Tuesday, July 27

{ making CHOCOLATE bread }

I have this distant, fuzzy memory of my kindergarten class making/baking chocolate bread. I LOVED the stuff back then...but haven't tasted its goodness since I was five years old in Mrs. Trebes' class. Plus, I've always been a little frightened by the whole 'bread-making process.' Baking soda/powder measurements make me nervous enough as it is due to the obvious science behind them. But yeast, now that is another whole chemistry class in and of itself. 
And all that kneading...seriously, what is that about?

But then last week I stumbled across this post.
No kneading!
Just an awful lot of rising—which requires no work on my part. It's like it makes itself, and I'm just here to chaperone the party.




  • 3 cups unbleached white bread flour







  • 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt







  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder







  • 1 tablespoon natural sugar







  • 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast







  • 1 cup cool (55 to 65 degrees) water







  • 1/3 cup canola oil 









  • Rise for 22-ish hours. Fold in edges. Rise for two more hours. 


    Bake for 30 minutes in a cast iron dutch oven. 

    During the 11th hour (yes, really), I realized I don't own a cast iron dutch oven. So I made one out of two non-matching iron skillets—one as the pot, one as the lid. Totally worked. 

    I was envisioning more of a sweet, dessert-like bread. But its chocolatey-ness is much more subtle, which I learned to appreciate as I ate a slice of it alongside my Asian salad at dinner. Savory sweet.  


    And I don't think I'm ready for anyone to comment on what they think the bread "looks like" from the top yet. But thanks.


    All photos by me.

    1 comments:

    Amanda Wayne said...

    Ha, I will hold back my comments on what it looks like (I have many) and stay appropriate and tell you that looks sooo delicious and I wish I was there to eat the whole thing with you!

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