Multigrain Sunflower Bread Recipe

How to make it

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• Mix together the first group of ingredients, from whole wheat flour to water. Whip together for a minute, and then cover with plastic wrap and a towel and place in a warmish, undisturbed place overnight. If you desire a less strong flavor, keep it in the fridge overnight or let rise for only 2-5 hours.
• The next day, mix the water and milk mixture into the sponge. Mix together the next group of ingredients, from white flour to multigrain cereal. Sprinkle over yeast-flour mixture, and let sit overnight or for several hours (at least 3) in the same manner as before.
• The next day or several hours later, mix together flour and sponge in the bowl. It will be a relatively sticky mass, but after several minutes will come together.
• On a large wooden board (or your preferred kneading surface), sprinkle out the sunflower seeds (varying the amount to your taste; 1/4 to 1/2 cup is what I used), flax seed and oat bran as well as some of the flour. Reserve the rest for during the kneading process. Turn the dough out onto the board.
• Knead for 5 -10 minutes, sprinkling with flour in order to prevent sticking as needed, and then cover with the bowl and let it sit, or autolyze, for 20 minutes (give a take or few).
• Then knead again for several minutes. Oil or butter a large (2-4 quart) bowl, and place dough in the bowl, moving it around to cover its surface with the oil or butter. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and towel, and let rise till doubled, approximately 1 1/2 hours. Take the dough out, punch down, and knead again for 2 -3 minutes.
• Re-oil bowl and repeat same rising process.
• This time, shape the dough into a batard or round. For the batard, flatten out into a rectangle and fold one end over, then other, so the second overlaps first. Turn 90 degrees and fold over side opposite you, slowly rolling and pinching the dough together, till the dough is in an oval shaped log.
• Let rise again, oiling surface of bread and put the bread on some parchment paper and place both on the back of a baking tray while it rises. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel. This rise may be shorter than the others, depending on how long you want to wait for the bread to rise! I actually didn't let it rise till doubled before I baked it, but it was still fine.
• Preheat oven at 465 while the bread undergoes its last rise, if you are using a baking stone. If not, you can turn the oven on about 20 minutes before you put the bread in. Also, before turning oven on, place a small baking tray on the lowest rack.
• Once the bread has risen, spray with cold water and sprinkle with oat bran. Slash in three diagonal slices, 1/2 inch deep, and place in oven. Keep in on the baking tray if not using stone, otherwise, slide off of tray onto stone and leave the parchment paper under the bread.
• Splash 1/2 cup of water onto baking tray in the bottom of the oven. Quickly close the oven and bake for 20 minutes at 465. Ten minutes into baking, splash another half cup of water onto the lower baking tray. After 20 minutes, lower to 400 and bake for another 10 -15 minutes, depending on how dark you want the crust. Occasionally splash more water onto baking tray.
• Remove bread and place on wire rack to cool. You can cut it open before it's cool if you like, but I've always read it's best to let the bread cool completely. Either way, it's delicious slathered with butter and sprinkled with Hagelslag! (Dutch chocolate sprinkles. Find some in the international section if your grocery is really well stocked. Otherwise, they can always be bought online.)
• Some notes: the second time I made this, I added about a tablespoon of butter into the milk/water mix. I used about 1/3 cup almost boiling water and melted the butter in the water before adding the milk. An egg could also be added at this point.