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¼ cup oil

This is a pretty, polka-dotted loaf, high in protein and calcium. When the slices are toasted, the little millet dots look like stars in the sky. Finely ground bread flour has the edge over coarser grinds in this one: the pale millet shows up better.

For the warmest flavor and crunchiest crunch, rinse and pan-toast the millet before you start, but if you choose to use the millet untoasted, it works fine.

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.

Stir together the honey, cottage cheese, hot water, and, if you use it, the oil. Mix the millet, flour and salt together, making a well in the middle; pour in the yeast and the cottage cheese mixture. Adjust as required to make a soft dough by adding either flour or water. Knead until very elastic, about 20 minutes.

Form the dough into a smooth ball, cover it, and let it rise once in a warm place. Divide in two, and gently form into smooth balls—smooth except for the millet! Let the balls rest covered until they regain their suppleness, about 15 minutes; if the dough is soft, you are less likely to rip the gluten. Shape the loaves carefully, dusting the board with flour to help prevent the dough from tearing. The recipe makes two high, light 8″x4″ loaves, two very pretty hearth-style loaves baked in pie tins to cut into wedges for dinner, or a couple dozen dotty rolls.

Proof in a warm place, giving the round loaves and the rolls a very full proof. The pan loaves should arch beautifully above the sides of the pans. The bread is ready to pop into a preheated 400°F oven when a gentle indentation from your wetted finger fills in slowly. After baking about ten minutes, reduce heat to 325°F and continue until done, about 45 minutes in all—longer if the bread is not so light as it should be.

Corn-Rice Bread

2 cups cornmeal (244 g)

4 cups whole wheat bread flour (600 g)

2 tablespoons corn or sesame oil (30 ml)

3–4 cups cooled, cooked brown rice (about 700 g)

1 ¼ teaspoons salt (7 g)

1 ½ cups water, or more (355 ml)

Some people feel strongly that bread is much better—both more healthful and more flavorful—when it is made without adding yeast but by letting the dough mature and ripen slowly by itself over a longer period of time. Organisms similar to those that would make a desem starter do begin to thrive in such doughs, and even though there is no added yeast, there is considerable biological activity in the dough during the long fermentation due to so-called wild yeasts and dough enzymes; their by-products produce a loaf that is almost always exceptionally flavorful. The bread will not rise very much, though it may spring a little in the oven from the expansion of steam.

There are several unyeasted breads in this book. The present recipe is the kind gift of Marcia Miller from the Bexley Natural Food Co-op in Columbus, Ohio; it is one of the best we have tasted. As you might expect from the modest salt measure, the bread’s flavor is subtle; but before you increase the salt, try it as is, sliced very thin, with a miso-tahini spread.

Mix the cornmeal and flour and rub the oil in with your fingers. Mix in the rice, working it until the grains are all separate. Add the salt and enough water to make a pliable, kneadable dough; how much water you need will depend on the wetness of the rice; if your rice is on the chewy side, you may want as much as 3 cups. Knead the sticky dough until elastic, about 15 minutes.

The bread can be shaped at once and baked, but it is at its best (and lightest) if you let it stand, covered, 12 to 16 hours at a cool room temperature, then shape into two round hearth loaves and put them on a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet. Place in a cold oven, turn to 350°F, and bake about an hour.

Cool completely before slicing, and slice very thin.

VARIATION

Add sesame seeds or sunflower seeds, about 1 tablespoonful per loaf.

*That delicious nine-grain bread, by the way, turns out to be made from sprouts! If you want to try it, see our suggestions for making sprout breads.

*If you have leftover oatmeal