THIS IS THE GLUTEN-FREE VERSION of hearty whole wheat sandwich bread. The sorghum has a slightly sweet taste that is amplified by the molasses in the dough. The bread has a grainy texture similar to that of some wheat breads made with whole-grain flours, and the oats add additional textural interest. This is an interesting bread to turn into a stuffing for pork chops, too (see page 67 for a basic stuffing recipe).
MAKES 1 LOAF
2 tablespoons/30 g ground chia seeds
2¼ teaspoons/7 g active dry yeast
2 tablespoons/27 g firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup/237 ml whole milk, heated to 110° to 115°F/43° to 46°C
1 cup/158 g brown rice flour, plus more if necessary
¾ cup/95 g sorghum flour
½ cup/85 g potato starch
¼ cup/31 g tapioca starch
¼ cup/30 g teff flour
1½ teaspoons/6 g gluten-free baking powder
1 teaspoon/9 g xanthan gum
½ teaspoon/3 g fine salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
¼ cup/59 ml light molasses
3 tablespoons/42 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
¾ cup/72 g gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats, divided
Spray the inside of a 9 × 5-inch/23 × 11 cm loaf pan with vegetable oil spray.
Combine the chia seeds, yeast, brown sugar, and warm milk in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix well. Set aside for about 10 minutes while the yeast proofs. Combine the 1 cup/158 g of rice flour and the sorghum flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, teff flour, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt in a deep mixing bowl and whisk well.
When the yeast looks frothy add the eggs, molasses, and melted butter and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and ½ cup/48 g of the oats and beat at medium speed until combined. Increase the speed to high and beat the dough for 3 to 5 minutes, or until it has the consistency of a thick cake batter that would require spreading in a cake pan; it is too thick to pour. Add more rice flour by 1 tablespoon/10 g amounts to make the dough thicker, if necessary.
Lightly grease the inside of a large mixing bowl with vegetable oil or softened butter. Scrape the dough out of the mixer bowl and into the greased bowl, smoothing the top with moistened fingers or a rubber spatula dipped in water. Place it in the bowl and turn it over once so it is lightly greased all over. Cover the bowl loosely with a sheet of oiled plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and place it in a warm, draft-free spot. Allow the dough to rise for 1 hour, or until it has doubled in bulk.
Punch down the dough and scrape it into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with a rubber spatula dipped in water, and cover the pan with a sheet of oiled plastic wrap or a damp tea towel. Allow the bread to rise in a warm place for 40 to 50 minutes, or until it reaches ½ inch/1.25 cm from the top of the pan. Sprinkle the dough with the remaining ¼ cup/24 g of oats.
Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C toward the end of the rising time.
Covering the loaf loosely with aluminum foil after 30 minutes, bake the bread for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown, the top is firm, and it has reached an internal temperature of 200°F/93°C on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool for 30 minutes. Remove it from the loaf pan by running a spatula around the rim and invert it onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
The bread is best the day it is baked, but it can be stored refrigerated, tightly covered with plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.
VARIATION:
• Add 1 tablespoon/8 g of toasted sesame seeds to the dough, and substitute 1 teaspoon/5 ml of toasted sesame oil for 1 teaspoon/5 g of the melted butter.
Molasses is a delicious by-product that is extracted during the sugar cane refining process used to make sugar crystals. The sugar cane is crushed to remove the juice, which is then boiled vigorously. Machines utilize centrifugal force to extract the sugar crystals from the syrup. The remaining syrup becomes molasses. The flavor and color of molasses varies, depending on how early or late in the process the molasses is extracted. The molasses is where all the nutritional benefits of the cane sugar are found. One tablespoon/15 ml of molasses contains 40 percent of the daily recommendation for iron and 20 percent of the daily requirement of calcium. What is used most often in cooking is blackstrap molasses. It is the syrup remaining after the third extraction of sugar from sugar cane. Blackstrap (derived in part from the Dutch stroop, meaning syrup) refers to the liquid’s dark color. It has a very strong, somewhat bittersweet flavor. (In Europe, blackstrap molasses is often referred to as dark or black treacle.) By measure, it is 55 percent sucrose, the least sweet of the varieties. Light molasses, which is 65 percent sucrose, is what remains after the first processing of the sugar. It is generally unsulfured and is the lightest as well as sweetest variety, which is why it’s often used as a syrup for pancakes or stirred into hot cereals.