Brown Bread

Well, I am continuing my streak of bread posts beginning with the letter "B" this week with what turned out to be, the easiest loaf to make. And also, owing to some unorthodox instructions (no kneading, only one rising), far and away the fastest loaf, clocking in from cluelessly looking at the recipe to slicing a piece of cooling-on-the-rack bread at just under two hours.

Now, don't call me crazy just yet, but start things off by putting 3 3/4 cups of whole wheat flour in a mixing bowl, and put that mixing bowl in the oven. Turn the heat to the lowest setting and leave the door slightly ajar. While the flour is warming up, proof 3 3/4 teaspoons of yeast in 1/2 a cup of warm water. After a few minutes, stir in 2 tablespoons of molasses, 1 tablespoon of salt, and 1/2 a tablespoon of butter.

Add the yeast mixture to the flour. Oh, actually, it's probably best to first take the flour out of the oven. Then add the yeast mixture to the flour. Pour in as well another 1 1/2 cups of warm water. After some vigorous stirring, you should end up with some warm, wet, sticky dough, not at all unlike what we wound up with when making the limpa a few months ago. Pour the dough straight into a buttered 9x5 bread pan, cover, and set in a warm spot. Keep a sharp eye on it while it rises:

First Rising (25 minutes)
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I think I've finally figured out one of the things that, in the back of my mind, I've been thinking is strange about this town: I almost never recognize people walking down the street. That struck me last week, when some of my friends and I were out and someone walked past that I knew I had seen before but was not in the physics department and had not been in any of my classes.

I spent the next few days idly trying to figure out where I might have seen this person before (and realizing on Saturday that it was someone who worked in a coffee shop I had gone to maybe twice over the last year), and it really hit me that when I'm walking around town I've just altogether stopped expecting that I might know anybody I run into outside of the few buildings where I work. Now, I know right now all you city folks are just chortling away, but that's really quite a change from both my hometown and where I went to college. But mostly, I wonder why it took me so long to realize this.
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Basically there is nothing left to do. While the bread is rising preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and once the dough is level with the top of the pan, put it in the oven for all of 35 minutes.
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Tasting verdict: Well, last week I may have made a horribly unhealthy loaf, but this week I fear I've swung too far in the opposite direction. This bread tastes entirely too wholesome for me to really enjoy, although I'm sure it will make at least passable sandwiches. Also, although you don't notice it so much while chewing it, this loaf has a distinct and non-too-pleasant aftertaste of molasses. Definitely a loaf only to be made once.

Currently reading: Brushing up on the "confluent hypergeometric functions" part of my math methods lecture notes. So, as I'm sure you can imagine, at the moment I am still welcoming any alternate suggestions.