
I’ve been wanting to bake this technicolor bread since I received Simple, the new Ottolenghi cookbook, as a gift this past Christmas. I finally made the bread this weekend, and it’s just as delicious as it looks! Besides baking bread (and making some incredible Brussels sprout quesadillas with cascabel chile oil and sunflower seed salsa macha from the wonderful cookbook Nopalito. . . . Maybe I’ll share the recipe soon!), I was pretty busy with music.
I played at the wonderful RIGHT ON! series at Record Shop in Red Hook (yes, it’s a record shop called Record Shop) with my duo The Beige, doing all original music. Then Andrew’s group JoggerKnot played at 55 Bar on Sunday, so while others watched the Oscars, I listened to the premier of Andrew’s new tune “Wife with a Knife.” A fantastic weekend! (Even though I missed watching the Oscars, I enjoyed looking at everyone’s outfits. Marie Kondo’s sparkly dress was my favorite!) After a busy few days, though, I’m excited to stay in tonight and do something relaxing like watch an old movie. I have split pea soup in the crock pot, and it’s going to be delicious with a slice of this bread on the side!
Beet, Caraway, & Goat Cheese Bread
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup thyme leaves
- 2 tsp caraway seeds
- 2 tsp nigella seeds
- 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
- 3/4 cup (100 grams) all-purpose flour (I used a gluten-free blend)
- 2/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp (100 g) whole wheat flour (I used a mix of buckwheat and tigernut flours)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 medium beet, peeled and grated (200 grams)
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup sunflower or avocado oil, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 3/4 oz. parmesan, grated
- 4 1/4 oz. (120 grams) fresh goat cheese, roughly crumbled into 3/4-inch pieces
- Preheat the oven to 400° F. Grease an 8 x 4″ loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix together the oats, thyme leaves, caraway seeds, nigella seeds, and pumpkin seeds, and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the two flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the beet and all but 1 tablespoon of the oat mixture, but do not stir.
- In another bowl, mix together the eggs, oil, sour cream, honey, and parmesan. Pour this into the mixing bowl with the other ingredients and gently stir until combined. Mix in the goat cheese, being careful not to over mix and break up the pieces. Transfer the batter into the loaf pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of oat mixture evenly over the surface of the dough.
- Bake for 40 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven, cover tightly with foil, and return to the oven to bake for 40 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then take the loaf out of the pan and set it on a rack to cool. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
