#molasses bread

[subtextures]

As per family tradition, I made my grandmother’s molasses bread. Two of four loaves pictured.

[th0tcrates]

[thehomesteadporch]

Moist & Hearty Squaw Bread

Many years ago when I was a teenager, I went for a hike in the hills of Malibu, CA and found the most delicious, brown squaw bread at a little roadside stop. Not much more than a country gas station store really, but this delicious, rich and hearty bread forever stuck in my memory. It has a delightful almost nutty texture, is slightly sweet, most and dark. I sat in the car and ate half a loaf with butter and felt that there was nothing I could have added that could possibly have made it any better.

Since then I've never seen another loaf like it in a store. The closest I could come to the distinct flavor and texture would be the oatmeal brown bread rolls from Cheesecake Factory, and those have just a hint of the goodness I remember from my teen hiking trip.

Squaw bread has a rich history in Native Mississippi cultures, and on some platforms (namely Pinterest) it could even be blocked due to the common belief that the word squaw is derogatory. While this can be true in some contexts, in its historical origins, the term is perfectly innocent, as current dictionaries also correctly indicate: squaw comes from a language of the Algonquian family in which it meant "woman.' Going back to its roots, the word is an ancient and thoroughly decent word. For that reason I didn't change the name of this historical bread.

Because of it's whole grain ingredients, I would consider this a healthy addition to any bread recipe collection. Although it's just about perfect with just a healthy spread of butter, I imagine it would make a pretty good sandwich or morning toast with nut butter or cream cheese on top. With soup on the side it would be complete dinner meal.

I promised myself one day I would figure out a recipe to make this memorable loaf, and today was the day. I combined several recipes with what I could remember of this magical loaf and here's what I came up with. It did not disappoint!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup warm water

1 packet dry yeast

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. molasses

2 Tbsp. honey

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder

1 tsp. salt

2 c wheat flour

2 c all purpose or einkorn flour

1/2 c rye flour

Combine water, yeast and brown sugar in mixing bowl. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until bubble form to make sure yeast is fresh and active.

Add molasses, honey, butter, cocoa powder and salt and stir.

Add flours and knead with dough hook until dough begins to form around your hook and pulls away from the bowl. If dough is too wet, add all purpose flour. Dough should still be moist, sticky and not too dry.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a bread pan with parchment or spray with oil and sprinkle with cornmeal.

Carefully drop dough inside, sprinkling more cornmeal to cover sides and top. Cover with a shower cap or cling wrap for about an hour, until doubled in size.

Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden and it sounds hollow when tapped. Turn out on to a wire rack and resist the urge to slice it until cool so it can finish steaming.

Of course with the house smelling outrageously delicious with the scent for rich, fresh bread, I had to help myself to a thick slice of warm bread, smothered in butter just as soon as it cooled.

[th0tcrates]

Whole wheat bread

[thecomfortfoodchef]

Mad Man Molasses & Oats Whole Wheat Bread

This is bread has a nice sweetness along with a nice flavor from the oats and whole wheat. This has one of those perfect combinations to bring instantaneous comfort when eaten. Warm from the oven a slice of this bread with some sweet butter and all your cares will melt away. Lets make some bread.

Mad Man Molasses & Oats Whole Wheat Bread

Ingredients

4 cups boiling water

3 cups Steel Cut or Irish oats

3 cups all purpose flour

4 cups whole wheat flour

2 packets Active dry yeast

1/2  cup Blackstrap molasses

2 tablespoons oil

Preparation

Pour the boiling water over the oats and let cool to lukewarm. While the oats are cooling combine both flours, make sure they are thoroughly mixed. Once the oats cool to lukewarm stir in the yeast and 2 cups of the flour, let rise for 1 hour or until doubled.

Punch down the dough and work in the remaining ingredients and knead for 10 minutes. Form the dough into two loaves and let rise until double, about 45 minutes. Bake at 350℉ for 40-60 minutes. The bread is done when it makes a hollow sound when tapped on the bottom with a wooden spoon.