black bread
I’m not sorry, though, because my favorite bread contains perplexing things like chocolate, bran, molasses, shallots and fennel seeds, things that any sane person would know are completely insane to intentionally put in the same place. It has seventeen ingredients, which also goes far to explain why I don’t make it more often. (Remember, I’m the person who ran out of cinnamon making cinnamon rolls; do you actually think I can be counted on to have seventeen things at once?) Put all of that together and you’ll see why I know this bread is a hard sell.
But when I do make it, I kick myself because it’s so ridiculously delicious, shame on me. It would be worth it if it had 34 ingredients and took all day, but the bread itself is relatively simple and the outcome is deadly. Along with that Big Crumb Coffee Cake and Soft Pretzels, I demonstrated this bread at The Pioneer Woman’s Lodge to a small group this past weekend, which means that you’re really owed this recipe.
I’m talking about my beloved recipe for Russian Black Bread, a pumpernickel bread for people who think that standard pumpernickel with it’s paltry seven ingredients is just not trying hard enough. Before someone pointed me to this one, I’d been floundering around, looking for a black bread good enough to impress the Russkies in Alex’s family, but it wasn’t until I saw this ingredient list that I knew I’d found The One. I mean, you don’t put caraway, cider vinegar, espresso powder and butter together in the same place — intentionally — unless you’re utterly confident that it could be no other way.
Trust me, it could be no other way.
One year ago: Brownie Roll-Out Cookies
Two years ago: Tequila Lime Chicken + Green Onion Slaw
Russian Black Bread
Adapted from Beth Hensperger’s The Bread Bible
If you’d like to be like the Russkies, you’d slather this with butter, top it with caviar, throw it back with some ice cold vodka and then head to work on a Monday morning. If you suspect you’re made of equally-charming but perhaps slightly less robust things, you might toast it with some butter and eat it with your scrambled eggs, or use it to make a pastrami sandwich that would make Katz’s seethe with jealousy.
I actually have mentioned this bread before on the site, but only in passing. I included it in an article I wrote for NPR on Zakuski more than two years ago, but I think it’s overdue to come back home here.
Makes 2 loaves
2 packages (1 1/2 tablespoons) active dry yeast
Pinch of sugar
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
2 cups water
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
3 cups medium rye flour
3 cups unbleached, all-purpose or bread flour
1 cup bran
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1/4 cup cornmeal (optional)
1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour (optional)
1 teaspoon caraway seeds (optional)
Special equipment: Spice grinder (optional), instant-read thermometer
1. In a small bowl, combine yeast and sugar with warm water. Stir to dissolve and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
2. Heat two cups water, molasses, vinegar, butter and chocolate until the butter and chocolate are melted. Set aside.
3. Combine whole-wheat, rye and white flours in a large bowl. Set aside.
4. In bowl of a heavy mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine two cups mixed flours, bran, seeds, salt, espresso and shallots. At low speed, add yeast and chocolate mixtures. Mix until smooth and beat at medium speed for three minutes. (If you don’t like whole seeds in your bread, grinding them in a spice grinder, coffee grinder or mortar and pestle allows their flavor to come through without the texture. I always make my black bread this way.)
[Note: This, or any bread, can also be made by hand, simply mixing the ingredients in a large bowl with a wooden spoon and kneading the dough on a counter until springy and smooth.]
5. At low speed, add half cup of remaining mixed flours at a time, until dough clears sides of bowl and begins to work its way up paddle. It will be very sticky but firm.
6. Scrape dough off paddle, flour counter well, and knead to make a springy yet dense dough. You might not use all of the flour mixture.
7. Form into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Turn once to grease top. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm area until doubled, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Combine cornmeal, flour and remaining caraway seeds if you’d like to sprinkle them over the crust before you bake the bread, and set aside.
8. Gently deflate dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into two portions and form into two rounds or loaves. Loaves should be placed in a loaf pan sprayed with nonstick spray, while rounds should be placed seam down on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle loaves with cornmeal mixture, if using. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled and puffy, about 45 minutes to one hour. Slash an X into the top of a round before baking it; no such slashing is needed for bread in a loaf pan.
9. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until loaves are well-browned, or register an internal temperature of 200 to 210°F on an instant-read thermometer. Baking time in your oven may vary — check in on the bread when it is 2/3 to 3/4 of the way through the baking time to make sure it has not super-speedily baked. Remove from baking sheet to cool completely on a rack.
Ah! This is what I’ve waited for! I love, LOVE pumperknickle bread. The best PBJ sandwich in my world is made on pumperknickle. So is the best pastrami and swiss, grilled. Thanks, Deb!
I adore black bread! I love it with cream cheese and smoked salmon, or as a sandwich with cherry jam, swiss and smoked ham. Your bread is beautiful!
SOO excited to try this!!!
oh and the world of blogs just got ten times better knowing that you and P.W. are now friends. loved all the accounts of your visit and can’t wait to try the bagels (once i get a burst of bravery).
