This robust bread has a delicious strong molasses flavor that borders along sweet and savory. I am surprised by how much I like it! I recommend you try it with toppings like butter, honey, cinnamon sugar, or a delicious BBQ dish! I think in New England (where this bread originates) it is traditionally it's served with beans and sausage or soup. If you use fancy molasses it will come out sweeter than with unsulphured molasses. The recipe is here, and pictures of the process are below.
If you would like to try a fluffy molasses bread that is lighter in flavor and texture, check out the Molasses raisin bread from the Maritimes (this region is sort of the New England of Canada):
The original recipe is from: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/anadama-bread-recipe-2043557 I changed the ingredients slightly because the loaf came out too big. So here are the updated amounts:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal (72 g)
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. molasses (Fancy or unsulphured) (127 g)
3 Tbsp. salted butter (42 g)
2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. sugar (1 g)
3 - 3 1/2 cups of bread flour (320-400 g)
1/4 cup dry milk powder (24 g)
1 tsp. salt
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. water
Butter for greasing
Directions:
Combine 3/4 cup warm water with the cornmeal, molasses, and butter in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer, and whisk constantly. Let simmer 3 minutes while whisking, and it should thicken and the whisk will leave trails.
Remove from the heat and add the mixture to a heat-proof bowl to cool. Stir it occasionally, and let it cool until it's just warm, around 30 minutes.
Once cooled, activate the yeast in a separate bowl by mixing with 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. water and the 1/4 tsp. sugar. Let rest about 5 minutes until foamy.
Add the cornmeal molasses mixture to it, along with the milk powder and 1 cup of the flour, and mix well to combine.
Cover and let rest 30 minutes.
Add the salt. Then start adding flour, about 1/2 cup at a time, mixing between each addition, until a firm but sticky dough forms.
Take out onto a clean surface and knead 10-15 minutes, adding a little more flour at a time. The dough is ready when it is smoother and only slightly sticky.
Rise in a greased bowl (covered) until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Shape the bread into a loaf and place in a greased 9x5" bread pan. Cover and let rise 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the bread inside and decrease the heat to 350°F.
Let bake until well browned and 200°F internally, this takes about 30-45 minutes.
Let cool in the pan about 5 minutes, in which time you can brush the loaf with butter, and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely, 2-3 hours, before cutting into.
This bread dough would also make 9 buns in a 9x9" pan, or about 6 burger/sandwich buns.
The ingredients I used.
Add some water, the butter, cornmeal, and molasses to a saucepan. We need to cook this a little.
Before simmering and thickening.
It has been heated and has thickened! See how you can see the trails from the whisk?
Add to a bowl and let cool, stirring occasionally.
It is cooled to a yeast-happy temperature!
Mix the yeast with a little sugar and some warm water, let it activate.
The yeast is active!
Then add a little of the flour, the cooled molasses mixture, and the milk powder.
After mixing.
Add the salt and start adding more flour, gradually, mixing completely between additions.
After adding most of the flour.
Time to take it out and knead and add more flour if needed!
After kneading, not perfectly smooth but it's ok!
Then you will cover it and let it rise...
After the first rise.
Dump out and then shape!
Before the second rise... I messed up the shaping a little, it's too short.
After 2nd rise, and before baking.
After baking. It puffed a lot in the oven!
Brush with butter and let cool on a wire rack.
The bottom, a tad dark, but not burnt.
The inside. A little dense, but also full of molasses flavor!