Manageability – Standard bread.
Other than that one episode of Seinfeld (which is fantastic btw), my husband didn’t know anything about marble rye bread. It’s a good dinner party gift, tasty enough to divide two families forever, and worthy of robbing an old woman for. But that was literally it. However, I’m happy to report he learned through Martha Stewart’s Seeded Marble Rye Bread recipe, that marble rye isn’t just something you can pull up on a fishing line, it’s delicious and pretty easy.
I don’t say this a ton about Martha’s recipes, so enjoy it, but this recipe is simple. It’s standard bread, except times two. Because bread recipes are basically all the same, they’re not too complicated. You just make the dough, let it rise, and that’s it. Now for me, my dough didn’t rise as much as I liked, and I think it’s because I killed my yeast. I’m a murderer, RIP. But it still worked enough for me to make some mini reuben sandwiches, which were dynamite. The bread also took great pictures, so get your Insta ready. I only gotta say that this recipe has some hard-to-find ingredients. Safflower oil? Give me a freaking break, Martha.
And so part 2 of my Irish festival continues with this tasty, terrific, and simple bread recipe from Martha. I get it, Costanza. I get it.
Ingredients
Light Rye
- 2/3 cup warm water (110 degrees)
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (not rapid-rise; from one 1/4-ounce envelope)
- 1 tablespoon unsulfured molasses (what the hell?)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup unbleached bread flour
- 1 cup light rye flour
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds, plus more for topping (caraway my wayward suuuuunnn)
- 1 tablespoon safflower oil, plus more for bow
Dark Rye
- 2/3 cup warm water (110 degrees)
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (not rapid-rise; from one 1/4-ounce envelope)
- 1 tablespoon unsulfured molasses
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup unbleached bread flour
- 1 cup light rye flour
- 2 tablespoons dark cocoa powder, such as Valrhona
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
- 1 tablespoon safflower oil, plus more for bowl
- 1 large egg white
Directions
- Light Rye: Combine water and yeast in a large bowl. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Whisk in molasses and salt until dissolved. Add both flours, caraway seeds, and oil, stirring until a ragged dough forms. (Dough should be soft and tacky but not sticky — add more bread flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, if dough is too wet; or water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if too dry.) Transfer to a clean work surface. Knead until smooth and elastic and dough springs back when lightly pressed, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl brushed with oil, turning dough to evenly coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in volume, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- Dark Rye: Repeat process for light rye, adding cocoa powder to yeast mixture along with flours. Don’t be racist.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Punch down doughs and transfer to a clean work surface. Roll out each to an approximately 10-by-15-inch rectangle. Place darker dough on top of lighter dough. Starting at one short end, roll up doughs into a log. Pinch ends and seam together to seal. Gently roll back and forth with palms, applying more pressure toward edges, to shape into an approximately 13-inch-long torpedo (an Italian-baguette shape). Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, seam-side down. Loosely cover and let rise until doubled in volume, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Using the tip of a sharp knife, make three 1/2-inch-deep diagonal slashes evenly across top of dough. Whisk egg white with 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl. Brush dough with egg wash; sprinkle generously with caraway seeds.
- Transfer dough on sheet to oven. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake until puffed and golden brown, and a thermometer inserted in center registers 200 degrees, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet on a wire rack before slicing and serving.