Oatmeal Molasses Bread

This is a crappy picture. Some day I will be rich and will have a DSLR and take beautiful photos, but for now, you'll have to deal with my flash.

I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com and thought it sounded good. You can find it here. I made it differently because I had rapid-rise yeast and did not use a breadmaker. I'm learning that I don't really need a breadmaker since I have a Kitchenaid mixer that does the hard work for me. So if you have a stand mixer or want to do this by hand, follow my directions. If you want to make it in a bread machine, use the original. Either way, it's very good.

Be prepared: this is a dense bread. I reduced the amount of molasses by half. This way there is just a hint of the molasses flavor. If you want more, use the full amount in the original recipe (1/2 cup). I also switched the flour and used mostly whole wheat flour to make these healthier. And I use a candy thermometer to measure the temp of my water.

OATMEAL MOLASSES BREAD

1 (.25 oz) pkg. (or 2 1/4 tsp.) rapid-rise yeast, room temp
1 cup quick cooking oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup molasses
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 1/3 cups hot water (between 120 - 130 degrees F)
1/4 cup honey

Mix dry ingredients (including yeast) in a medium bowl. In mixer bowl, combine water, oil, molasses, and honey. Pour in dry ingredients. Using dough hook, turn on mixer on lowest setting until all ingredients are incorporated, adding additional flour as needed until dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Increase speed to second setting and let "knead" for 10 minutes (a higher setting can strip the gears in your mixer). Let dough rest for 10 minutes.

Shape dough into a loaf and place in greased loaf pan OR divide dough into 12 rolls and place on greased cookie sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled in size. For loaf, bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. For rolls, bake at 375 degrees for 21 minutes.

I sprayed my rolls with cooking spray and sprinkled them with oatmeal. Most of it fell off, but I liked the way they looked!