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Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread with Oat Bran
April 27, 2008 | 17 Comments
Last week, we found a big jar labelled ‘oat bran‘ at the back of our pantry – way way at the back. Usually, we store such products in the refrigerator.
Usually we don’t buy bran at all. We use whole grain oats, which has the bran intact. We avoid buying bran because the high oil content makes it go rancid really fast. It’s health benefits, though, are formidable.
Whole grains are being endorsed not just for their high fiber content. They also contain antioxidants, lignans, phenolic acids, phytoestrogens, and other phytochemicals that may help reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. (The Whole Grain Guide)
Oat bran is the coarse outer layer of the grain. It contains about 50% to 80% of the minerals in grains, including iron, copper, zinc, and magnesium, as well as fibre, B vitamins, phytonutrients, and other bioactive components. (Nutritional benefits of oats and oat bran)
We needed a recipe that uses oat bran – not just 1/3 or 1/2 cup, but LOTS of it. Plus a cup of sourdough starter we had in the refrigerator. Plus whole wheat flour.
We pulled out Martha Rose Shulman‘s Great Breads from the shelf. Her recipes usually have a high percentage of whole grains. Plus, they are usually a 3-hour process, not three days with a series of soakers and starters. And they are forgiving. She doesn’t scare you with edicts like “if your sourdough is not at optimum ripeness, the sky will fall on your head.”
We found just the recipe we were looking for. It called for 2 cups of oat bran. Plus 1 cup of sourdough starter. Plus whole wheat flour.
We had never made a 100% whole grain bread with bran. And we’d never added so much bran to one bread. We were a bit concerned if this bread would rise at all. Our worries were unfounded.
Like her pumpernickel bread, this loaf is chewy and stick-to-your-ribs hearty with a moist crumb. The sourdough makes it very flavourful, and it was a real treat thinly sliced and slathered with jam or chutney. We love this bread and will be making it again.
Whole Wheat Sourdough with Oat Bran
(Adapted from Martha Rose Shulman’s Sourdough Bran Bread from Great Breads)
We made three changes. The original recipe uses 2.5 cups whole wheat flour plus 1/4 cup all purpose flour. We used all whole wheat flour. We reduced the salt by 0.5 tsp and added 1 tbsp vital gluten.
Dissolve
2.5 tsps active dry yeast in
2 cups lukewarm water (not warmer than 105 F) along with
1 tablespoon molasses (or maple syrup)
Mix and let it sit for 5 minutes until it gets foamy.
Add this to
1 cup wholewheat or rye sourdough starter
**ours is stiff starter and weighed about 8 ounces. Liquid starter works fine too. Adjust water content accordingly.
2 cups oat bran
1 tbsp vital gluten
2 and 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsps salt
Knead for 6-8 minutes until you get a smooth ball of dough. This dough will be a bit sticky and not quite elastic because of all the bran. If it is too dry, add 1 tbsp. water at a time. If it is too wet, add 1 tbsp. flour at a time.
Put it in a large bowl, cover the bowl with a plate, or oiled cling wrap, and keep it in a warm place until doubled in quantity. (one to 1.5 hours)
Grease a loaf pan.
Punch the dough down gently, knead it a bit, shape it into a loaf, and place it (seam side down) in the loaf pan. (See instructions for shaping here)
Cover it with a floured tea towel and let it rise again until almost doubled (about 40-45 minutes).
Preheat oven to 425 F with a rack in the middle. Place nother metal pan with about 2 cups of water on the top rack.
Slash the loaf across the top to let out steam, brush it with water.
Place it in the middle rack of the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400 F.
Bake for 35-40 minutes until the loaf is golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let it cool for a couple of minutes, prod it gently out of the pan, and let it cool another 15 minutes on a wire rack.
This is our entry for BreadBakingDay hosted by Paulchen’s FoodBlog, where the theme is Bread With Oats.
Filed Under: Great-breads, Martha-Rose-Shulman, Oat bran, Oats, sourdough, Wheat, whole-grain, whole-wheat
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17 Comments
Looks wonderful..Airy and healthy ..
What a wonderful entry! looks divine. So good.
Bee, I am just putting my hands on bread, I love this healthy bread, thanks for sharing.I love oat bran urs look so yummy.I definetely would like to start my day with those slices.
I’m probably the only person who doesn’t know this- what was the extra water on the top rack for? Also, I’ve never heard of slashing the bread on top. I always thought that was decorative (as opposed to functional) and resulted in a drier loaf.
http://www.baking911.com/howto/breads_goodcrust.htm – b
tell me one thing that u dont master at… plz plz… i realy wanna know….
Fabulous bread. I love the proverb
I dont know if you guys have a dog, but he would go bunkers right now I am sure 
Pooja – the extra water on top rack is there to create steam, so the bread is steamed and baked at the same time, whihc makes is soft and crunchy, moist and firm. The slash helps the yeast “breathing” so it is not trapped inside to die
There might be other benefits of these methods I am just not aware of…
The bread came out so airy and spongy. It looks like a cake slice!
Lovely!
looks so inviting guys
ive fallen in looove with wholegrain oats, they’re in my morning granola which i have with skim milk and they are so yummy, ive sworn to have this b/fast for life on a weekday…..
One more of thos etempting creations from your oven!
Looks so perfect!! Awesome post!
Great recipe – I would love to cook with oat bran occasionally but I fear I will never use it up – will have to remember this bread when I finally do buy some
Nice recipe! I keep lots of oat bran on hand at all times because it is my breakfast of choice (cooked like oatmeal) but lately the store where I usually buy in bulk has been out of it. I have (oddly?) never used it in bread. If and when I can get it again I will definitely try it.
[...] Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread with Oat Bran by Bee and Jai of Jugalbandi. [...]
Loved the look! I am sure it must have tasted good too
I don’t know about dogs but my mouth definitely waters when I just look at your photos! God knows what will happen if I looked at them actually!
This looks great & wholesome & delicious. There are a handful of breads I want to try from the round-up, and this one I don’t even have to work to veganize!