Ballymaloe Brown Yeast Bread

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

I saw this bread on Bobby Flay's tour of Ireland. I thought it looked wonderful. I was right! I made it for the first time yesterday for my stamp club ladies and they simply devoured it. When I made it I started out using the weight measurement. DON'T make that mistake. Whoever converted the measurements doesn't know their ounces. So, I tossed it and went by the cup measurements and that was fine. The other thing is that they forgot to tell you when to add the oil. I know it said to use it to coat the pan, but obviously you need to add the rest to the recipe because it doesn't take 1 1/4 cups of oil to do that. So, I just added it when I added the water and yeast mixture to the flours. I used Stone Bur whole wheat flour and Better for Bread white flour. I will, next time, add a bit more salt and try more molasses, but I will definitely make this over and over again. It is such an easy and delicious yeast bread!

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

This recipe produces the brown bread my Irish-born family likes best, although for variety I now tweak it. I add a tsp more each of salt and treacle and up to a tablespoon each of oat bran, oat germ, and pinhead oatmeal. I use the amount of water noted, but do bake somewhat longer. The determining factor in how well the bread turns out: the flour used. Over the years, I've tried all the US wholemeal flours I could find with varying degrees of success but finally decided to order online Odlums Wholemeal Extra Course. No comparison. Open the bag of Odlums and compare it to the US-flours and it looks and feels different. It is possible that the one negative review below is a result of the flour used. Remember: this recipe is from Ireland-- bakers use Irish flour. Check out the video--the only way the dough could pour like it does into the pan is if 3-1/4 cups of water is used. Maybe the reason that much water works is because the Irish flour soaks up more water?

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

I researched all irish brown bread recipes that I could find and believe that there is an error in the amount of water. Use only 2 cups of water and you should have dough like what they describe here. I uses 2 teaspoon molasses with success. Everything else was the same. I decided on King Arthurs Irish-style wholemeal flour from their catalog. So now I started. The 2 cups of water turned out to be just fine as did the 2 teaspoons molasses. All in all it went together fast and very nice. After check for doneness it came out of the oven 10 minutes early and I did crisp the outside as shown in the recipe. When all is done, it make a very nice Irish brown bread. My husband loved it. Was very simple and fast to put together. I will make this again. We loved it.

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

On a trip through Ireland in the '80s, we had fresh-baked brown bread almost every day at the B&Bs where we stayed. Wonderful! About 20 years ago, I found the Ballymaloe recipe and have made it every St. Patrick's Day since. However, the recipe I have calls for 2 tablespoons of molasses, which gives the final product a wonderful sweetness and depth of flavor. I use Bob's Red Mill stone-ground wheat flour and dry yeast, as cake yeast is not readily available to me. You need to be flexible about the amount of water used. As Dorina Allen says, the amount you need will vary depending on your flour and your atmospheric conditions. It needs to be really wet and sticky. My loaf turns out perfectly like those I had in Ireland every time. Note: it is a little dense, and the edges are crusty. -- The point is, it's a wonderful artisan bread and is not going to taste like a white loaf. It is fabulous with fresh unsalted butter and maybe a little honey, for breakfast or tea.

Flag

Flag This Review?

You must provide a reason for flagging this review.

Please provide the reason why you think this review is inappropriate.

• Submit

or Cancel

I was attracted to how easy of a recipe this was, but I highly advise everyone NOT to try this. I followed it exactly (except doubled the amount of molasses which still failed to add much sweetness, and it came out soggy and tasteless. Within 12 hours there were many areas of mold on the bottom of the loaf. I should have baked cookies instead!