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Tassajara Yeasted Bread

From the book The Tassajara Bread Book by
Yield 2 loaves

Culinate editor’s note: This is the ur-recipe in Espe Brown’s classic breadmaking book.

Ingredients

3 cups lukewarm water (85 to 105 degrees)
Tbsp. dry yeast (2 packages)
¼ cup sweetening (honey, molasses, or brown sugar)
1 cup dry milk (optional)
4 cups whole-wheat flour (substitute 1 or more cups unbleached white flour if desired)
4 tsp. salt
cup oil or butter or margarine
3 cups additional whole-wheat flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour for kneading

Steps

  1. In a large ceramic bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Stir in the sweetening and the dry milk (optional). Stir in the 4 cups of whole-wheat flour to form a thick batter. Beat well with a spoon (100 strokes).
  2. Let the dough rise for 45 minutes.
  3. Fold in the salt and the oil, then fold in the additional 3 cups of flour until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. Knead on a floured board for about 10 minutes, using the additional 1 cup flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the board. Stop when the dough is smooth.
  4. Let the dough rise for 50 to 60 minutes, or until doubled in size. Punch it down.
  5. Let the dough rise for another 40 to 50 minutes, or until doubled in size. Shape the dough into loaves and place in 2 loaf pans or a single heavy baking dish. Let rise for 20 to 25 minutes.
  6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  7. Brush the tops of the loaves with an egg wash (a egg beaten with a few tablespoons of water or milk) and bake for 40 minutes to an hour, or until golden brown. Remove from the pans and let cool before slicing.

Notes

You can replace part of the water with milk.

If you like a lighter bread (and quicker risings), use an additional package of yeast.

This content is from the book The Tassajara Bread Book by Edward Espe Brown.

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There are 4 comments on this item
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50% recommend this recipe
1. by Patchouli Owl on Dec 14, 2010 at 11:47 AM PST

I have been making this bread for years. It’s the best bread I have ever had! I increase the yeast to 3 packets and the honey to 1/2 cup. It takes a while to make, but it’s worth it!

2. by Linda on Aug 21, 2011 at 3:25 PM PDT

I too have made this bread for years. It is a wonderfully dense loaf that toasts beautifully and it almost like cake when you eat it!

3. by Dave K on Dec 25, 2011 at 10:07 AM PST

There is a step that you left out - punching down the dough and letting it rise a second time. I followed this recipe because I hadn’t baked in decades, and couldn’t find my copy of the Tassajara Bread Book. It wasn’t until the loaves were in the oven that I remembered that step. The bread came out way too dense, and without much flavor. Please fix the recipe to more closely reflect the original, and repost.

Thank you.

4. by Caroline Cummins on Dec 26, 2011 at 12:26 PM PST

Dave K -- Yes, the first rise and punchdown step was skipped by mistake here. We’ve fixed it now.

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