The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Mixed Grain with Toasted Onions

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Mixed Grain with Toasted Onions

I was in the mood for a pretty simple but tasty bread so I threw this one together a day after my return from my business trip to Germany.

I used a mix of AP, freshly milled whole wheat and rye along with some rye chops and cracked wheat for added texture.

The addition of the olive oil helped soften the crumb a bit and the toasted onions added a nice subtle onion flavor.

The final bread came out very tasty with a fairly open crumb and thick crust.  The only issue I had was the bottom crust was a little gummy which may have been caused from overproofing the dough but I'm not sure.  I almost never have this issue so hopefully it was an aberration.  Fortunately, the bread still tasted great. If there wasn't snow on the ground I would fire up the grill and throw some slices on with olive oil, garlic and fresh mozzarella.

Enjoy.....can't wait for the next 2 snow storms this week.........NOT :)

closeup2

Formula

 

Mixed Grain with Toasted OnionsFINAL (weights)

Mixed Grain with Toasted OnionsFINAL (%)

 

Download the BreadStorm File Here..

closeup1

Levain Directions

Mix all the Levain ingredients together for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 8-12 hours or until the starter is nice and bubbly.

Either use in the main dough immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 day before using.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the levain by dissolving the liquid starter in the water, then add the flours and mix well. Ferment at room temperature, covered tightly, until the surface is bubbly and wrinkled. (8-12 hours)

Add onions to water and let sit for 5 minutes to rehydrate.  Add water mixture to flour and mix for 1 minute or less. Cover and autolyse for 30 minutes.
Add the rest of ingredients and mix to incorporate for 3 minutes.  Transfer to a clean, lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly.

Bulk ferment for 3 hours with stretch and folds in the bowl every 30 minutes for the first 2 hours, then a stretch and fold on the board after 2.5 hours. The dough should have expanded by about 50% and be full of small bubbles.  Refrigerate the dough for 18-24 hours.

Take the dough out of the refrigerator and transfer it to a lightly floured board.  Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and pre-shape as a round.  Cover the dough and allow to rest for 60 minutes.

Next, shape as batards and proof for 45 minutes, covered.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 550 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to put them in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

After 5 minute lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

crumbfar

crumb

Comments

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

Lucy has some Superbowl ribs and chicken in the smoker instead :-)

The bread looks perfect for grilling or anything else for that matter, Pretty perfect for 177% hydration too! Love the chewies in the center too. Lucy sends here warmest best ot the LI pack and

Happy baking to you Ian

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Yikes!  Thanks for pointing out my mistake.  Left out some AP flour.  Will have to update later.

Glad you like it.  More snow on the way :(

PetraR's picture
PetraR

By golly this is one fine bread.

Love the crumb.

Funny thing, I made an onion bread myself today.

Just out of the oven, so have to wait.

Petra

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Thanks Petra.   Glad you liked it.   Look forward to hearing about your onion bread.

Regards,

Ian

PetraR's picture
PetraR

Posted the bread in the blogs :)

 

nmygarden's picture
nmygarden

Your bread sounds wonderful, full of nutrition and tasty goodness. I had a chance to bake this weekend and jumped on it - English muffins, a multigrain loaf with sprouted wheat grains, flax seed and cranberries, and another multigrain loaf with sprouted wheat grains (sprouted more than I thought!), cumin seed and black pepper. I've managed to use the last of most of my whole grain flours, so time to restock.

80 F here today, too. Warm enough the past few days, that our pear tree popped out in flower... Darn, can't drop a pic here.

Happy Superbowl watching!

Cathy

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Thanks Cathy.  You would like this for sure.  Your breads sound great.  I hope you share some photos in your post.

i was planning on doing some sprouting myself this week.  Also been dying to make some sprouted English Muffins.  We're about to get slammed all week with snow and more snow.   Your weather sounds much better:)

Reynard's picture
Reynard

That looks great :-) Ever tried using lard instead of oil? I find it gives a lovely soft crumb too.

Here, we're clearing up the mess left behind by Storm Imogen... Let's just say that my chain saw skills are improving LOL... At least my phone line is back up, as it's a 10 mile round trip to the library to use the free wi-fi. They've forecast some snow here for the weekend, but I suspect it will only be a flake or two if that.

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Appreciate your checking in Reynard.  I have not tried lard in my bread before but I'm sure it will be worth a try. I've been meaning to try some bacon fat too which I guess is the same thing.

Sorry to hear your have to put your chain saw to so much use :)

We dodged a few bullets last week and didn't end up with much snow.  Today it bitterly cold in the low teens Fahrenheit and we may get another storm on Monday.  Working on some starters next to make some sprouted grain English muffins and a sprouted rye.  Look forward to your next post to see what you and the furry gang have been up to :).

 

Skibum's picture
Skibum

I baked my first loaf of plain bread yesterday for the first time in months. This inspires me to give it a try. My taste and craving for bread has returned.

 

Nice bake! Ski

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Glad you like it.  Hopefully you will start experimenting and try some new things.  I just baked some sprouted wheat English muffins and a sprouted rye with onions.

Hope your skiing is going well and look forward to seeing some new bakes from you this season!

Regards,
Ian

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

I bet it tastes as good as it looks.

David

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Appreciate your kind words.

These did taste great.  They made some excellent grilled cheese and toast for breakfast.

Regards,
Ian