The Fresh Loaf

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Hamelman's Oatmeal Bread

MaryinHammondsport's picture
MaryinHammondsport

Hamelman's Oatmeal Bread

Hamelman's Oatmeal BreadHamelman's Oatmeal Bread

This is my second try at Hamelman's Oatmeal Bread.

We're really pleased with it for sandwiches. My husband prefers a pan loaf but I think it would make a good hearth bread as well.

Mary

Comments

holds99's picture
holds99

Mary,

Looks like you got great oven spring, nice crust and crumb.  Have you toasted it?  If so, how does it toast?  I haven't tried this one but it looks like a real winner, especially, as you said, for sandwiches.  I really like Hamelman's book: Bread.  It's a great reference and recipe book.  Without sounding "preachy", new bakers who take the time to read and understand the first 92 pages of Hamelman's book will save themselve years of frustration.  Wish I had a copy of this book when I started.  The thing I like most about it is he doesn't get bogged down in trying to tell you the different ways (hand, bench mixer, food processor) to make bread.  He just gives you the basics---and that's it.  I like Bernard Clayton's book: Breads, but that book is an example of too many methods per recipe.  My opinion is Hamelman's got it right, "just the facts..."

I like to skip around and bake different types of breads.  I see this is a "direct" method, using only yeast.  I took a quick look at the recipe and tabbed it for future baking. I see that he has a cinnamon, raisin variation.  I'll defintely add it to my "to bake" list.  Thanks for your post.

Howard

MaryinHammondsport's picture
MaryinHammondsport

and bread books in particular.

First the question Howard asked about the Oatmeal Bread at the top of this thread. It toasts very nicely; sweet but not overwhelming. It's also a good keeper. It takes my husband, another Howard, about a week to finish a loaf, and because there is oatmeal, oil, and honey in this, it keeps moist very well.

Howard in St. Augustine brought up a comparison between Hamelman and B. Clayton. I agree with everything said. I too am a reader and re-reader and have gone over the introductory material in Hamelman quite a few times. This, I know, is the type of material that turns some people off as much as it turns me on.

Again, with regard to Bernard Clayton, I have to agree. I find the format for each recipe completely confusing, as he jumps from hand mixing to processor and back again. Great recipes but difficult to follow from the book.

But we have created a little "assist" for me for bread baking. The accompanying photo shows the cabinet over my baking area. Magnet BoardWhat you are looking at is a metal "magnet board" I stole from my needlework supplies and asked my husband to mount on the cabinet door with very short screws. The "bars" are the magnets designed to hold a sheet of paper in place, right at my eye level.

I have formed the habit of transcribing any bread recipe onto a worksheet, so that I can convert measurements to grams if necessary, scale the recipe up or down, and make notes on any particular bake. The sheet from which I am baking gets attached to the board by the bar magnets. Since I only have written down the minimum instructions I need to do the mixing, I don't have to wade through all the detail looking for what I should do next. It is working very well, because I write down in my own particular abbreviated terms only the information I know I will need. I really recommend rigging up something like this if you can-- besides being very helpful it keeps the cook books out of harm's way, and makes one think about the recipe before starting in.

Mary

 

 

 

gavinc's picture
gavinc

Thanks Mary,

Your results look great.  I've been on the lookout for a really good sandwich loaf and will give this a try.  I've been baking bread for over 10 years, but only obtained Hamelman's book in the last month.  Like Howard (holds99) I wish I had this years ago.  I've had really good success with the Vermont Sourdough and the same recipe with whole wheat to replace the rye.  Both are excellent.  Today I baked a Pain au Levain for the first time and it's just come out of the oven.  I've had the best sourdough success so far with Hamelman's methods and recipes.  Ed Wood's book gave me some good instruction on cultures, but Hamelman has given me far superior methods and insight on what's really going on.  I'm into converting everything to baker's percentage so I can experiment with hydration and ingredient variances, so I like the recipe presentation in Hamelman as he provides those.

 

MaryinHammondsport's picture
MaryinHammondsport

I know the math entailed in using baker's percentages is off-putting to lots of people, but it's something I have really come to love. I just can't imagine baking without them, now that I know about the technique, anymore than I can imagine baking without using a scale. These two changes in my methods have done more for my baking in the past 6 months that anything else I learned in the past 55 years.

I have just tried the Vermont Sourdough and will have to try the Pain au Levain next, Gavinc. Thanks for mentioning it.

Mary

MaryinHammondsport's picture
MaryinHammondsport

Now you have inspired me to try rolled barley flakes. Those would be good to, I bet.

Mary