Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal Bread

Makes 3 loaves

24 oz (5 1/2 cups) bread or all-purpose unbleached flour
8 oz (1 7/8 cups) whole wheat flour
5.3 oz (1 5/8 cups) rolled oats
20 oz (2 1/2 cups) water
3.5 oz (3/8 cups) milk
2.4 oz (3 tablespoons) honey
2.4 oz (5 1/2 tablespoons) vegetable oil
.7 oz (1 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon) salt
.37 oz (1 1/4 tablespoon) instant yeast
.5 oz (2 tablespoons) ground cinnamon
10.6 oz (2 cups) soaked and drained raisins

At least half an hour before you begin, soak the raisins in warm water.

Doing so plumps them, which makes them softer and moister in the loaf.

Next, soak the oats in the 2 1/2 cups water for 20 to 30 minutes.
If you are using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, which I did, withhold 1/2 cup of the water to proof the yeast in. Mix the flours, yeast, milk, honey, oil, salt, and cinnamon into the oats. Mix well, until all of the flour is hydrated. Knead by hand for 5 minutes or in a standmixer for 3, then mix in the drained raisins. Knead or mix until the raisins are distributed throughout the dough. Cover the bowl of dough and allow it to rise for 1 hour. Then remove the dough from the bowl and fold it, degassing it gently as you do.

Place the dough on a floured work surface, top side down. Fold the dough in thirds, like a letter, gently degassing as you do. Fold in thirds again the other way. Flip the dough over, dust off as much of the raw flour as you can, and place it back into the bowl. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise in bulk again for another hour. Then divide the dough in thirds and shape the loaves. Place each shaped loaf into a greased bread pan. Spray or gently brush each loaf with water and sprinkle with some more oats. Cover the pans and set aside to rise until the loaves crest above the edge of the pans, roughly 90 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450. Place the loaves in the center rack of the oven. After 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 375. Rotate the loaves 180 degrees after 20 minutes, and bake for another 15 to 25 minutes, until the tops of the loaves are nicely browned, the bottoms of the loaves make a hollow sound when tapped.

Notes: I made this bread with Craisins because I didn't have any raisins. Since I substituted quick-cook oats instead of the rolled oats, I didn't wait that long for the oats to soak in the water. I heated the oat/water mixture to 110 deg F and added my yeast to proof it. (I have active dry yeast instead of instant.)

THIS BREAD MAKES THREE LOAVES WHICH IS A LOT WHEN THE DOUGH IS RISING. BE PREPARED FOR LOTS OF DOUGH!!!!

Coconut Bread

2/3 cup coconut milk

2/3 cup lukewarm water

2 T shortening, melted

1/2 cup sugar

2 T milk powder

4 t instant yeast

1 t salt

1 egg, beaten

2 T coconut, finely chopped

4 cups bread flour

In a large bowl, add water, egg, coconut milk, shortening, sugar, instant yeast, salt, milk powder and coconut. Mix until well combined. Add in half the flour and continue mixing until smooth. Start adding more flour slowly. When it becomes hard to mix, pour out onto a hard surface. Continue to add more flour and begin to knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes. After kneading, add a little oil to a bowl and add the dough. Flip a few times to make sure th dough is coated. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest until dough has doubled. Cut dough into 32 equal pieces. Layer eight pieces in the bottom of one 4 1/2" by 8" greased loaf pan. Place eight more pieces on top of the first eight. Repeat with a second loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest until dough reaches about 1 inch from the top of the pan.

Topping

1 egg white

1 T water

3 T flour

2 T sugar

2 butter, softened

2 T coconut, finely chopped

Combine flour, sugar, butter and coconut into a bowl. Using your fingers, mix till the mixture becomes a crumble. In a separate bowl, combine the egg white and water. Whisk until foamy. Brush the tops of the loaves with the foam and then add the crumble topping. Place into a 350 deg F preheated oven for about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the pan and allow to cool on wire rack.

Notes: I didn't really make any changes to this recipe. I liked it the way it is. The only thing was that I didn't have any fresh coconut, so I used the frozen sweetened coconut instead. This bread isn't insanely sweet. It has a bread taste with a hint of coconut (from the coconut milk).