Herbed Seed Bread

 

Herbed Seed Bread

This bread releases a lovely lemony scent when cut, and is best eaten warm from the oven with lots of real butter.

Ingredients:

7g dried yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

1/2tsp sugar

3 cups plain flour

2tbsp linseeds

1tsp dried oregano

1tsp dried basil

1tsp dried lemon myrtle

1tsp salt

1tbsp olive oil

1 cup lukewarm water

extra flour

Method:

Combine yeast, the 1/2 cup water and sugar in a basin. Cover and set aside in a warm place until frothy.

Meanwhile, sift flour into a large bowl and add salt, linseeds and herbs and mix through the flour. Make a well in the centre and add oil, yeast mixture and water. Mix with hands, squeezing dough until it leaves the sides of the bowl. Remove from bowl and knead dough until it becomes elastic. Brush the bowl with a little extra oil; shape dough into a ball and put it back into the bowl. Brush the dough with a tiny bit of oil. Cover the bowl with a damp teatowel, some cling wrap or a plastic bag and sit it in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until the dough has doubled.

When the dough has doubled, punch it down to remove excess air. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, using as little extra flour as possible. Shape into a round and place on a lightly greased tray. Make a 2.5cm deep cut all the way around the bread, so it looks like a smaller circle from above. Dust with extra flour. Place into a cold oven, turn it to 200C and bake for about 30 minutes, or until lightly browned, with a hollow sound when you tap the bottom with a knuckle.

You can also split the dough into two portions to make two smaller rounds (which is what I did - I'm sure you can tell from the photo) or into four or six pieces to make rolls. If you really wanted to, you could bake it in a loaf tin, but I find "artisan breads" are more interesting!