Squaw Bread • The Breaking Bread

On a warm summer evening this summer, I had this fantastic experience. A delicious pot of stew — which tasted delicious on a summer evening — and a delicious loaf of bread. Now, I love a good loaf of bread and with our lives being different this year with the Covid situation, a dinner with a few friends was perfect medicine for so much quarantine time.

The loaf of bread that night was Squaw Bread. My curiosity got to, so after dinner I wanted to find the history of that loaf of bread. This is what I learned from answers.com.

Squaw bread is a rye and molasses bread that was developed by the German immigrants and the Native Americans near whom they lived in the 1800s. When some of the Germans chose to move west, they took with them seeds for rye and recipes from their homeland. They turned to the Native Americans for substitutions for the ingredients to which they no longer had access. To give honor and appreciation to the Native Americans for their kindness and new friendship, the bread was called Squaw Bread.

True friendship and breaking bread that was shown in our country over 200 years ago. A great example for ourselves of kindness. Enjoy this bread as a delicious sandwich bread, a warm piece of bread with butter, or to accompany a delicious meal.

Squaw Bread

Ingredients:

• ½ cup rye flour
• 1 cup bread flour
• 2 ½ cups hard white wheat flour
• 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
• 1 tablespoon SAF instant yeast
• 1 ½ cups warm water 105 – 110 degrees F
• 4 tablespoons molasses
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons cornmeal

Instructions:

1. Combine yeast, water, and sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer and let sit for about 5 minutes until foamy.
2. In a bowl, blend rye flour and bread flour.
3. Add molasses, honey, butter, cocoa powder, salt, and the blended flour to the yeast mixture. Fit your mixer with the dough hook and begin to mix over low speed. Add remaining hard white wheat flour ½ cup at a time until the ball of dough begins to form around the hook and pulls away from the bowl. This may take all the 2 ½ cups of hard wheat flour, a bit more or a bit less, depending on your dough.
4. Mix on low speed for 5-8 minutes until the dough is smooth. This mixing acts as the kneading and first rise of the dough.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use a baking stone in the oven if desired. Remove the dough from the mixer and divide in half. Shape the balls of dough into a free form loaf. Set on a piece of parchment paper sprinkled with cornmeal if using a stone or place the parchment on a baking sheet and let rise for 30 minutes.Spritz with water and sprinkle with rolled oats or sunflower seeds
6. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until the bread reaches 190 degrees F internal temperature. Remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!!

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