Little Women: Country Wheat Bread

Little Women: Recipe #7

The March family is constantly eating bread. Toast is mentioned several times, and there is even a scene in the first half where Jo attempts to make a loaf of bread for dinner, and is met with disastrous results. I chose to make a loaf of nice wholesome whole wheat, as that is likely what the March family would have eaten. Christians such as themselves of the time believed that eating good wholesome fibrous “whole-foods” would bring one closer to god. Eating such foods was regarded as moral and good. This simple loaf is an easy foray into bread making, as I had never made a proper loaf before testing this recipe (based on this one from King Arthur Flour), and it turned out beautifully!

Adapted from a King Arthur Flour recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/8 cups lukewarm water

• 1/4 cup canola oil

• 1/4 cup molasses (not black-strap)

• 3.5 cups whole wheat flour

• 2.5 tsp instant yeast, dissolved in 2 Tbsp of the aforementioned lukewarm water

• 1/4 cup unsweetened plant-based milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)

• 1.25 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and stir until the dough starts to leave the sides of the bowl. I used the bread hook attachment on my KitchenAid mixer.

2. Cover the bowl with a dish cloth and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

3. Transfer dough onto a lightly oiled surface, oil your hands as well (very important), and knead until it becomes smooth and supple.

4. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl cover with a dish cloth again, and allow the dough to rise for 2 hours.

5. Transfer the dough onto a lightly oiled surface, and shape it into an oblong shape to fit into a loaf pan.

6. Grease a standerd 8.5”x4.5” loaf pan with cooking spray, and place the dough inside.

7. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and allow to rise again for about 2 hours. When the bread has about 20 minutes left in its rising process, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

8. Bake for 20 minutes, and then take out of the oven briefly to cover with aluminum foil (to keep the top from over-browning/burning.

9. Bake for another 15-20 minutes until loaf will register about 190 degrees Fahrenheit on an instant-read thermometer.

10. Allow to cool for about 10 min, then upturn bread onto a cooling rack.

11. Slice and serve with butter and/or jam. Toast, if desired!

12. Enjoy!