Ballymaloe Brown Bread

Directions

1. Mix the flours with the salt in a medium bowl. 2. Pour 150ml of water into a small bowl and stir in the molasses, then crumble in the fresh yeast, stirring a couple of times. Let stand until it starts to foam on top, about 10 minutes. 3. Pour the yeast mixture and the remaining 275ml water into the flour and stir until a batter is formed, which will have the consistency of oatmeal. Let stand 10 minutes. 4. Spray a nonstick 9-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray and cut a piece of parchment or wax paper to line the bottom of the pan. Scrape the dough into the prepared pan, smooth the top with a spatula or if it’s sticky, dampen your hand and use that then drape a kitchen towel over the top and let rise in a warm place until the dough reaches the top of the pan, about 20 minutes – although it can vary so just keep an eye on it. 5. Before the dough has almost reached the top of the pan, preheat the oven to 450ºF . When the dough has reached the top of the pan, bake the bread for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, decrease the heat to 400ºF . Run a knife around the outside of the bread to release it from the pan, tip the loaf out of the pan, remove the parchment paper, and place the loaf upside down directly on the baking rack and let bake another 15 minutes, or until done. The bread is ready when you tap the bottom and it sounds hollow. If using an instant-read thermometer, the temperature should read 190ºF . Let the bread cool on a wire rack before slicing. The bread is best eaten fresh, smeared with lots of good butter, or toasted for breakfast, with jam and butter. It’s also nice for open-faced sandwiches, and would be a fine accompaniment to a cheese board, too.