Maple Oatbran Bread is not a quick and easy bread to make. Nope. This is one of those breads that will take you the entire afternoon to bake. But as I write this, summer rain is pounding on the roof of my kitchen and my truck is in the repair shop. I have the time.
Real Maple Syrup
What I love about Maple Oatbran Bread is the real maple syrup in the recipe. Yeast needs some type of sugar in order to ferment and rise. I am crazy about the idea of feeding maple syrup to the yeast in my bread. I love real maple syrup, so I know my bread is happy too.
I made a sandwich using this bread and it was absolutely heavenly! Lots of nutty oat flavor with a hint of maple and butter flavor perfectly complimented my lunch. I am going to try making French toast with it also. Savory or sweet, this bread is such an improvement over that stuff that is sold in plastic bags at the supermarket.
Make 1 or 2 loaves
You can make a seriously huge single round loaf or you can divide the dough into 2 smaller loaves. All of the prep time is the same, but you may want to reduce baking time by about 10 minutes. Just keep an eye on the bread. When it sounds hollow when you tap on it, time to take it out of the oven!
I love the currants and walnuts added to this recipe. You can substitute other small dried fruit such as raisins, sultanas, or dried dates. You can also substitute chopped pecans or hazelnuts for the walnuts. I may try to add more dried fruit and nuts next time I bake this bread for a sweeter breakfast treat. I will definitely be experimenting with the formula in the future!
Print- Prep Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Ingredients
Bread:
1 cup oat bran (94g)
½ cup rolled oats (45g)
2 cups whole milk (480ml)
¼ cup maple syrup (60ml)
¼ cup warm water (105°–115°F (40.5°C-46°C)
1 package yeast (7g)
5 ½ cups unbleached bread flour (688g)
1 tablespoon salt (12g)
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted (57g)
1 large egg, room temperature
½ cup dried currants or raisins – optional (150g)
½ cup chopped walnuts – optional (115g)
Egg wash:
1 egg
2 tbsp. milk (30ml)
Olive oil for coating bowl
Rolled oats for garnish
Instructions
Add the oat bran and rolled oats to a large mixing bowl. Heat the milk and pour over the oat mixture. Stir in the maple syrup mixing until you have a sponge. Allow to cool to 120°F (49°C.)
In a separate bowl, combine the yeast and warm water, stirring well. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.
Stir the dissolved yeast into the sponge mixture. Add 2 ½ (312g) cups of the bread flour and stir briskly for one minute. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside in a warm area for 30 minutes.
Remove the towel, stir in the salt, melted butter and egg, beating until smooth. Add the remaining flour ½ cup (64g) at a time. Once all of the flour is incorporated, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes by hand or place in the bowl of an electric mixer with kneading attachments and knead for 3 minutes. Add the currants and walnuts during the kneading portion of this recipe.
Place the kneaded dough in a clean mixing bowl that has been oiled with about 1 tsp. of olive oil (5ml). Turn the dough in the bowl so that it is coated with olive oil. Cover the bowl with the clean kitchen towel and set aside in a warm area until doubled in bulk, about 60 minutes.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Punch down the dough and knead briefly. Shape into 1 large round loaf or form into 2 smaller round loaves and place on paper lined baking sheet. Allow to rise again in a warm area for 60 minutes until doubled in bulk. After 45 minutes of rise time, preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C).
Prepare an egg wash by beating together the egg and milk. Brush the tops of the loaves twice with the egg wash and sprinkle with rolled oats. Slash the bread top with a sharp knife to make a grid pattern (3 slashes horizontally and 3 slashes vertically) Bake the bread for 40 to 45 minutes until the top is well browned. Allow to cool completely before slicing.
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