Freshly baked bread

So I came to my senses and instead of baking a cake I baked bread. Eating a slice of bread just out the oven with butter, is just about as satisfying to me as eating a slice of cake. My mom always used to bake us fabulous bread when we were kids and I used her seed loaf recipe as the inspiration for mine.

I have modified it a bit by adding my ever faithful omega seed mix and my new craze Maca Powder both of which I think give this loaf great flavour and an added ‘health’ fix.

The great thing about this bread recipe is that it is really easy, with no kneading. Just mix, prove and bake.

I bought a silicone bread mould as I have been enjoying baking in silicone but this is one mould which is not better than a regular tin. If you fill the mould to capacity it sags badly in the middle giving the loaf a rather odd shape.

This recipe should be pretty easy to teach your housekeeper to make for your family, so you can have fresh bread as often as you need it.

Whole wheat seed loaf
Makes one loaf in a 23 x 13 x 8cm bread tin

1 cup pearl barley, soaked for at least 1 hour in 1 cup of boiling water
1 cup of mixed omega seeds, lightly toasted
2 1/2 cups of stone ground whole wheat flour (or nutty wheat)
1 sachet instant yeast

1 Tbsp of brown sugar

4 Tbsp Maca Powder (totally optional)
2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups of lukewarm water

2 Tbsp of olive oil (optional)
Oil or spray ‘n cook for the pan

Mix all dry ingredients – add water slowly with the soaked cracked wheat and the water it soaked in.

The mixture must not be too sloppy or too solid. Stir well until the gluten starts forming. Add oil, if using.

Oil the bread tin and pour the mixture in. Place in a warm spot (I find the oven perfect, I just warm it a very little, then turn it off and leave the door open) for about ½ an hour – the bread should have doubled in size. Do not bump or disturb it at this stage or it will collapse.

Put into the oven and turn it to 180C˚ and bake for about 50mins or until brown, crisp and giving a hollow sound when tapped.

Take out of the oven, leave for 5mins then gently shake it out of the tin and let it cool on a wire rack until quite cool.