I used far less water this time, however something else (quite significant) had changed...the weather! Last week I'd made the dough on Friday night, let it prove overnight in a cold kitchen, and then shaped it on Saturday morning. This week the kitchen was about 8-10'C warmer, and the bread was proved in a couple of hours, so I ended up shaping it and baking it (a little under-proved the second time) the same evening.
I went for a plait...it's a shape I've done before, but not really got it nicely even, and they have ended up a little lumpy at one end. This one came out better, and if I'd had time to let it prove properly, it would have been very good. Wholemeal dough does just seem to be stickier, and more messy to work with than white flour...
Tomato, Mushroom and Rosemary Plait Loaf
Ingredients
- 500g strong wholemeal flour
- 40ml olive oil
- 10g salt
- 7g fast action yeast
- 330ml cold water
- 15g sundried tomato
- 10g dried mushroom
- 1tsp dried rosemary
- Poppy Seeds (to decorate)
- Milk (to glaze)
1) Place all the ingredients apart from the poppy seeds and milk in a stand mixer bowl with the dough hook attached2) Knead, mix for 10 minutes, until you have a smooth dough
3) Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm, and prove for ~2 hours (at 23-24'C)
4) Scrape the dough out onto a slightly floured surface, and knock back
5) Split into 3 even parts, and roll each one out to be a ~15 inch long sausage
6) Plait these 3 into a single loaf, tucking the ends under
7) Place on a baking tray lined with baking parchment
8) Place in a warm room (24-26'C) for 1 - 1½ hours to rise
9) Pre-heat oven to 220'C
10) Lightly brush the loaf with milk
11) Sprinkle the topo f the loaf with poppy seeds
12) Place in the oven, and pour 500ml of water into a tray at the bottom of the oven13) Bake for 10 minutes
14) Reduce the temperature to 200'C, and bake for a further 20 minutes
15) Remove to a wire rack to cool