Everything can’t be sweet, right?
When social media bombards me with visions of sugarplums, I start craving something hearty, salty, savory- and rye bread with its pungent little caraway seeds is exactly what I need.
This recipe will make two small-ish round loaves of swirled rye bread, but with just a little extra effort, you can produce beautiful canape bread for a buffet – or just for snacking! (I love, love, love them broiled in the oven until crispy and topped with a little peanut butter.)
Serve on a platter with bowls of your favorite spreads. Salmon is wonderful, as is ham, tuna, or chicken salad.
I use a very strange ingredient in mine to get a little darker color for the contrast dough: Kitchen Bouquet (yes, that stuff our mothers darkened gravy with), which looks like it would be beef flavored, but is not. If you taste a tiny bit, it’s actually mild and fairly sweet. This is completely optional, of course.
I tried kneading the cocoa and Kitchen Bouquet in by hand. I recommend a mixer!
Note: I recently read an article claiming active dry yeast no longer needs to be softened in liquid, and was skeptical, but after experimenting, I totally agree. You’ll see that I skipped that procedure in this recipe. Rye bread is slower to rise, and won’t rise as high as regular bread, but it rose just as expected – with one less step.
| Rye Party Bread | Print |
- 1 cup strong, hot coffee
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 3 tablespoons molasses
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 2 cups rye flour
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 cups bread flour
- 1½ teaspoons caraway seeds
- 1 tablespoon cocoa (regular or special dark)
- ½ teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet (or substitute coffee or water)
- In large bowl (stand mixer works best) combine hot coffee, oil, molasses, and buttermilk.
- Add rye flour and yeast. Mix until combined.
- Add salt, bread flour (begin with 1¾ cups) and caraway seeds. Using a dough hook, knead for approximately 5 minutes (7 minutes by hand). Dough should come cleanly away from the side of the bowl. If it doesn't, or is very sticky (slightly sticky is expected), add additional bread flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it is the correct consistency.
- Remove half of the dough and place it into a greased bowl.
- To the remaining half, add cocoa and Kitchen Bouquet (or other liquid). Continue to knead until incorporated. Don't worry if the color isn't completely blended - a little marbling is fine.
- Place the darker dough in the same bowl with the lighter dough. Cover and let rise until almost doubled - at least one hour.
- Spray the inside of three canape pans thoroughly with an oil/flour spray (like Baker's Joy) and cover one end of each pan tightly with foil. Set aside.
- Divide each color into thirds. (*Instructions for making round loaves are at the end of the recipe.)
- Roll all six pieces into 6x8-inch rectangles. They will be thin. For each loaf, place a light piece and a dark piece together with the 6-inch side facing you, and roll up firmly, pinching the edges to seal. Give it a little roll back and forth with your hands to make it about 7-inches long, and slide into prepared canape pan, centering dough as much as possible. Set the pan upright on a baking sheet, with the foil covered end down. (This will ensure equal rising all the way around.) There should be about 1 inch of space at the top of the pan.
- Place a towel or plastic wrap over the tops of the canape pans and let the dough rise for 1 hour, or until it has filled out into the shape of the pans.
- Heat oven to 375 F.
- Lay the canape pans down on the baking sheet (I leave the foil on), place in the oven, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack. As soon as you are able to handle the pans, slide the bread out to cool completely. You may need to give it a little shake and prod, but it should come out cleanly.Slice into thin, decorative slices.
- *To make round loaves, divide each color of dough into 2 pieces. Flatten each piece to roughly the same shape, stack a dark piece and a light piece, and then fold into a ball, creating a marbled effect, "Scooch" the ball along a flat surface to create a smooth round loaf. Cut a criss-cross on the top and cover. Allow the dough to rise for 1 hour or until almost doubled. Bake on lightly greased baking sheet for 25 minutes at 375 F. Brush hot bread lightly with butter for a shiny appearance.
Bread flour, rye flour, and caraway seeds.
Add rye flour and yeast to liquids.
Knead well! (A stand mixer is recommended.) Dough should come cleanly from sides of bowl.
Dough after one hour. Almost doubled – ready to roll.
Use an oil/flour spray inside the pan.
Roll each piece out to 6×8″
Roll dark and light dough together.
Slide dough into pan.
Risen and ready for the oven.
If you don’t want to fuss with the canape pans, just separate the dough into two pieces of light, and two pieces of dark. Smoosh a dark and light together and form into a ball. Cut the top and bake on a lightly greased baking sheet for 25 minutes. So simple!
And now…back to my regularly scheduled sweet holiday treats!
Lorinda