Thanks! I’ll be updating the bagel post in the next week, as we made a slight variation. But the original remains good as gold.
Hi, you are an inspiration and I enjoy your site though I only just discovered it. I see you like making bread, have you tried charcoal bread (think the Japanese do them)… now they are really black! Apparent it’s good for health.
Yummy, this bread sounds fantastic! Also, I’m dying to know if you picked all the coriander out of the asian noodle salad at PWs? Wasn’t sure if you could handle it, especially now that you’re expecting :)
Ok, my pantry is only missing the fennel seeds and bran… but soon, this bread will. be. mine.
Not sure my constitution is as sturdy as the Ruskies, but the idea of eating that bread with butter AND caviar AND a couple of shots of ice cold vodka before work on Monday morning sounds awfully appealing to me.
you shot that in pw’s lodge, didn’t you. i recognize it. that bread looks out of this world delicious. i can almost smell it through the laptop screen.
Wow. This looks fabulous. I can’t wait to try it and see how all of those ingredients work together.
Mmm…. that looks so fantastic, especially with that list of ingredients. Can’t wait to try it!
Anne — SO BUSTED. I totally did. I tried to be discreet.
So many “The bread bible” books out there… This is why we have to come HERE and rely on you!
This looks so different and unique, as far as breads go, that I can’t wait to try it!
Interesting mix of ingredients- yet looks so yummy! I love making bread and trying out new recipes, especially when they contain wheat flour. I only wish my waistline liked it as much as I do!!
I can’t say thanks enough! Black bread is also my favorite. I tried several different recipes with no luck. I occasionally have a family member bring me back a bread mix from Europe, but alas, its gone within weeks. Can’t wait to try this.
Interesting! I’ve never seen anything like this before.
This looks SO fantastic. :)
My family is all too familiar with my ongoing struggle with my archenemy: pumpernickel. It’s my favorite bread but I’ve yet to make a good loaf from scratch. (I bake a loaf of some type of bread almost every weekend). I’m so glad you did a post on this, because I’ve tried the recipe that you linked to (twice) and while the flavor was great, the bread was super heavy and too tough (made for great croutons, though). I had the same trouble with the light pumpernickel recipe you posted here a while back. Is it supposed to be that dense or are my skills failing me?
You know, I love it when I learns something new from the blogs. Having heard of brown bread, I have never heard of black bread. I thought it was a simple play on words and an exageration, but then I looked at all these ingredients and I understood.
:)
To be honest this looks like the black mole of breads. Chcolate, nuts, shallots, many ingredients, be labor intensive. I made mole and i realized that there is a complexity of flavors that comes out of all these layers and goodness. YUM.
Wow! That list of ingredients IS fascinating. But coming from you, I totally trust that the bread is stellar!!
Deb – I love all your recipes and all your photos. I’m not sure I’ve commented before – although you always have me drooling over my keyboard. I have to stop this time, though, and ask: can I use instant coffee (the granules) rather than instant espresso powder? Are those two things the same, or totally different – or somewhere in between?
Thanks!
wow! love the touch of expresso powder
I found this on the other posting… I know, I’ve made it, and it’s wonderful.. http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/03/mighty-russian-morsels/ But it seems that it is TOO dense, and does not rise very much, what could I be doing wrong? I’ve made it twice with the same results. My yeast is fine b/c it has succesfulyl risen everything else just fine…
This bread was one of the very first things that I made from your website. It totally sold me on your brilliance. However, I must say that I’m glad to have some photos of the process to go along with the recipe ’cause my loaves are way goopier than your lovely ball in that thar photo. They always seem to melt out and make weirdly flattish psuedo-loaves. I assumed it was because my dough was too wet but they always taste so darn good that I’ve been afraid to mess with the recipe…any thoughts? Oh, and congratulations on that bump!
This is my absolute favorite type of bread! The darker the better and I didn’t have a good recipe. Can’t wait to give this a try. Thanks Deb. (By the way what a hoot to watch you and Ree hanging out and cooking together. I can only imagine how good the lodge smelled after two days of your baking!)
I haven’t had black bread in…. forever.
Made your rhubbarb coffee cake today. Used frozen rhubbarb, mine’s only 2″ high at the moment. Left it to drain overnight and it was fine.
S
I’m sooo new age, I thought you needed a bread mixer to make a loaf of bread. But than again I still think it’s elves that bake my cookies in my oven. That loaf is a sight for store-bought-bread-sore eyes! I think it is time for me to up the complexity factor in my own baking.
Laura — No reason you can’t use instant coffee powder. Espresso has a stronger flavor, that’s all. You might use a pinch more to compensate.
Kelly — Hm, not sure. It is on the dense side, being a whole grain bread, but not nearly as dense as the black breads you can buy at Russian stores. It should be more dense than a white loaf, however, so perhaps what you’re getting is actually correct.
i don’t know what could be more perfect than your light wheat bread… its become a weekly staple around here… so i am very excited to give this favorite bread recipe of yours a whirl… thanks so much for sharing – your recipes, your images, your enthusiasm, and all your good news…!
