Otherwise know as “Off Yr Ocar”. Why? Well I was tracked down by two women (mother and daughter) from up the coast towards England who run yoga courses. No, they weren’t looking for recruits, they wanted good quality bread for a group they were bringing to the peace and tranquility of Bethesda for a weekend. It wasn’t really worth my while but they were so nice I did a small bake for them. Second time round they asked for a fruit bread and were inclined towards date. I put this loaf together for them – I have to admit I made naughty stereotypical assumptions about the people who might do a yoga weekend.
I thought yoga people might well go for soya milk as opposed to dairy, and honey rather than sugar. Oats go well with soya milk, and together with a dash rye add a bit of earthy rusticity. To be honest I think the sultanas crept in because I was short of dates. Such is the scientific approach to bread formula creation.
Pour the boiling water over the oats and allow to cool (you could always dissolve the honey in the soaker).
Mix all the ingredients and knead using your normal method. If you’re new to baking check out the Sourdough pdf under the Library Menu.
Form into a rough ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover. Allow to ferment for about four hours stretching each hour for the first three hours. This is not essential but will improve the dough structure.
Alternatively ferment overnight in the fridge.
Prepare a proving basket. Shape the dough and place it in the basket seam side up. Cover and leave for 3½-4 hours checking with the finger tip test after 3 hours.
Preheat the oven to about 210C.
Gently turn out the dough onto a baking sheet floured with wholemeal rye. Slash and bake for about 50 minutes.
Cool on a wire rack
Oh yeah, the yoga course was taking place at Yr Ocar across the valley from us. (Off your rocker – gerrit?)
The PArtisan Baker 