Vermont Oatmeal Bread

This easy-to-make yeast bread celebrates Vermont with two ingredients—pure Vermont maple syrup and a longtime favorite for baking, King Arthur Flour.  And coming from a long line of Vermonters, it's one of my favorites!

Hands on Prep Time: 40 min    Total Time: 4 hours

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 cup rolled oats (not quick cooking)

3 cups water

3 Tbsp. butter

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

2½ - 3 cups all-purpose flour, approximately** (I use King Arthur Flour)

2 cups whole wheat (or “white whole wheat” flour from King Arthur Flour)

2 envelopes dry yeast (or 4 tsp.)

2 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vegetable oil

MAKING IT:

In a saucepan, combine rolled oats and water.  Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add butter and maple syrup; stir until butter is melted.  Remove saucepan from heat and set aside.  Let cool at least 30 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together 1 cup of the all-purpose flour plus 1 cup of the whole wheat flour**; stir in dry yeast and salt.  Add warm oat mixture to the flour mixture, along with eggs.  Stir with wooden spoon for about 1 minute (dough will be very sticky).  Stir in remaining 1 cup of whole wheat flour. With the remaining 2 cups of all-purpose flour, add flour to dough ¼ cup at a time, mixing with wooden spoon until the dough is soft and no longer clings to the bowl. 

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes; add flour to surface as needed to keep it from sticking. 

Put 2 tsp. oil in bottom a large mixing bowl.  Drop dough into bowl and swirl around in the oil so the dough ball is lightly coated.  Cover bowl with clean towel (or plastic wrap) and let rise in a warm spot until it has doubled in volume (about 1½ hours).

Lightly grease two 8½ x 4½ inch pans (metal or glass).  Turn dough onto lightly floured work surface. Knead briefly.  Divide dough ball in half.   Shape each half into a loaf by forming a flat circle and rolling it up tightly; placing dough seam side down in greased pan.  Repeat with other half.  Cover pans with dish towel; return to warm spot and let rise again until double (about 1 hour). 

Preheat oven to 375◦F.  Bake for 40 minutes; loaves are done when loaf is removed from the pan and the bottom crust is tapped and sounds hollow.   Cool loaves on wire racks.

Makes 2 loaves (12 slices per loaf)

TIPS:

** This recipe can be made entirely with white all-purpose flour, instead of a combination of all-purpose and whole wheat.  Total amount of flour used might vary depending on season and type of flour used. 

“Whole white wheat flour” is whole grain flour that comes from a special variety of white wheat; it looks and tastes more like white flour but has the good nutrition of whole wheat flour.

New to kneading?  It’s a push-fold-turn motion done repeatedly to bread dough. It’s done on a floured surface to develop the flour’s gluten proteins, giving the loaf a firm, even structure. 

For a lower sodium loaf, reduce salt to 1 teaspoon.  Salt is important to the proper rising of the dough, however, so best not to eliminate entirely.

Recipe can be halved for one loaf.

Nutrition Information per serving (1 slice): 130 Calories; 2.5 g Total Fat; (1 g Sat Fat); 20 mg Chol; 200 mg Sodium; 24 g Total Carb; (2 g Fiber; 3 g Sugars); 4 g Protein