Wow. That is ambitious. And though I consider myself pretty half assed in the kitchen, I might be willing to stretch myself for this one.
I am so trying this ASAP.
That’s a lot of ingredients for sure. Funny to hear so many people say it’s their fave, and we’ve never heard of it! We’ll need to do more research for sure.
shayna…i think i’m having the same problem as you!! guess i need to add more flour…
Thanks for sharing with us your favourite bread recipe!!! Seventeen ingredients sounds like a lot, but I’m sure every single one of them is worth it and they make for a fantastic, rustic, heavy, filling bread!
Is this pumpernickel??? This is my favorite kind of bread!!!
This bread is amazing! I’ve made it several times in the past year, after reading your NPR.org article (’Zakuski: Mighty Russian Morsels’). My Russian family (and non-Russian friends) absolutely love it. Thanks for so much, Deb. And congratulations!
Looks fantastic! I need to ask though, why the plastic wrap during the rising process? I wondered the same on the cinnamon rolls, but dutifully followed the directions. I have been making bread for a long time and never used it before – just a tea towel over the bowl in a nice warm place.
Wow…what a combination of interesting ingredients in that bread! The dough looks like chocolate cookie dough (Chocolate Toffee Cookies, anyone?). Loved hearing about your visit to PW’s haunts, can’t wait to read your version of the events. Did Alex ride a horse and move some cows?
This looks soooo good. I love black bread too toasted with egg or tuna or egg and tuna on it. Althought, this recipe will put a strain on my mise-en-place bowl set…might have to get more. Thanks!
Alexandra — It’s a darker, more intense pumpernickel.
Eunice — To keep the dough from getting a skin. You want to protect it from the air.
SCW — Alas, the weather was plum awful all weekend and nobody was out on horses, not even Marlboro Man himself! We were supposed to work cattle with them on Monday morning but the ground was too wet. Instead, we fed calves and drove around to see the horses and cows.
Wow! That looks super yummy, but I’m wondering if the espresso powder is absolutely necessary? I don’t take to caffeine well.
You can really sell a recipe! I think I have no choice but to try to make this now. I think I’ll wait til I go to my parent’s house because they have things like a mixer with a paddle and a full spice drawer. I can’t wait!
Wow, I wish I could have been at the Lodge with you and Ree when you demonstrated this and all your wonderful treats!
Wow, that looks intense. I need to try it! I’d like it the Russian way, I’m thinking, but without the caviar. Just the butter and vodka. :)
I visited a little Russian Village here in Alaska this past weekend. Let me tell you they know a thing or two about bread. You can never go wrong with Russian bakery! Even the IGA store had an amazing bakery section as all the bakers are Russian women. Since it is a two hour drive, I may have to try this recipe to get my Russian Bakery fix!
I’ll have to try this after I’m come out the other side of the show I’m in. Right now there isn’t time to measure out my cocoa for a hot chocolate, much less measure out the umpety-ump seeds for the bread!
You may have just mentioned in in passing, but when I first saw this in the NPR article, I latched on and have made it frequently. It is awesome, and sure to impress anyone. I’m in culinary school to be a pastry chef, and after one student made a disappointing black bread from Hamelman’s “Bread” book (admittedly a stellar bread book, but a totally lackluster black bread recipe) I whipped this up at home and brought in samples. This rich, full, complex bread was just what she had been trying to achieve, and even our chef was impressed! Thanks for sharing Deb!
I’m salivating just thinking about this bread. Shallots…how perfect is this!
This looks absolutely divine. Bring on the 17 seemingly mismatched ingredients!
I’ve been eating pumpernickel and onion pretzels this week dipped in my mom’s homemade pimento cheese. I’d much rather slather it on a slice of this. This Southerner LOVES pumpernickel bread, but it isn’t easily found around here.
So. I’m trying to become friends with the 17 ingredients and such…
Thanks for sharing!
I am an American living in Ukraine and Russia. All I can say is that most of this recipe would be a head-scratcher here. The black bread here, called “Ukrainian” is simply delicious and much more simply made and in huge quantities daily. Having a warm piece of this Ukrainian bread is as close to heaven as possible.
Chocolate in the local recipe? No way. Caraway and fennel??? Forget it, that is central Europe, not here. Espresso, shallots and cornmeal. They do not exist in the universe of how they prepare bread here. There is almost nothing authentic about the recipe, I am sorry to say.
Why do you foam instant yeast? I have never bothered – I thought that was kind of the point of using the dried stuff? Is it just to check it is still active, or is there another purpose with which I am hitherto unacquainted?
Absolutely beautiful. It looks intimidating, the long list of ingredients, but I might just take on the challenge. It reminds me so much of the bread I devoured as an exchange student in Germany a gazillion years ago.
