Vince has been asking for rye bread. There’s been so much going on with the garden and the mask making, that I kept putting it off but I promised him I would make the rye bread yesterday morning. It was a recipe I had not used before and, even though I feel like a fairly confident bread baker, new recipes scare me. At a time like this when my flour supply is limited, my supply of rye is almost non-existent, I don’t have enough yeast to waste . . I’d rather just stick with a tried and true recipe. But, Vince really wanted rye bread.
I only have malted rye, which does taste a little different, but I did have a one pound bag of pumpernickel meal. That will give me enough to make two more loaves and maybe by then, rye berries won’t be quite so hard to find.
Any recipe with the real whole wheat that has been ground from the berries, I use the Bosch mixer because it was made for that kind of a workout. My old Kitchen Aid is from the Hobart days and it’s a powerful mixer but the whole wheat dough sometimes needs to be kneaded for 15 minutes before the gluten fully develops and, since that Hobart/Kitchen Aid mixer cannot be replaced, I’m not going to put it through that kind of a workout.
The bread rose and baked beautifully. The recipe said to put it in a bigger loaf pan for a fluffier loaf (maybe not their exact words) and a smaller pan for a more dense/compact loaf. We like the dense breads better so I baked it in my small cast iron loaf pan.
It really turned out great. Vince raved about it . . “Can we have this bread from now on?” Maybe! It calls for 3/4 cup of dill pickle juice. I had to drain two jars of pickles to get that much juice. I told Vince, “I can buy a gallon of pickle juice” and he said “just buy the pickles . . it’s cheaper”. I don’t know about that. Once we can go out and shop, I’ll do some investigating. I know the local veggie mart sells pickle juice. We cannot eat multiple jars of dill pickles just so I can use the juice to make bread.
Here’s the recipe I used: King Arthur’s Sandwich Rye Bread. I highly recommend it.
Denise Russart says
That looks yummy. Have you eve made the King Arthur Flour No Knead Harvest bread – it’s delicious (fruit and nuts in it) toasted.
Judy Laquidara says
I have and I just ground the wheat this morning to make that today. LOVE it toasted!
Rebecca in SoCal says
I looked up the recipe, and it looks very good, but I lack the lidded baker, or any appropriate crock. 🙁
Judy Laquidara says
Hey! I bet you an come up with something. I often use a black iron skillet with a lid.
tiptopquilts says
I can’t stand the taste of pickles….can you taste the pickle juice?
Judy Laquidara says
I don’t know. The flavors all blend so for someone who doesn’t like pickles, you may taste it.
Kathe Mayer says
You can’t taste the pickle juice
Sara Fridley says
The bread looks really good, but I have never cared for the taste of caraway seeds. I like a good Reuben sandwich however, in spite of the caraway taste. The only bread I make anymore is banana bread. There is a fresh loaf on my kitchen counter right now.
Judy Laquidara says
We have no bananas but I’ve been wanting banana nut bread. Don’t need it but want it. Enjoy yours and think of me while eating it.
Ranch Wife says
Yum! Looking forward to making this! We love everything we’ve ever made from King Arthur’s site. Maybe we’ll go back to a bartering system…I’ve got pickle juice and a freezer full of beef. 😉
Judy Laquidara says
I’ll trade you a cat for beef! 🙂
Lee says
YumYum…I enjoy a good rye bread, and especially made into a Reuben sandwich. Unfortunately my hubby detests all things rye, so rarely have any here at home.
Judy Laquidara says
It’s sad when there’s something one likes and the other doesn’t.