Rye Bread

Rye Bread

Ingredients:

• 2 cups bread flour

• 1 cup rye flour

• 1 1/2 tsp instant yeast/rapid-rise yeast

• 2 tsp salt

• 2 tsp caraway seeds

• 1 1/3 cups warm water (105 to 110)

• 2 tsp honey

• 2 tsp vegetable oil

• 1 large egg + 1 tbsp water, lightly beaten for egg wash

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached, stir together bread flour, rye flour, yeast, salt and caraway seeds.

2. Whisk warm water, honey and oil in a separate bowl, until honey has dissolved.

3. With mixer on low speed, slowly add water mixture to flour mixture and mix until a cohesive dough forms (if dough looks a little too dry, add a tablespoon of water) and there is no dry ingredients in the bowl, about 2 minutes. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let dough rest for 20 minutes.

4. Knead the dough on medium-low speed until it is smooth and elastic and clears the sides of the bowl, about 8 minutes.

5. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for about 30 seconds to form a smooth, round ball. Place dough in a greased large bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, let rise until double in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

6. Line a baking sheet with foil and stack it on top of another baking sheet, dust with rye flour. Gently deflate dough and turn onto a lightly floured surface (the side of dough that was against the bowl should not be on top). Gently press and stretch dough into a 6-inch square.

7. Fold top corners of dough diagonally into center of square; press gently to seal. Stretch and fold upper third of dough toward center and press seam gently to seal. Now fold dough in half towards you to form a 8 by 4-inch loaf, pinch seam closed. Roll loaf seam side down. Transfer loaf, seam side down, to prepared baking sheet. Reshape loaf as needed, tucking edges under to form a torpedo shape. Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until loaf has risen by about half and dough springs back minimally when gently poked with knuckle.

8. Heat oven to 450℉ (425℉ convection). Using a lame or sharp knife, make 3 4-inch 1/2- inch-deep slashes with swift fluid motion across width of loaf, spacing them about 2 inches apart.

9. Brush loaf with egg wash and place in oven. Reduce heat to 375℉ (350℉ convection) and bake until deep golden brown, 35 to 45 minutes, rotating half way through. Loaf should register 205 to 210 degrees. Transfer loaf to wire rack and let cool completely, 3 hours, before serving.

Yields: 1 loaf

Notes&Tips:

• We all know a Ruben sandwich and rye bread go hand in hand. But rye bread is so much more. Did you know that rye was once a weed? It contaminated wheat fields, but has since proven itself as a useful grain to the world. Rye has qualities that wheat does not possess: it lends itself well to poorer soils; it can tolerate less sun and can grow at higher altitudes; it tolerates damp and drought. Rye has been widely grown in northern and eastern Europe and Canada since the Middle Ages.

• Russia, Poland and the Scandinavian countries all love rye bread, and emigrants from those countries, along with Germans, brought rye bread the United States. Germans make more kinds of bread than anyone else, some 300 varieties, a vast majority containing rye flour, said Heinrich Junemann, the head of the Berlin bakers' guild. They also eat far more bread than anyone else -- 185 pounds a year, on average, for every man, woman and child -- and in the bleak, hungry years after World War II, when little other food was available, that amount was 310 pounds a year (NY Times, 7.15.98). The Germans also love traditional ryes, whether tan, brown or almost black, with a malty, slightly sour taste.

• Rye has a deep flavor, a flavor of the earth, a flavor full of character, a flat feel on the back of your tongue that gradually fills your whole mouth. And it should be chewy. The darker the rye flour the stronger the flavor and denser the texture.

• I made this rye bread to be used for sandwiches. We made chicken sandwiches and smoked salmon sandwiches. They both tasted divine on the rye bread. We also had it with different types of cheeses for breakfast. You really can't go wrong with rye.

• Pumpernickel is a traditional type of rye bread developed in Germany and made from ground whole rye berries and rye flour. So, pumpernickel is the whole grain of rye. Traditionally, the rye berry is boiled and steamed to soften it enough to make the bread. The end result is a dark and fairly heavy loaf of bread. Traditional pumpernickel doesn't have any added coloring or sweeteners, though it does have a slightly sweet taste.

• Dark rye is made of coarsely-ground flour ground from the endosperm with some of the bran and germ included. It uses a sourdough starter to ferment the grains. Dark rye is said to be similar to light rye except that for the use of darker flour, molasses and sometimes even cocoa are added. Caraway seeds are also frequently added to dark ryes.

• Light rye uses flour made only of the endosperm which is ground into fine flour. Like dark rye, it also uses a sourdough starter. Light rye flour is also used to make rye quick breads and biscuits. Light rye bread will absorb less water than dark ryes, causing it to be lighter after baking.

• Marbled rye is traditionally the combination of dark and light rye.

• In the U.S.A. rye flour is almost always mixed with wheat flour to make bread. The general ratio is 20 percent rye and 80 percent wheat.