Recipe: Walnut Bread
Recipe Source: Ingram, Christine and Jennie Shapter. Bread. Anness Publishing, London, 2007 p. 163
Recently, I attended an event with my husband. This event was going to involve a lot of physical exertion over a long period for him, and when he engages in this sort of activity what he really wants afterward is carbohydrates. Lots and lots of carbohydrates. I thought it would be a good idea to give him a bit of protein with those carbs, so I decided to make this bread.
Unfortunately, I was less than enthusiastic about the way it turned out. The recipe called for whole-wheat bread flour, and while I had whole wheat flour and bread flour on hand I did not have whole-wheat bread flour. I used mostly bread flour, with some whole-wheat flour for added fiber and color. It called for fresh yeast, which I don't even know how to find. I used active dry yeast. I also apparently didn't slash the bread the way I should have, because the result was a twisted and misshapen mass and not a pretty little round like the picture. Oh well. My husband liked it and there were no leftovers to lug home, and I guess that's the important thing.
Walnut Bread (serves 10; approx. $0.84/serving)
1/4 cup butter
3 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup lukewarm milk
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
Equipment:
- Stand mixer with the bread hook attachment
- Strainer
- Baking sheets
- Combine the yeast, sugar and milk. Let sit until the yeast is frothy, about 5 minutes.
- Melt the butter.
- Mix the salt and flours in the bowl of your stand mixer.
- Strain the butter into the flour.
- Pour the yeasted milk mixture into the flour.
- Using the stand mixer, knead until the dough comes together and is no longer sticky.
- Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk.
- Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Press down or roll out the dough a bit.
- Sprinkle the dough onto the dough, then roll it up.
- Cover and let rise another 30 minutes.
- Divide the dough in half. Cover and let rise another 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Put the dough balls onto lightly greased baking sheets and slash three times.
- Bake 35 minutes or until done.
- Serve.


