Anadama Bread

Being snowed in during the last weekend in February, gave me the luxury time of going through some magazines and actually reading a book or two.   I actually read the March issue of Bon Appetit on the day it came, not three months later that is most often the case.

I was limited on what supplies I had on hand, but I was able to piecemeal this bread together from pantry and freezer supplies.  This recipe is easily adapted to your own tastes and supplies.

Anadama Bread
slightly adapted from Bon Appetit

1 (1 ¼ oz.) envelope active dry yeast (about 2¼ tsp.)
1 c. warm water
1 c. stone-ground medium cornmeal
¼ c. dark molasses
2 T. hulled hemp seeds
1 T. roasted and unsalted sunflower seeds
4 t. brown flaxseed
2 t.  white sesame seeds
1¼ t. kosher salt
1 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
1 c. whole wheat white flour
2 T. softened butter

Place yeast in bowl of a stand mixer and add water; stir to dissolve yeast. Add cornmeal, molasses, seeds, salt, flours, and softened butter.  Using a dough, mix until no dry spots remain.

Using  dough hook on medium speed, knead until smooth and elastic, 8–10 minutes.

Lightly oil a medium bowl. (I use coconut oil.) Transfer dough to bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Punch down dough to deflate; cover. Let rise again until about doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly butter an 8×4” loaf pan and line with parchment paper, leaving generous overhang.

Punch dough and form unto an oblong shape.   Press until parchment lined pan.   Let dough rise until it crests the top of the pan and springs back slightly when pressed, about 1 hour.

Bake, rotating halfway through, until bread is baked through and top is a deep golden brown, 45–50 minutes. Let cool slightly in pan on a wire rack before turning out. Let cool before slicing (if you can wait that long).

Serve with salted butter.

The next time I make this, I will add a bit of cinnamon.  I love this stuff toasted!

Why is this called Anadama bread?   According to the folks at King Arthur:

There are many versions of how this bread came into being. They’re all similar, but each varies slightly. The general consensus is that a New England woman named Anna provoked her husband — some say through laziness, others say from baking the same bread daily, or for not finishing her bread-baking. The husband either threw a bag of cornmeal at her and missed, but spilled it into the dough; or he grabbed cornmeal instead of flour and tried to finish her bread. He muttered, “Anna, damn her!”

You can see King Arthur’s version and recipe here.    My grandmother was named Anna and she would have thought this story was a hoot, enough so, that I am sure she would have tried the recipe just for the story alone.

I hope you notice the texture of the bread. I love the feel the cornmeal and the seeds give this.

Besides baking bread during my snowboundness, what did I read?

I reread Comfort Me with Apples by Ruth Reichl for our next Cook the Books Club posting and Wild by Cheryl Strayed.   (I’m not sure the book is better than the movie…I need to mull over this some more.)   Loved them both.

I also was inspired by the hemp in this bread  recipe  and made these cookies.