Oatmeal Bread

I've used this recipe since the 70s. It makes a good bread for eating with soups or as sandwiches such as ham and cheese - the sweetness from the molasses in the bread accents the flavor of the ham. It is especially good as a breakfast bread toasted and spread with butter and honey. Don't forget the honey. This bread is best if sliced thin.

I don't think I have ever made this with the raisins and pecans but this would be a good and healthy breakfast bread. This dough is quite sticky and may benefit from using the Stretch and Fold technique.

1 cup rolled oats
2 cups boiling water
1 cake yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup molasses
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. shortening
4 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup raisins (optional)
1/4 cup pecans (optional)

Milk wash (1 T of milk and 1 T of water) for brushing on top before baking, if desired
oatmeal for sprinkling on top before baking, if desired

Add oatmeal to boiling water and let stand until cooled. Dissolve yeast in warm water. Mix yeast and other ingredients with oatmeal (start with three cups of flour and add more a little bit at a time, kneading until dough is smooth, do not add more flour than necessary, the dough will be very sticky). Add in the raisins and pecans, if desired.

Put dough in buttered bowl and turn so that the topside of the dough is buttered. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about an hour. Butter two bread pans.

Punch down dough. Turn out on floured board and knead dough for about 3 minutes. Cut dough in two. Roll each half into a large rectangle and roll it up to form a bread loaf. Pinch seams and tuck under ends and place in the prepared bread pans. Shaping the loaf in this way creates surface tension so that the gas from the yeast the dough expands up and out evenly. Cover and let rise until double in size - about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven 375 degrees F. Using a sharp knife, make two or three slashes diagonally across the top of the loaf to prevent the crust from cracking. To make the bread pretty, you can brush the loaves with a milk wash (1 T of milk and 1 T of water) and then sprinkle oats over the top. Bake bread for about 40 - 50 minutes or until the bread is a lovely dark brown. Remove bread from pan and let cool on a rack.

This bread is best if sliced thin.

Makes 2 loaves