Foodie Dreams: Multigrain Bread Remake

It’s 4:38 am Sunday morning and I’m up feeding Bug. When she woke up “asking” to be fed, I was having the craziest dream. I dreamed that I was in New York with Hosea, the winner of the most recent season of Top Chef. We were in search of an urban legend, the tomato mountain. The infamous mountain was a large pile of perfectly ripe chopped tomatoes rumored to be in the basement of a building we were entering. Rumor also explained that the mountain was accompanied by a kitchen where some of the best food in the world was prepared. It was twilight outside as we pulled open the door and entered the building. [Cue spooky music] The inside of the building was dingy and badly lit. We started down a concrete corridor with flickering lights and descended a flight of stairs, until we finally arrived at a door. We pulled open the door and found ourselves in an art gallery. Confused we began asking a few people why they were there. One woman haughtily replied, “How dare you ask me why I’m here!” Finally we found a docent and I explained what we were searching for. Conspiratorially she lowered her voice and replied, “Oh, it exists! It’s on the third floor!” It was at this point that Bug’s hungry cries woke me up.
I may not have found my tomato mountain, but it was in my power to make another “dream” come true. Last Sunday I told you about my new recipe for multigrain bread. I also mentioned that I wished I had been able to add some sunflower seeds.
Well, yesterday I made that wish a reality. I mixed up another batch of dough and added some sunflower seeds. I also added a small amount of Vitamin C powder to the dough, a trick I just learned this past week thanks to one of my aunts (thanks for sharing Aunt Chris!). Baking 911 explains that Vitamin C “[c]reates an acidic environment for the yeast which helps it work better. It also acts as a preservative & deters mold and bacterial growth. With just a touch of ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) . . . the yeast will work longer and faster. French bakers add it to their French bread, baguette or boule recipe. If you can’t find pure ascorbic acid crystals you can use Fruit Fresh (canning aisle) or a crushed/powdered Vitamin C tablet, but measure accordingly.” Cool.
Another observation from making this bread again was that I used significantly less flour this time around. When making this bread you definitely want to make sure that you only add as much of the last cup of flour as is necessary to take the dough to being only slightly sticky. If you add too much flour the dough will become stiff and the resulting loaf of bread will be tough and dry. The amount of flour that you use will vary on any given day depending on temperature and humidity. I’ve revised the instructions to be a bit clearer on this point. I’ve also revised the recipe to include the sunflower seeds and Vitamin C.
Ironically, my dreams of the perfect loaf of multigrain bread were not meant to be. When I put the dough in the oven and was cleaning up I realized that I had forgotten to add one of the ingredients: salt. Sigh. Sometimes I think I have my head screwed on backwards. Oh well. The loaf turned out beautifully and the sunflower seeds were a fabulous addition.
The bread was a bit blander than it should have been due to the absence of salt, but the bread was still surprisingly delicious.
It was especially delicious with a schmear of dark chocolate spread on it (a recent delicious acquisition from World Market), though cardboard would probably taste delicious with dark chocolate spread on it . . . .

FM’s Multigrain Bread (Revised)
Makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 cups water
1 Tbsp. sugar
2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (1/4 oz. packet)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup barley flour
1/2 cup wheat bran
2 Tbsp. flaxseed meal
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. Vitamin C Powder (optional)
3/4 tsp. balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
Oil for bowl

1. Pour water into a large microwave-safe bowl and heat to 120 degrees Fahrenheit (you can test it with your finger: it should be hot, but not so hot that you can’t keep your finger in it). Stir in the sugar, then add yeast. Let sit a few minutes until foamy.

2. In a separate bowl mix together 2 1/2 cups of the all-purpose flour, the barley flour, wheat bran, flaxseed meal, salt, and Vitamin C powder.

3. Add flour mixture and vinegar to the yeast mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon.

3. Add as much of the last cup of flour as necessary until the dough is only slightly sticky. Add the sunflower seeds and mix in slightly (the seeds will become fully incorporated during kneading). Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. The dough will be smooth and elastic, not sticking to your hands (but maybe sticking slightly to the counter).

4. Oil the bowl and place the dough in it, rolling it in the oil. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let rise until it doubles in size, about one hour.

5. Punch down the dough and shape into a loaf. Place in a greased loaf pan and cut 2 or 3 slashes on the top with a sharp knife. Cover again lightly with plastic wrap. Let rise one hour.

6. Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 40 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

7. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and let cool completely.

* Don’t forget! You have just a few more hours (until tonight at 10:00 PM PST) to enter the measuring spoons giveaway if you haven’t already! (Go here for instructions on how to enter).