Speaking of barley... RECIPE Barley Buttermilk Bread

[Guest guest]

All this talk of barley (btw - if you ever see it, try the purple

hulled barley; it's beautiful and tasty!) reminded me of a bread

recipe I hadn't made in a long time. I dug out the recipe and made it

today (well, I'm about to pop it in the oven anyway)... it's great for

sandwiches and toast too.

 

Barley Buttermilk Bread (adapted from Beth Hensperger's " The Pleasure

of Whole Grain Breads " )

 

2 1/4 c warm (110*F)buttermilk, or soymilk, clabbered with a bit of

lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp packed light brown sugar

2 1/2 tsp salt

1 3/4 c barley flour

3 1/2 to 4 c whole wheat flour

couple of tbsp vital wheat gluten

1 tbsp dry yeast

 

I do this in a stand mixer, but whatever process you usually use will

be fine (hand, bread machine... just do it as you normally do). If

you haven't made bread before and want to, just ask and a number of us

will be able to walk you through it!

 

Put the warm liquids in the bowl. [proof your yeast with a bit of the

liquid and a pinch of the sugar if need be - I use instant dry which

gets mixed in with the flour.] Mix the dry stuff all together in a

different bowl, dump on top of the liquids.

 

Let the machine knead for a few minutes, til you get a soft dough that

just clears the sides of the bowl. Remove to lightly floured surface

(I use the barley flour); a silicone mat really helps you use less

flour so the bread won't dry out. Knead a couple of times to be sure

it's nice and elastic. Put in a greased bowl, flip to grease the topof

the ball, and cover. Let rise til doubled (1 1/2 -2 hrs.).

 

Punch down, cut in half, form into 2 loaves. Place on cookie sheet or

in loaf pans; let rise until doubled again (45 min. or so). Preheat

the oven before the rise is done.

 

Bake at 350*F 40 to 45 minutes. Loaves will be brown, sound hollow

when tapped. (Should be 185-190 internal temp, if you like that kind

of info.)