Monday, January 20, 2014

Light Rye Bread with Caraway Seeds

Ever notice how one thing in the kitchen often leads to another? Since I picked up caraway seeds for my Multi-Seeded Rolls the next thing to try was this Light Rye Bread. We all loved it served with butter at dinner, but this would be great for sandwiches and I'm eating a slice toasted as I type:@) It's a sturdy loaf that I'd say is halfway between white bread soft and deli rye hard. The hardest part is trying to grind the caraway seeds... I"m guessing a coffee grinder would work, my mortar and pestle didn't do a very good job although I did still end up with a nice caraway flavor.
 Are the air bubbles up top from not punching down my dough sufficiently? Also, why doesn't this loaf have a nice rounded top? I gave it plenty of time to rise and used regular active dry yeast (not quick rising)... Any tips from bread bakers?

Light Rye Bread with Caraway Seeds-from One Perfect Bite
4-1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 cups warm water 
1/2 cup warm milk 
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons sugar 
2 tablespoons shortening
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tablespoons salt
1 cup light rye flour
5 - 5-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground caraway seeds
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
  1. Place warm water in large bowl, add yeast and let dissolve.
  2. Add milk, sugars, shortening, molasses and salt. Add rye flour and 2 cups all-purpose flour, beating until smooth. 
  3. Stir in ground caraway and caraway seeds and gradually add enough remaining all-purpose flour to form a soft dough.
  4. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. 
  5. Place in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning once to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. 
  6. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into two portions. Shape into two loaves. 
  7. Place each loaf in a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.
  8. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. 
Eat well and have a happy day:@)