While
I love baking breads with at least some whole grain flour in them, I’m also
happy to make a richer, fluffier, sweeter loaf on occasion. This one, which is
also studded with dark raisins, is made with all bread flour, and is nearly as
indulgently satisfying as dessert.
I
always feel a bit irresponsible when writing about a kneaded yeast bread recipe
on these pages. Not because of the carbohydrate loaded nature of the final
product. (It has never been my goal to be nutritionally elite.) It’s because of
the somewhat careless way I put together a loaf of bread. Success in baking is
usually accomplished by applied accuracy. Recipes for really great fancy baked
goods have measurements that consider tiny increments like grams and milliliters.
My bread recipes tend to use language like, “3 cups bread flour, or more as
needed,” or brief descriptions of what the dough should be like when it’s time
to stop kneading or adding flour.
This
recipe is no exception. I started with a cup of warm milk. I wanted to sweeten
and enrich the bread, so added ¼ cup of each honey and soft, unsalted butter. I
knew this would hold about 3 cups of bread flour, so that’s what I kneaded in.
It was about right. The dough came together in my stand mixer, smooth and elastic,
slightly tacky. Perhaps more or less flour would be needed if I used a
different brand. Perhaps kneading by hand instead of with a stand mixer and a
dough hook would change the results. Really, I’m happy to keep the recipe
somewhat flexible so that bread can be made the way the bread maker likes to
make it.
This
dough could probably take in some other flavors, such as cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. You could also use a different dried fruit, such as craisins, or
chopped dates, figs, or apricots, or a mixture of any of those. Nuts could be
mixed in, too. I liked the sweetness of this recipe, though you may be able to
back off the honey, or replace it with another sweetener, with some minor adjustments
to the flour content. You could probably put some whole grain flour in as well.
The
butter keeps the bread soft as well as rich, making it a lovely breakfast or
afternoon snack. It also makes pretty fabulous French toast. Bread pudding
would be great, too. This is a good one to have in your recipe file for
tinkering. Or just eating plain, lightly toasted and gently buttered.
Honey Raisin Bread
If you do not want to use a
stand mixer to mix and knead the bread, you can mix it in a large bowl and knead
by hand on a floured surface.
1
cup milk
¼ cup
unsalted butter
¼ cup
honey
2 ¼
teaspoon (1 envelope) active dry yeast
3
cups bread flour, or more as needed, divided
1
teaspoon fine salt
¾ cup
raisins
1. Combine
the milk and butter and heat until the milk is about 100 F. The butter does not
need to be completely melted. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.
2. Stir
in the honey and yeast. Let stand about 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
3.
Add about 1 ½ cups flour and mix with the paddle attachment to make a batter. Cover
the bowl with a towel and let stand for 15-30 minutes. The mixture should be
risen and puffy in appearance.
4.
Sprinkle the salt over the dough. Add about half of the remaining flour. Knead on
medium-low speed using the dough hook. Continue adding the remaining flour and kneading
it in to make a smooth and elastic dough that is still slightly tacky. This will
take about 10 minutes of kneading time.
5.
Remove the dough from the bowl and knead in the raisins by hand to distribute them
evenly.
6.
Spray a large bowl with cooking spray, or grease it as desired. Shape the dough
into a smooth ball and place it in the prepared bowl. Spray or grease the dough
ball. Cover the dough loosely with a sheet of plastic wrap. Cover the bowl with
a towel. Let stand for about 1 hour, or until roughly doubled in size.
7.
Gently deflate the dough and reshape it into a ball. Let stand 5 minutes. Line
a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Shape the dough
into a log and place it on the baking sheet. Cover loosely with a towel.
8. Let
the shaped dough rise for about 1 hour or until roughly doubled in size. Preheat
oven to 350 F.
9. Slash
the dough in several places with a sharp blade. Bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes
or until the bread is golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped on
the bottom. Cool completely.
Makes
about 12 servings.
Other
recipes like this one: White Sandwich Bread, Rosemary Raisin Rye Bread,
Hazelnut and Cranberry Bread with Sage, Cinnamon Graham Bread with Cranberries and Pecans