Eleanor — Exactly. It is not necessary to get it started, but it does give you some insurance that it’s still alive.
Is the delicious dark bread served at The Cheesecake Factory black bread?
Delicious!!! Will added to my list of bread recipes to bake. I have been on a bread baking frenzy since I got my KitchenAid stand mixer. Can’t wait to try this one.
oh silly silly deb. don’t you know your readers are made of hearty stock? we don’t scare easily and really…this doesn’t look all that intimidating. besides…we trust you. if you say it’s worth it, baby, it’s worth it. ;-)
And speaking as someone who actually HAD some of this fabulous bread last weekend, I can easily vouch that every one of the 17 ingredients is worth every second of assembling — Deb, that was awesome stuff! :)
I went to the store today and bought everything I need to make the Rhubarb crumb cake. Except, unfortunately, rhubarb. Apparently the military commissary where I shop doesn’t carry it. I hope I find it easily at a local grocery store because I already volunteered to make it for two social functions this weekend!! :)
I can believe that you have 17 things at once, because my first response to your photographs for this post was “Good lord, how many matching bowls does this woman own?” Surely you have 17 of them.
I’m impressed, I’m just a bit stunned I guess.
I just love Russian black bread and haven’t had a good one since my dad used to go down to Houston Street on Sunday mornings and get them. So gooood! Thanks!
My family is Russian and we don’t drink vodka or eat black bread! Probably a travesty. Maybe my babushka thinks it’s too ingredient-y or something.
Still unsure about the no vodka thing though.
Dear Deb,
This bread looks wonderful, but I was wondering if you have a go to olive bread recipe? Quite frankly, I’m addicted and wanting to make some delicious rolls. Plus, I trust your buds. Thanks!
ACLS — These were taken at the Pioneer Woman’s Lodge. She has a thing for nesting bowls. I have exactly four bowls that match. If I ever unpack them.
That’s funny, I had bowl envy. I was just thinking to myself, “Ooooh, I wish I had those bowls.” None of my dishes match. I kind of like it that way. I recently was introduced to you via a successful tasting of some Irish Car Bomb cupcakes from a friend. H-E-A-V-E-N. Even if I don’t buy all 17 ingredients I love salivating over the pictures!
17 ingredients – I am impressed! It looks great though – I can almost smell it.
This looks absolutely worth all the trouble!
This looks so wonderful! I’m sure my fiance and I will love it – what with the chocolate and all. Thanks for posting!
Wow! What an insane ingredient list. But if you say it works, then it works, because Deb can do no wrong…. ;)
This looks delicious…but why did you close the comments on boozey baked French toast? I have important information! I used 1 cup whole milk, 1 cup cream, and 1 cup buttermilk…and it tastes like cream cheese!
I think I’m in love. Gotta go grab me some rye flour, and I have the other 16 ingredients. How awesome am I? What’s even better, I live with a bunch of white-bread fuddy-duddies, so this baby’s ALL MINE! Boy, am I gonna gain like 30 lbs. Thank you Deb for sharing!
Kelly — No idea they were closed. It must be one of those spooky ghost things that happen in Wordpress! They’re open again.
Looks great, surely worth the effort. Many years ago I invested about $5 in two dozen little Pyrex custard cups. They stack and take up practically no shelf space, and are the most useful thing I own. Mise-en-place, ho! BTW, you have a mother’s hands. Can’t wait to see them filled with your own baby!
I love this bread recipe. I am just curious though if it tastes more like a dessert than bread. Would it be good for making sandwiches. Great blog!!!!
I can almost smell how delicious that is! And I can’t wait until we get to try our hand at school (I’m a culinary school student).
Cheers!
the best sandwich is made with this bread toasted, and slather with mayo., fried egg, swiss cheese and sliced papery thin red onion. OMG. Of course, you need PLENTY of fresh ground pepper on your egg before you put the cheese which softens upon laying atop your egg. pure bliss.
Good thing you had so many nesting bowls to use for all those ingredients :)
Oh my, this is a must try. We will put it on the back burner of our mind and bring it out at a perfect moment. Thanks for sharing, finally? best from Santa Barbara, s
Treehouse — It is a savory bread, not sweet.
Oh wow I *love* dark, flavorful breads like this. My grocery store has a beautifully black bread, but it lacks any interesting flavor. I can’t wait to give this a try soon.
I decided to look at other black bread recipes to compare this one, and low and behold, I found an almost identical one in the 1981 BHG cookbook! It didn’t use the whole wheat flour or the shallots, but otherwise, it’s the same! Who woulda thought? I will be making this one today. The shallots will definately be in there as I think they will really add that extra somethin-somethin to the bread!
I LOVE Russian Black Bread! I have a similar recipe that lacks the cornmeal and shallots and is so amazingly delicious.
I’ll have to try your recipe next!
Thank you for the fabulous instructions! I can’t wait to make this!
We have been making bread in our home since December..no more store bought loaves. This looks so divine and I love having another recipe I can add to my repertoire.
