You’ve no doubt pondered the question: If there was one food that you could eat as much as you want, with no-down side, what would it be? Steak Diane? Linguine Alfredo? Boston Cream Pie?
For me… it’s not anything fancy at all. It’s simply bread and butter. Better yet, warm bread, just out of the oven, spread with some creamy butter and sprinkled with just a bit of sea salt. For breakfast, lunch AND dinner. And the next day? Repeat.
When Robin Asbell’s latest cookbook came out, she asked some of her blogger friends if we’d consider making a recipe from the book and posting it for our readers. That was a no-brainer for me! Ever since my sister and I took one of her cooking classes, I’ve loved her cookbooks and articles in various magazines. So I said “of course!” and a few weeks later, the publisher sent me an advance copy of The Whole Grain Promise. {It’s fabulous – and you can WIN a copy!}
I read it from cover to cover one night over a nice glass of Sauvignon Blanc {New Zealand is producing my current faves}. Every page, every description, every ingredient list… And as you can see, I marked more than a few recipes that sounded and looked fabulous!
But the No Knead Stealth Bread caught my eye. It’s not fancy – it’s just, well … basic. And I wasn’t even sure how it would photograph, it’s so … plain. But I liked the promise of a super-easy, all natural homemade whole grain bread. And of course I imagined it warm and slathered with butter. Or maybe toasted with a bit of honey.
It’s called “Stealth” Bread because you can choose how much whole wheat you want to use in the recipe. {I went with 100% right out of the gate because my Wonder Bread days are long gone!} And it couldn’t be easier. You don’t even knead it. You just mix the ingredients together, let it rest, rearrange it, let it rest, rearrange it, let it rest… and then you bake it.
I’ll confess that I was concerned that the rest/rearrange/repeat process would require me to stay close to the kitchen for longer than I liked. Turns out, this recipe is also great for productivity! During the 10-minute rest periods I had just enough time to fold a load of laundry, clean out the kitchen “junk drawer,” and write those thank-you notes I’d been meaning to.
As I write this, I have two more loaves resting in the fridge. Once baked, they’ll go into the freezer so that I always have some on hand.
- 2¼ cups warm (105° to 115° F) water for 100% whole wheat, 2 cups for 75% whole wheat, 1¾ cup for 50%
- 2½ teaspoons active yeast
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 11/4 teaspoon salt
- 4¼ cups white whole wheat flour for 100% OR 3½ cups white whole wheat flour and 1 cup unbleached flour for 75% OR 2¼ cups white whole wheat flour and 2¼ cups unbleached flour for 50%
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- Shortening for pan
- In a large liquid measuring cup, stir the yeast and brown sugar into the water and let stand for about 20 minutes until it starts to bubble.
- In a square or rectangular storage tub with a lid (preferably 9 inches wide to line up with your baking pan), measure the salt and flours and stir. When the yeast has bloomed, stir the canola oil into the water and yeast mixture, then into the flour mixture. Stir just until mixed. It will be loose, lumpy, and sticky. Cover with a damp towel or loosely with the lid of the tub. Let stand for 20 minutes, to relax the dough. Then, use a spatula to fold ⅓ of the dough toward the center, and then gently flip the other ⅓ of the dough over that, and with wet hands, gently flatten. Let stand for 10 minutes, then turn the dough and repeat. Do this again in 10 minutes, for a total of three folds. Then let the dough stand, loosely covered, for 2 hours, until the batter rises to double the volume. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or for up to 2 days.
- To bake, take the dough out of the refrigerator and let warm on the counter for a few minutes. If it is cooler than 75° F in your kitchen, turn your oven to 250° F for 5 minutes, then turn off., so you can put the cold dough in a warm oven to help it rise. Heavily grease an 81/2 x 41/2 inch metal loaf pan with shortening. Using a rubber spatula, roll the dough gently over itself, forming a cylinder, and gently pinch to seal the seam. Trying not to deflate the dough, roll it out into the loaf pan, seam side down. If the top of the dough looks torn or shaggy, wet your fingers and smooth it gently. It will not change much during rise and baking, so make it pretty. Cover loosely with a damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let stand for 2 hours, in or on top of the warm oven, or in a warm spot, until the dough has risen to ½ inch or more above the level of the rim of the pan.
- Preheat the oven to 375° F. Bake the loaf for 35 minutes, until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped with a finger. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes before gently tapping the loaf out onto the rack to finish cooling. Don't slice until completely cool.
- Store the cooled loaf, wrapped in a paper towel, in an air tight bag in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
I’ll share more of Robin’s recipes here as I try them. Meanwhile, check out fellow blogger Emily’s review of the cookbook and another of its recipes here.
Want to win a copy of The Whole Grain Promise? Just answer this question in the comment section below: If there was one food that you could eat as much as you want, with no-down side, what would it be? We’ll announce a winner soon!
Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of The Whole Grain Promise by Robin Asbell in exchange for sharing of a recipe. As always, my opinions are my own. Thanks Robin for supporting Raisin & Fig!
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