Home Made Oat Bread - to go with the Jam!

Home made oat and wheat bread, right from the oven

In a large mixing bowl:

2 cups warm water (bath water warm, not too hot, not too cold - just right for a baby)
2T Saf Yeast ( or any kind of yeast for bread making) (tip: keep yeast in a sealed container in the refrigerator or freezer for longevity)
     Mix these two together in a mixing bowl (I use my Kitchenaid) and let sit for a few minutes to get the yeast going. It will look all bubbly (see photo below)
1/4 cube butter, melted into the warm water
about 1/3 c honey (yeast feeds on sugar - let if sit for a few minutes more while you get your remaining ingredients together)
5 cups "flour" (I use 3 white, 1 wheat, 1 oat flour (you can make your own by blending some oats in a blender until it is the right "flour" consistency) and 1 cup rolled quick oats - I realize this doesn't add up to 5 but I don't consider the oats a part of the flour)
1 1/2 tsp salt ( put this in after the flour and on top of the flour - it makes the bread taste good but it kills the yeast)
1 beaten egg
     Mix by hand or on low in a mixer (about level 2) for about 5-10 minutes.
This allows the gluten to work into the bread and will give you a light airy loaf. Add a bit of flour along the way so it is not too sticky to work with but still light and silky feeling.
     Cover and let rise till double (this will take about 1-2 hours depending on how warm your kitchen area is).
 I usually leave it in my mixer with a clean dish towel over it and then use the Kitchen-aid to do the second knead.
Knead again about 4-5 minutes, then remove from mixer, knead and shape into a ball.

yeast getting bubbly / kneading in the mixer / separated dough / ready to rise in the loaf pans shown with regular size loaf and 3 small loaves

     Cut in half and form loaves by folding over again and again in an oblong bread pan-ish shape, tucking the last fold over so it sits on the bottom. Place gently in a lightly greased bread loaf pan.
***Optional: you can cut the dough into smaller portions - say 4 or so and make small loaves if you have smaller pans.
Cover with the clean dish towel and let rise till double. (again about 1-2 hours or you can put it in a warm oven for about 30-40 minutes - warm the oven and then turn it off. place a shallow bowl of warm water on the lower rack and place covered bread just above it. this will help it raise quickly if you are in a hurry)
     Heat oven to 350 F
           Bake 20 minutes small loaves.
           Bake 30 minutes large loaves.

Remove from oven and from loaf pans.
Using a cold cube of butter (easier to handle) "paint" the top of each loaf by holding one end of the butter and running it across the hot loaf.  This add a delicious shiny layer and helps keep the top softer.
Cool and cut and enjoy!

home made hot bread with, cold butter and
 homemade jam.... what could be better!