Do you think this bread could work without the caraway seeds? I really enjoy dark breads, but I have a strong aversion to the taste of caraway seeds.
I’ve made a similar bread without the vinegar, fennel seed, shallots or espresso, and I have to say that whether this is “authentic Ukrainian” or not, these additional ingredients are going to bring my bread up a “whole nuther notch”. Thanks!
Re, caraway seeds and other ingredient questions — There’s no reason to put any ingredient in this (or any other recipe) that you do not like. Most of the 17 ingredients are just flavorings, use or skip them as you prefer.
Love it! I can’t wait to try it. And I’m glad you had a good time in Ree’s kitchen! Everything looked fabulous!
I echo that it is worth making- well actually I say that, but I did not do the making. Just the eating. I’ll get back with ya next week and let you know how it goes!
This looks so delicious! I can’t wait to try it. One question–you say “bran” but do you mean wheat bran or oat bran?
Deb, I am loathe to ask the question, but when you call for bran – do you mean wheat bran? please clarify!
Ooh, two questions in a row! Wheat bran. But if you only had oat on hand, I don’t see why it would work, though it tends to be more coarse.
That bread looks very hearty and delicious. A lot of ingredients but worth it.
Anyone know how this compares to those black bread loaves they feed you at Outback?
Mavel Tov, blessing and all good wishes for your darling & your new babe – what a fortunate child to have you for a Mum – so interesting, smart & beneficial to so many people.
Coline, from Manitoba, Canada
Those photographs are particularly beautiful (and the layout is so nice!). Who took them?
Hi Deb,
I love this bread; I made it from your NPR piece, and I’m so glad it’s cooled off here in the city so I can make it again.
One thing — I think your yeast equivalents are off. I think most yeast packets are 1/4 oz (7 grams), which is the equivalent of 2 1/4 tsp. of yeast. So two packets is actually 1 1/2 T. (This means that the amounts on the cinnamon swirl buns, on your site and bon appetit/epicurious are wrong, too — 2 1/4 tsp. is one envelope, not two.)
I thought you should know — in part because your bread recipes have inspired me to get a bigger jar of yeast, so now I have to measure it out, rather than just use the packets.
Can’t wait to make the bread again — and the cinnamon buns, too! Thanks!
Excellent point, and worse, I already knew that. I blindly retyped this, and will make that change now. (Fortunately, a little too much yeast won’t hurt any recipe. It simply makes it grow faster.)
This is NOT a hard sell. All you needed to do was say, “black bread.” It’s been too long since I’ve eaten good Russian black bread. Must make this soon.
I’ve been making breads by hand for a few months now, but got a Kitchenaid stand mixer (which I have named Julia, because I enjoy naming inanimate objects and the first recipe I used it for was from Mastering the Art of French cooking)for my 15th birthday last week and can’t wait to use it to take on more complex breads. That is, assuing the planets align or something and I have all the ingredients on hand.
Thank you thank you thank you! Enjoying bread like this with a nice slathering of unsalted butter and raspberry tea is one of my favorite memories of my Mom. Bless you for posting your favorite bread recipe- it’s bound to become one of mine! (You’re bound to have moments like this with your own impending baby as I do with my own four… and I hope you’ll share those moments with us!)
Beth Hensperger books are THE BEST!
I have been making all of our bread lately, but getting bored with the same ol’ recipes… this is NOT same ol’ and this is NOT boring – I can’t wait to give it a try! I give myself 3 or 4 tries before I actually manage to start it AND have all the ingredients for it at my house!
Looks delicious and I will be making this when I am motivated enough to go and get some rye flour. Jewish and Eastern European foods are kind of hard to come by in Australia, we have a pretty small Jewish community. I think about 0.5% of the total population. By the way, all of you Aussies out there struggling to find matzo and matzo meal, Jewish groceries probably have it but seeing as I don’t live near any, I stumbled into Macro Wholefoods today, and, among dense loaves of pumperknickel and organic rye flour I saw MATZO MEAL. And in the next aisle, MATZO! They only have stores in Sydney and Melbourne but I think they’re expanding to regional areas and other states soon.
I’ve learned that instead of using a thermometer to check for doneness, you can knock on the bottom of the loaf. If it sounds hallow, it’s done baking!
are you cutting that bread with a non-serrated knife? it’s blowing my mind…
I’d like to invite you to Lithuania – we have the best traditional black bread, called “Bociu” :) It’s my favourite one, for me black bread is even more better than any white bread.
Melissomatic — It was killing me. Despite the kitchen being fantastically well-equipped, the serrated knife was either AWOL or dirty and I have never missed my bread knife so much. But then I looked out the picture windows at the ranch and the bulls and the vast, open green space and decided I could make do with just a Wusthof Santoku (yes, I’m making fun of myself a little, but it did feel that dramatically touch-and-go for a moment! I really love my bread knife that much.).
