Preparation:
Makes two 8-inch loaves
In a large bowl mix the oatmeal and corn meal together and pour boiling water over. Let stand about 10 minutes.
Add the milk and molasses to the oatmeal mixture and stir. When cool enough - test by sticking your finger deep into the warm mixture and be sure you can hold it there comfortably for a minute - sprinkle on the yeast. Then stir to mix along with the oil, salt, whole wheat flour, and enough of the white flour until the dough becomes hard to stir.
Turn the dough out onto a floured working surface and let rest while you wash out and oil your bowl. Knead the dough, adding more white flour as necessary - it will be sticky and eat up a lot. After 8-10 minutes the dough should have lost its tackiness and be smooth and resilient. Return it to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until double in volume.
When it has doubled, punch it down, and let it rise again until double. This step is not absolutely necessary, but the bread develops more flavor, we find, with the additional rising.
Turn the dough out, punch it down, and form into two 8-inch loaves. Place in oiled bread pans - they will be quite full - and let rise only a third again as much until the loaves swell slightly over the pans.
Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for 10 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 F and bake another 45 minutes. Turn out and cool on racks. |
