A dense, grainy daily bread from Smitten Kitchen Every Day: Triumphant and Unfussy New Favorites (page 112) by Deb Perelman

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • Eat Your Books

    Can substitute mixed seeds or grains for oats.

  • rionafaith on April 17, 2020

    Had to make some substitutions due to COVID-19 pantry cooking. I was a touch short of the multigrain mix (I used Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain cereal and only had 388g left) so I supplemented with 87g of blitzed white rice (which is also one of the ingredients in the mix), and I substituted hard cider for beer. I thought this might be a total fail due to my swaps but I think it turned out more or less how it was supposed to? It is definitely dense and hearty, though it's moist and almost spongey as well. There's a prominent beery sourdough flavor. The dough was very unlike any I've worked with before. I allowed it to proof for nearly a full 48 hours but it did not rise as much as I expected in that time, and there is no second rise. This definitely feels wholesome to eat, and it's a bit odd, but something about it is very satisfying as well? Makes a great base for avocado toast except that the slices are quite small due to the short loaf.

  • Frogcake on February 10, 2019

    Agree with others - this is a slow rise bread, really dense dough, which is a bit tricky to handle. I was ok with the taste of the bread. It’s great toasted with butter and marmalade (my favourite). However, I pinched a handful of dough off and transformed it into a super-delicious “hippy” pizza. Pressed thin onto parchment, brushed with garlic oil and pizza sauce, then topped with stuff: thinly sliced eggplant, red onion, red pepper, shredded radicchio and loads of cheese - sprinkled with pepitas and sunflower seeds - well, this was the best pizza I’ve had in awhile. Sadly, my family was not as optimistic about this bread as I was - so the loaf has been transformed into amazing breadcrumbs.

  • hirsheys on May 18, 2018

    This was a fail for me, but I'm not sure I gave it it's best shot. I ended up having to store it in the fridge for a full day after its 48 hour rise on the counter, and I think it was still a bit cold when it went in the oven. It took far longer to reach 196 degrees than 90 minutes, and even at 196, was a bit gluey inside. The taste wasn't bad, but it also wasn't great. I may try again without the beer next time and rise it for the right amount of time, but I may also just give up on it.

  • sosayi on May 16, 2018

    This was... fine. I like dense, grainy breads, but something about the flavor of this wasn't for me. Maybe the beer like stockholm28 suggested? I like beer bread, but I think maybe not in this context. I'll eat it, as it makes a lot and I've saved it sliced in the freezer as suggested, but I doubt I'd go out of my way to make it again.

  • stockholm28 on March 09, 2018

    I liked the concept of this bread, but felt the beer taste was too dominant; it overpowered the grains. I used Bob’s Red Mill 10 grain cereal, whole wheat flour, and topped with a mix of sesame and poppy seeds. Since I have some of the cereal left, I might try it again with a substitute for the beer.

  • Jane on January 31, 2018

    My photo is a good illustration of what goes wrong with bread when you don't follow the recipe. I made up a batch of this bread then set it aside to rise. About 8 hours later I realized I had missed out the beer. The dough was very stiff but I decided to incorporate it anyway and see how it baked up. Since I now had a half bottle of beer and a bit less than half a packet of the grain cereal I decided to make another batch. The 1st batch had not risen much after 48 hrs and turned out a heavy dense loaf. The 2nd batch (which had more white flour to make up for less grain cereal) rose much more before and during baking - it was an inch taller. The second bread was much tastier - not as dense and more flavorful. This is a dense bread but I like that. My only issue is that I live alone and she says the bread only is good the first day. Though she suggests freezing it in thin slices. I usually have Ezekial bread in the freezer (which costs about $7 a loaf) so this will be a good alternative.

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