This recipe is from a wonderful cookbook called "From the Cook's Garden." It makes a sturdy homestyle bread with a hint of sweetness. I like mine spread with herbed cream cheese and topped with garden-fresh sliced tomatoes.
06Transfer this mixture to a large bowl and let it cool to lukewarm.
07Don't get impatient with the cooling, because if it's too hot (over 115 degrees farenheit), it will kill the yeast.
08It will form a skin on the top, but it's no big deal.
09Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a small bowl and let it sit until the yeast looks foamy.
10Stir to dissolve the yeast, then add it to the cornmeal mush.
11Just an aside about the"warm" definition in case you are a beginning bread-maker without a thermometer.
12The temperature you want is when you drop water on your wrist, it feels neither cool nor hot-- test it the way you would a baby's bottle.
13I killed yeast with too-hot water when I was starting out.
14Now back to the recipe.
15Mix the all-purpose and wheat flours together and start stirring them into the cornmeal mixture, a cup at a time to make a soft, sticky dough.
16Turn out onto a lightly floured work service and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
17You can add more flour as needed, but don't get carried away.
18Because of the molasses, the dough will stay sticky.
19As long as the dough isn't sticking excessively to the board, you have enough flour.
20I knead this with my stand mixer, and there's always a little"smear" of dough around the edges of the bowl.
21Form the dough into a ball and put it in a large, lightly oiled bowl.
22Turn the dough ball to get a little oil all over it.
23Let rise until double in size, about an hour.
24Punch the dough down (Really, just pick up the sides and let it collapse on itself. No need to be violent.), cover with a towel, and let rest in the bowl for 10 minutes.
25Get two 9-x5-inch loaf pans ready by lightly oiling them.
26After the dough's little rest, divide it into two pieces and shape each piece into a loaf.
27Put them in the loaf pans, and roll them around so they get a nice little coating of oil.
28Cover with a towel and let the loaves rise until they touch the top of the pan.
29That takes about half an hour.
30While they're rising, preheat the oven to 400 degrees farenheit, and position your rack in the center of the oven.
31Slide the loaf pans in and bake for 15 minutes, then turn the oven down to 375 degrees and bake until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
32Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove the loaves from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.