Anadama Bread in
a Ceramic Bread pot (Dutch oven) -
a favorite
bread of mine.
Ingredients
-
1/2 cup water
-
1/4 cup cornmeal
-
2 tablespoons
butter
-
1/2 cup molasses
or 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
-
1 (.25 ounce)
package active dry yeast
-
1/2 cup warm
water (110 degrees F)
-
3 cups
all-purpose flour, divided
-
1 teaspoon salt
Directions
-
Place 1/2 cup
water and cornmeal in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium
heat, stirring occasionally. Cook until mixture thickens; about 5
minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the butter or margarine and
molasses. Let cool to lukewarm.
-
In a small
mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Let sit until creamy;
about 10 minutes.
-
In a large
mixing bowl, combine the cooled cornmeal mixture with the yeast mixture;
stir until well blended. Add 2 cups of the flour and the salt; mix well.
Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each
addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly
floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
-
Lightly oil a
large mixing bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with
oil. Cover with a damp cloth and put in a warm place to rise until
doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
-
Preheat oven to
375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
-
Place
in a large bowl cover and let rise in a warm spot (I use an oven at 100
degrees) for about 1 or more hours. When it is ready, dough will double
or more in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a
finger.
7. At
least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put
your large bread pot (or two smaller bread pots for separate loaves.)
and cover in the oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove
pot or pots from oven, place on mat, remove cover also place on mat or
towel. Slide dough into pot, slice across the top with sharp knife, it
may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Cover with lid and bake 30 to 35
minutes, then remove lid and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, (times will
vary depending on your oven) until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on
a rack.
I had
to use two bread pots for this recipe, It was too large for my smaller
bread pots.
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