Walnut Bread

Hey, where did this week go? It totally breezed by. And it's already mid-December (well, almost) and my decorations are most decidedly not up yet. Need to fix that - this Sunday is second of Advent, and Advent is a big deal here in Sweden. I *have* baked the required saffron buns though, so I don't feel completely behind.

Today, let's make some bread. This is one of the best recipes I know for walnut bread. It's not difficult, not time consuming, not messy and very tasty. The recipe comes from Gateau, a bakery in Stockholm that some years ago made a cookbook. Virtually impossible to find in stores, but libraries often have copies! Mine did, and that's when I learned about this bread.

Walnut Bread
2 large breads

500 ml water
50 g fresh yeast
800 ml white flour (about 3 cups, plus 3 tbsp)
400 ml fine rye flour (about 1.7 cups)
1 tbsp salt
20 g softened butter
200 ml walnuts (about 2/3 cups)

Heat the water until tepid. Crumble the yeast into the bowl of your mixer (if using) and add the water. Stir until dissolved. Add all other ingredients except for the walnuts, and let the machine work the dough for five minutes. (Or you can work it very vigorously by hand, count on doubling the time.)

Add the walnuts, and knead for a few more minutes. Then leave the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Punch it down, and let it prove for 30 more minutes. Then tip it out on a floured table, and shape into two loaves. Place them on baking sheets, and leave to rise under a towel for about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 250°C. Put the bread in the oven, and lower the heat to 200°C. Bake for a total of 30 minutes.

The recipe in Swedish:
Gateaus Valnötsbröd