Rolled Oat and Apple Bread

  

You know those food blogs where there's that one perfect image and that's it? Where the blogger is obviously satisfied that that one amazing shot conveys everything there is to know about the food.  That that one photograph tells the full story, it says it all, no other pictures are required, nothing is missing... I can't do that.



Rolled Oat and Apple Bread
from Dan Lepard's The Handmade Loaf
Makes 1 loaf

50g organic rolled oats
100g boiling water
200g peeled grated apple (I used Granny Smiths)
50g water at 20 degrees C
100g white leavan/sourdough culture (instructions here)
3/4 teaspoon fresh yeast, crumbled
250g bread flour
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 egg, beaten, for glaze
Fine oatmeal for sprinkling

Put the rolled oats into a small bowl and pour over the boiling water. Set to one side for 5 minutes.

Add the grated apple to the water, leaven and yeast. Stir the mixture well to dissolve the yeast, then stir the soaked oats into this.

In other bowl combine the flour and salt. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until it is evenly combined and it becomes a soft, sticky dough. Cover and leave for 10 minutes

Rub about 1 teaspoon of olive oil onto a work surface and lightly knead the dough on the oiled surface for about 10 seconds. Form it into a ball, put the dough into a clean bowl that has been lightly rubbed with oil, cover and leave for 10 minutes. Knead the dough on the oiled surface for another 10 seconds. Form it into a ball and put it back into the bowl. Cover it and leave for 1 hour in a warm place.

Lightly flour a work surface and shape the dough into a baton. Sprinkle a tea towel with flour and place the dough on it seam-side-up. Wrap the dough up snugly in the cloth, and leave to rise for 1 1/2 hours, or until almost doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 210 degrees C. Flour a baking tray with semolina and roll the loaf onto it, seam-side-down. Brush the loaf with the beaten egg and sprinkle with fine oatmeal. Bake for 30 minutes, then lower the temperature to 190 degrees C and bake for a further 15-20 minutes. Leave to cool on a wire rack.