I made this today and you are right, it’s only the list of ingredients that makes this seem like it might be too much work. This bread is outstanding, the dough even smells wonderful!
I had to go to Whole Foods for the rye flour since the local chain grocery stores don’t carry it, but that’s the only thing that I had to go look for. Oh, and I forgot about the whole wheat flour and was out of that so I just used a combo of rye and a little white. Plus, I had to crush some All Bran cereal for the bran, but I figured, it’s only bread..it will cope! It more than coped!
I love that hint of fennel and the shallot that comes through in the aroma while baking. There are so many strong flavors in this bread and they blend so well, it makes you concentrate on what you’re tasting. I’ve eaten WAY too much bread and butter today, but it’s just so good it blocks my common sense and will power!
Thanks for FINALLY presenting this! Now onto those Ranch Rugelach that started to distract me…
Okay, Deb. I must be a little thick-headed when it comes to this particular recipe, since no one else who’s made it apparently had these questions. First, in instruction #5, you say to add the the flour mixture 1/2 cup at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Then step #6 says to gradually add flour mixture. So I’m assuming that the flour mixture in that next step is the remaining flour from step 5, right? In my case, I didn’t have any left since it took the entire amount before the dough pulled away from the sides. The other thing I wasn’t clear on is step 8, where it mentions the cornmeal mixture related to the parchment lined baking sheet. I couldn’t tell if I’m supposed to only use that cornmeal mixture if I bake them as rounds (which I am), and only underneath the dough. Or does it mean to sprinkle that mixture on the top of the loaves, whether or not you use a pan? Can’t wait to taste it. Thanks!
Bookmarked! Sounds delicious and reminds me of the bread I used to eat back home, in Poland :)
Emilie — You’re right, that is totally confusing (and wrong). Have fixed. Step five was correct, adding flour in step six unnecessary.
As for the cornmeal mixture, I have consistently forgotten every single time I’ve made this bread to sprinkle the top of it. So I’d call it optional on either. If you want that extra crunch, sprinkle it on either, if not, skip it. (Have updated this too.) Thanks for your keen eye!
Just finished eating my third slice of my still-warm attempt at this wonderful recipe — it’s deee-licious! Thank you so much for sharing this great bread! My husband loves a good “black” bread, as do I, and he has pronounced this the best we’ve had. I’ll be making it again. And would you believe, I actually had every single ingredient in my kitchen except for the shallot.
Your blog is simply a delight. Thank you.
Substitutions that worked fine: I didn’t have espresso powder, used brewed coffee instead– about a cup, replacing the water (so 1 cup water, 1 cup coffee for liquid); also I didn’t have an ounce of unsweetened chocolate, used unsweetened cocoa powder (3 Tablespoons) and an extra tablespoon of butter. I’ve always been scared of dark/rye breads because of the wet dough and my lack of stand mixer, but this was a breeze to hand mix!! and delicious. THANK YOU
Help. I have been to three grocery stores here in Pittsburgh this morning and could not find bran or rye flour. Even went to Trader Joe’s in the middle of our wonderful marathon – which was an adventure in and of itself. Is there an online site to buy this stuff or am I just going to have to hunger for this wonderful bread. Thanks for any help here.
I went to the Kansas City open market yesterday strictly to visit the spice man for my caraway and fennel seeds, I am next going to our natural foods store for the rye flour and bran, I am on a mission! I can’t wait to try this recipe. Funny thing, I printed this recipe off of my local NPR site a while back, I’ve given it out to “baking friends” that want to try something new all inspite of me never having made it, I remember reading the ingredients and thinking it will be a winner… Thank you, thank you, thank you for continuing to share your gems with us!
Mmmm… thank-you for this amazing recipe! My first time using a “real” bread recipe (I usually use the NYTimes recipe).
We will toast and top with mushrooms sauteed with white wine, thyme and parsley for dinner tomorrow.
Sweet black bread is the best. Like the kind they serve at Outback or Cheesecake Factory…delicious.
This looks like one bread that Nigella made on one of her shows and I missed the everything except the last part where she was speading some cream cheese-like things on it! And I thought it look so good!
Ok Deb, please help. I am not an experienced bread-baker, so I may have made an elementary mistake here. But I tried to bake this last night, and the dough never really rose. After the first 2 hours I thought maybe it did a little (but didn’t double), but after making it into 2 round loaves I knew something was wrong, and the loaves didn’t rise at all, and silly me I kept hoping that they would be okay and went ahead and baked them, but they were simply small, heavy dough-rocks. I know my yeast was active, cause by the time I went to pour it in, it was all foamy. How cool were you supposed to let the chocolate mixture get? I have a sneaking suspicion that it was too warm when I poured it in and I killed the yeast. My only other thought was that I over-kneaded it. I want to make this again, so do you have any advice? I am dying to taste the deliciousness of this bread!
