Multigrain Pan Loaf
A Delicious Sandwich Loaf
This pan loaf builds on our challah dough recipe. Because the multigrain soaker makes this dough is fairly wet, we bake it in a pan loaf to provide a bit of structure. One recipe for two challah braids makes enough dough for a lofty pan loaf of 8 ½ by 4 ½ inches. This dough is tricky to handle and recommended only for bakers with some pan loaf shaping experience.
Many grain farmers and millers make excellent multigrain mixes, such as Wild Hive Farm which makes the one we use at our bakery. You can easily make your own multigrain mix by combining any grains or seeds you have on hand. Common ingredients are steel cut oats, corn grits, and wheat berries. Softer seeds like sunflower or pumpkin seeds hold up better in the dough if you lightly toast them first.
Many bread soakers call for the simple ratio of 1:1 soaker ingredients and water. There is also flexibility about what water temperature to use. Our recipe just calls for room temperature water. Since we refrigerate our soaker overnight, we always end up with a consistent final temperature. However, the difficulty with soakers is in the incorporation. Once a soaker is added to bread dough, gluten development becomes about impossible. So, only add a soaker to your dough once it’s fully developed, and mix only until the soaker is fully incorporated.
