Molasses Rye Bread

Three moles are crawling through a tunnel. The first mole says, “Hmm. I smell cookies.” The second says, “Yeah, I smell them too!” The third mole wrinkles his nose and says, “Not me, I just smell moleasses.”

Not a fan of rye bread? You’ll like this anyway. This is moist and sweet and dark, but still perfectly compliments a pastrami and swiss sandwich with a judicious amount of mustard. It will not last long in your house.

Ingredients:
4 tsp instant yeast
2 1/2 c water
2/3 c molasses
4c bread flour
3c rye flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 c vegetable oil
2 tbsp caraway (at least!)

Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Add in the water, molasses and vegetable oil. Mix together until just combined, then let it sit for 20 minutes. Knead for 5-10 minutes, and expect extreme stickiness since rye doesn’t do the whole gluten thing. Place in a greased bowl and leave in a warm place until it has doubled.

Preheat the oven and baking stone to 450˚F. Once doubled, turn the dough out onto the counter. Divide in two, shape attractively (a little lingerie goes a long way) and let sit for another 20 minutes to get used to its new sexy form. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Eat.

This post submitted to this week’s YeastSpotting