Alta — A too warm chocolate mixture can kill the yeast so that might have been it, sorry to hear. I wouldn’t worry very much about over kneading it — it is very difficult to do so by hand, slightly easier (but still, rarely happens) in a Kitchen Aid or other machine.
Thanks Deb! I will remember to cool down that chocolate mixture next time. I kneaded by hand, so I guess I won’t worry about that. Thanks again!
I made this bread Saturday (with the 2tbs of yeast because as soon as I saw it I printed it out). It was outrageous. I’m always on the prowl for a good pumpernickle recipe and have one that is OK. This will be my new standard. I was thinking of adding raisins next time? (why not go for 18 ingredients?)
Wow! This bread looks divine. I love that it has 17 ingredients. Even though I’m in the midst of exams, I feel like running out and collecting all of them so that I too can have this amazing bread. I can almost smell it baking up in the oven right now!
Hah! Took a deep breath and made this bread yesterday – and it turned out really good and was worth the second trip to the grocery to rescue the caraway seeds left in the cart. Thanks for the inspiration and courage, Deb!
Now, what do you think of using up more of the 17 ingredients to make bagels?
What a BRILLIANT idea. Pumpernickel bagels, next big bagel project.
Linda – I feel like Trader Joe’s should have had it, did you track down an employee to ask? I’ve been in some stores where they carry things like rye flour and bran only in their “organic” food section, instead of in their baking aisles. Bob’s Red Mill is usually the brand I end up finding…I think you can order from their website as well, but I’d give the stores another go first–I hate paying shipping on anything ever!
I haven’t made black bread since college…I had a history teacher who had lived in Russia, and she mentioned it in class one day. I found a couple of recipes for it and became obsessed with its deliciousness. None of my recipes had shallots though, so I’m doubly intrigued! I hadn’t thought about this in years, but I’m going to have to add some things to my grocery list…thanks Deb!!!
Thanks Deb for a great recipe. I am learning to bake bread and this is the first recipe which has turned out well for me so far :). However, I think my bread turned out a lot denser than it looks in your pictures (though I still loved it!!) – I kneaded by hand and maybe I did not knead enough – when you say knead until “springy and smooth” does it mean that if I poke a finger into the dough it should rise back up? Separately, will the windowpane test be a good way to test if this bread has been kneaded adequately or will the coarser grains make that not-viable?
Deb, help! I tried to make this, and the dough was EXTREMELY sticky. I was scraping it off my hands while kneading…and I even added an extra cup of flour. I can tell by the pics that this dough is supposed to be softer than white bread dough, but this really seemed too wet. During the second rise (on the pan) the dough just spread out and made sort of a flying saucer shape instead of a nice round loaf.
Also, how in the world do you slash the top without losing the rise?
Love your website, btw…everything else I’ve made has been perfect!
Happy Mother’s Day Deb!
If yours is too sticky, you should add flour until you get a kneadable dough. If your bread deflates when you slash it, it has probably risen too much. That said, a slash should be quick and with a very sharp knife or blade, and should barely disturb the loaf.
Be still my beating heart. You have made this Russian girl very happy. I’ll still buy the Russian bread at my local Italian bakery (they have one with raisins, too) but now I don’t need to.
Just to second Alta – I think that I killed the yeast with the chocolate as I didn’t read all the way down to comment 121. Perhaps to help those newer to bread making, a quick note in the recipe to beware! Second batch was fantastic, though. Cheers
We made this today. It was good, I guess I’m just not a fan of rye though. I ate the “pumpernickel” bread at the cheesecake factory and thought I would like this… not the same. I hope you are not offended by this, but do you know how they make their brown bread?
Help Deb! I have made this bread three times now, and the second two times I have had the flying saucer problem as Erica mentioned above. I added more flour the third time because I thought that my dough was too wet, but it didn’t help. I still got a flat loaf on the second rise. Why is this happening and how can I avoid it? I am letting it rise too much? I am barely letting it rise for 90 min (but it is huge, with big bubbles). It is a delicious bread, nonetheless!
Huge with big bubbles might mean that it has over-risen. Different climates and kitchen temps can lead to bread rising faster. You want it to just double, not feel overly loose or seem like it deflates a lot when you press on it. You should check out my bread tips post.
This sounds more like pumpernickel than black bread, at least the way I know it. My Latvian grandmother used to make black break that was more of a cross between rye bread and sourdough. Dark and dense with a grainy rye flavor but with a tang to it. I wish I was into baking while she was still alive so I would know how to make it. :(
I made this bread last night (twice!) and it worked well and tastes good. I’m not a fan of rye, but my husband loved it! I made it for my mother-in-law who loves black bread. That said, I thought it might be “blacker” like the black bread at Central Market, but it was the same color as your photos, so I did it right. I had to go all the way across town to find the rye flour, but found a box of “wheat bran” at our local HEB.
