This has become my favorite go-to recipe for bread that requires no rising. The mix of grains produces a dense, satisfying loaf with a touch of sweetness that complements soups or tastes great toasted for breakfast. Try it with peanut butter and jelly, or spread on some goat cheese or cream cheese!
1 C. 5-grain rolled whole grain cereal (or old fashioned oats)
2 C. whole wheat flour
1 C. all-purpose flour
1/3 C. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. salt
¼ C. firm butter or margarine, chopped
¾ C. golden raisins and/or dried cranberries
1 egg
1 ½ C. buttermilk
Preheat the oven to 375º. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Reserve 1 T. of the cereal. In a large bowl, mix the remaining cereal, the flours, brown sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender (or rub in with tines of a fork) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in dried fruit.
In a small bowl, beat egg and buttermilk with whisk or fork until blended—reserve 1 T. of this mixture. Stir remaining liquids into the dry ingredients until just moistened. On a floured surface, knead dough 5 or 6 times until it holds together. Shape the dough into a 7” disk, place on the cookie sheet, and cut a large X across the top, ¼” deep. Brush the top with the reserved buttermilk mixture, and then sprinkle loaf with the reserved cereal. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cool before serving.
Kitchen Hint: I use Bob’s Red Mill Five Grain Rolled Hot Cereal, but using old-fashioned oats won’t change the flavor/texture of the bread a lot. To save some time, I also use my food processor to cut the butter into the dry ingredients.
Another Hint: If you don’t have buttermilk, you can put 3 T. of lemon juice or vinegar into the measuring cup and then add regular milk to the 1 ½ C. mark. Let this thicken
while you’re mixing the dough