Home-made Wholemeal Bread

The Grant Loaf

I've been making bread for many years and it all started way back in my childhood. We lived in the countryside and weren't able to dash to the shops if we needed anything. Although back in those days the bread wasn't worth going anywhere for - just the plain white loaves.  So we made our own bread, our yoghurt, our sprouts and juiced quite often too.

When I was living in London in the 70s I worked at a vegetarian restaurant called 'Cranks' in Marshall Street, Soho and as well as the restaurant there was also a bakery, a grain shop and a sandwich shop in the vicinity - all owned by Cranks.  I managed to acquire their recipe for the very popular Grant loaf.  So called, as a woman named Doris Grant developed and published this recipe in 1940 at the request of the British government during World War II .

Its an easy one with no kneading !

Here it is:

Makes 3 loaves

• 3lbs wholemeal flour
• up to 2 pints of water at blood temp
• 1 tbsp seasalt
• 1 tbsp barbados sugar
• 1 oz fresh yeast

Metric:

• 1.4 kg flour
• up to 1.2 litres of water
• 1 tbsp seasalt
• 1 tbsp barbados sugar (raw or brown is ok too)
• 30gm fresh yeast

 

Method:

Mix salt with flour (in very cold weather warm flour slightly enough to take the chill off). Mix yeast and sugar in a small bowl with a quarter of a pint of the water. Leave in a warm place for 10 mins or so to froth up. Pour yeasty liquid into the flour and gradually add the rest of the water.Mix well, by hand is best. Divide the dough into three two-pint bread tins (round cake tins can be used too) which have first been greased and warmed. Put the tins in a warm place, cover with a cloth and leave for about 20 mins to rise until the dough is within half an inch of the top of the tins. Bake in a moderate oven for about 35-40 mins. Tap the loaf on the bottom and if it sounds hollow it is cooked. Leave in tin for 5 mins before turning out.

And here's a video of someone making it.