So…my comedy of errors! I set the dough to rise in my turned off oven, assuring myself that I had no reason to turn on the oven in the near future. An hour later, I suddenly had a great idea to turn pitas into pita chips for the hummus I had just made. Great idea! Turned the oven on to 375. Yeah…cooked my dough. Had to start completely over. Was not pleased. Especially since it was 8:00 at night by then. I tried to crush the seeds in a bowl with an ice cream scoop but after five minutes they looked exactly the same! So I just threw them in. I sprinkled the cornmeal mixture on top, but most of it fell off after baking – all the seeds anyway. I baked one round in a cake pan and one just on a cookie sheet. The one on the sheet spread out into a giant cookie about 2 inches thick! My husband ate that one and we sent the other one overnight to my mother-in-law, at a cost of $32. So, this has been the story of my 45 dollar, 8 hour loaf of bread.
thanks to alta for the tip! i’m pretty good with gauging the water for the yeast but it didnt even occur to me that i might have killed the yeast with the hot water from the stove!
The inside remained moist, despite prolonged baking time, and i believe the hot water was the cause. But my mother and I loved the flavor!
Also, was I the only person who wound up with an extra 3/4 cup of flours left? Seems like a lot.
My poor Russian mother misses black bread so much! From what I’ve been told, most “Black Bread” we have in the states is what Russians would call “Grey Bread”. The baker I spoke to told me that there is some ingredient, common in Russia, which we do not have here. I believe it was a kind of yeast. I may be wrong, but that is probably why unique ingredients like espresso and chocolate are used to imitate the flavor. Anyhow, it still sounds delicious and I’m looking forward to making some! :)
My Latvian co-worker is pregnant and was missing the food of her homeland. I gave her a loaf and both she and another co-worker (Belarussian) were practically drooling. She reports that it is excellent, and I trust her judgment :)
To those with rising issues: perhaps you just need patience? I did my first rise in the microwave after nuking a small glass of water to get the air moist, and it doubled beautifully in about 90 minutes. The second rise wasn’t as marked, but still enough to give a lovely shape. The loaves are still dense, but that’s how they’re *supposed* to be. There are photos of my loaves up on my blog. Great texture and flavour (though maybe a little too much caraway for my personal taste, might try a little less next time).
Thanks for the great recipe!
This is an excellent recipe–I made it tonight, and have been working hard to keep myself from devouring an entire loaf before tomorrow morning. As others have indicated, my first attempt was not so successful: I didn’t let the water/chocolate/molasses mixture cool enough, and it killed my yeast. Today I made it before doing anything else, and let it get down to room temp, and had no problems with the rise. The bread itself is amazing–dense, flavorful, incredible. I’ve been eating it with some Kerry Gold salted butter spread on top–perfect! Thanks, Deb!
Hello. I made this black bread yesterday. I found the dough to be very wet and sticky even after I added all the flour (I used all-purpose rather than bread flour, don’t know if that made a difference). I ended up adding about 3/4 c more flour to make it knead-able without sticking to the counter and my hands. But it rose great and the loaf turned out fantastically! Tasty and sturdy but not too dense. For me, it slices better the second day. Thanks for the great recipe!
I have a question: is the molasses you use for this the liquid form or the sugary granule form?
Liquid. I’ve actually never seen it granulated (unless you’re thinking of brown sugar).
I’ve been lusting after this bread since September when I searched your website for easy bread recipes to make at school (i.e. bread with far fewer ingredients than this one). Home for Christmas, I used my mom’s ingredient cabinet and only had to buy a few more. I didn’t read the comments before I baked, so I now realize I got lucky having two beautiful loaves! I used instant coffee instead of instant espresso, forgot the fennel seeds, didn’t grind the seeds (I know it was optional…but I wanted to, just didn’t have a grinder), used dark rye instead of medium, and oat bran instead of wheat. The recipe withstood all these minor changes and we consumed the whole loaf in about an hour and a half. Ate it with leftover Christmas ham, with goat cheese tomatoes and cucumbers, and with butter and apple butter.
Thanks for the recipe!!!
Nice bread :)
i would like to know if anyone has tried this in a loaf pan. i love the taste of this bread, but want desperately to try it a vehicle for some good deli meats. i thought about trying it in a loaf pan and adding 1-2 tsp of vital wheat gluten. any thoughts on this? does one cool it in a loaf pan? please respond ASAP. Hungry kids to feed!
Yes, you can make this in 2 loaf pans. It’s been a while since I did it but remember it working fine. You can pop it out of the loaf right away and cool it on a rack. In fact I could go for some with some deli meats right now, if you are sharing…
This is a question from a novice bread maker ;o)
whenever I have tried to make plain white bread or some other bread, mine always comes out with the consistency closer to cake than bread. What I am doing wrong? I knead the breads by hand for at least 20 minutes.
Thanks and love your recipes and writing!
Just made this for the second time and it’s even better this time. I love the complex flavors and with a bit of cream cheese, salmon lox, and capers it beats regular bagel for breakfast any day. I decided to wrap one and freeze it for later. Any tips on reheating? I’m thinking 350 for 20 minutes or so?