade or serrated knife, slash the top 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. Slide onto the baking stone. Repeat with second loaf. If not using a stone, slash tops and bake on a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet. Quickly pour 2 cups of very hot water into the heated baking pan to create steam, and close the oven door. Bake until dark golden brown and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom, about 25 to 30 minutes. If the bread darkens too quickly, lower temperature to 425 degrees after 15 minutes of the baking time. Let bread cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing.