This Sourdough Oatmeal Bread, based on a family favorite, is a simple and comforting naturally-leavened honey oatmeal loaf that benefits from an overnight ferment in the refrigerator.  It represents the convergence of two personas; project manager and bread baker, and came to fruition due to a simple, yet profound request from my youngest son.
A couple of weeks ago, I participated in a workshop on the power of persuasion and influence as part of some training we’re doing at work.
As I was reading about one of the approaches, my first thought was that it was a manipulative method. I wasn’t too sure how I felt about that. I filed the information away and decided to let it ruminate before I dismissed it.
That same week, my youngest son texted me and presented a very compelling case for me to make Oatmeal Bread for one of his friend’s birthdays.
It wouldn’t have taken too much effort to get me to make some bread, but the way he presented it made me laugh. It was a case study for the approach I had been introduced to in the training.
I realized this approach wasn’t manipulative at all. My son offered me an opportunity I gladly accepted.
His request was perfect timing. Not only was this an opportunity for me to make bread; it was an opportunity for me to perfect a bread I had been working on for weeks.
I had been experimenting with a wholegrain sourdough oatmeal loaf using different types of grains and the results had been mixed. I decided it was time to step back and punt. In this particular case, that meant starting over with all white flour and adjusting the rest of the variables from there.
When my son requested Oatmeal Bread, in his mind, he was referring to the family’s favorite bread machine oatmeal bread made with all white flour.
I decided to grant his request, but instead of making sourdough yeast bread in the bread machine, I converted our favorite oatmeal bread recipe to sourdough and made it by hand.
You just never know what lessons life and bread can teach you. This was a bread just waiting to be created.
It is very rewarding to be able to create special loaves and share them with friends and family.
When you have a recipe you love, you can use it as the starting point from which future loaves can be perfected. This is one of those breads.
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Sourdough Oatmeal Bread
- Total Time: 9 hours 15 mins
- Yield: 1 Loaf 1x
Description
This Sourdough Oatmeal Bread, based on a family favorite, is a simple and comforting naturally-leavened honey oatmeal loaf that benefits from an overnight ferment in the refrigerator.
Ingredients
- 120 grams / ~1/3 cup active sourdough starter, recently fed
- 300 grams / 1 1/4 cups water
- 60 grams / 3 tbsp. honey
- 28 grams / 2 tbsp. milk, scalded then cooled, plus more for brushing, if desired
- 28 grams / 2 tbsp. butter, melted
- 480 grams / 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for sprinkling
- 75 grams / 2/3 cup rolled oats, plus more for sprinkling on top, if desired
- 10 grams / 1 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
Day 1 – Prepare the Dough
- Place the sourdough starter in a medium bowl.
- Weigh/measure the wet ingredients (water, honey, milk, melted butter), and mix together.
- Add the wet ingredients to the starter and stir with a wooden spoon or Danish dough whisk to break up the starter.
- In a large bowl, add the dry ingredients (flour, oats, salt) and stir with a whisk to incorporate.
- Pour the liquid ingredients onto the dry ingredients and incorporate fully until there are no dry bits of flour.
- Knead the dough in the bowl for a few minutes. Scrape down the bowl using a spatula or bowl scraper.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 15 minutes. Perform a stretch and fold in the bowl or on the counter; then place the dough back in bowl.
- Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the dough bulk ferment (rise) for 1-2 hours, depending on the temperature in your kitchen. This is to get the yeast activity going before cooling the dough down overnight. If it’s warmer in your kitchen, your dough may need less time at room temp on the counter.
- Perform a stretch and fold after 30-45 minutes, then let the dough rest for the remainder of the bulk ferment.
- Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Day 2 – Shape, Score & Bake the Loaf
- The next day, remove the bowl from the refrigerator and allow the dough to warm up to room temperature for 1-2 hours. If its warmer in your kitchen, it may not take this long for the dough to warm up.
- Shape the dough into a loaf and place in a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it proof for 2-3 hours or until doubled in size. Test for readiness by pressing lightly on the dough with your index finger. If it leaves a light indention, the loaves are ready to bake. If the dough springs back completely, let it proof a while longer and perform the test again.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Brush the top of the loaf with water or milk using a pastry brush. Sprinkle the top of the loaf with oats if desired and score it down the middle to allow for even oven spring.
- Place the loaf in the preheated oven and immediately turn the oven down to 350 degrees F. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Check the loaf after 30 minutes or so and tent with foil if the top starts to brown too quickly.
- Remove the loaf to a wire rack. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and allow the loaf to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Prep time includes mixing, bulk proof on the counter, shaping, and the final proof in the loaf pan, but does not include the 8-12 hour cold ferment in the refrigerator.
- Prep Time: 510 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Category: Sourdough
- Cuisine: Bread
You might enjoy some other Oatmeal Bread Recipes
Click here to find 10 of my favorite oatmeal bread recipes, including bread machine, sourdough, einkorn, whole grain spelt, multigrain, and a kefir milk version.
- 100% Whole Grain Sourdough Spelt Oatmeal Bread
- Kefir Milk Oatmeal Sandwich Loaf
- Einkorn Oatmeal Bread Machine Bread
Happy Baking!
Cathy
Kat Whipple says
Your sourdough oatmeal loaf makes perfect toast and has become a go-to discard recipe. Will try the whole grain version once I can source ingredients. Thank you.
Cathy says
I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying this bread. What a great way to use up sourdough discard. Depending on how old your discard is, I’m guessing you also added some dried yeast.
Kat Whipple says
No, just fed a bit (a little encouragement)and let it go to town. I’ve got two very active starters: one rye and one wheat-ish. I’ve been looking at the eye recipes as well. Thanks for sharing your know-how. Ps: this is my son’s fave toasting bread.
Cathy says
Gotcha! I’m so glad you’re son likes this bread for toasting.
Jenny says
I’m making this bread right now and ended up with just a super crumbly mixture after weighing and combining all the ingredients. I double checked that I didn’t miss anything, so is this dough just supposed to be very dry? Or should I add more water? (I did add more water already and hoping that was the right move :))
Cathy says
It shouldn’t be super crumbly so if you needed to add more water, then you did the right thing.
Michelle says
What does the T measurement stand for (milk)?
Thanks!
Cathy says
It should be 2 Tbsp. milk. I edited the ingredients to reflect this. Thanks!
Michelle says
Thank you!
Jennifer Champagne says
I’ve got this baking in the oven right now, and so far so good! I did have to change the schedule a little and so I’m not sure how it will turn out. Have you ever baked it right out of the fridge? I’m currently living abroad in a hot climate so any baking needs to be done first thing in the morning (and in a small countertop convection oven, but that’s another story..)
In any case, I followed your recipe up to the point of first proof on the counter. I did leave it for more like 4-5 hours out. Then I shaped it, put it in a proofing basket, and stuck it in my fridge. This morning, after heating the oven, put it directly into the oven rather than do another 4 hours of proofing. I will have nothing to compare it too, so I wondered if you had ever tried anything similar. So far it looks pretty good!
Cathy says
Hi Jennifer,
I have not baked this particular loaf directly from the fridge, but I have done that with a other breads. It should be fine. Although it might be crustier on the outside which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Do let me know how it turns out. I might have to try baking it as a freeform loaf sometime.
Sea Watcher says
I love oatmeal bread. I made this before but I wasn’t able to follow the timing much for assorted reasons.
In step 8, how do you know at what point to put the dough into the refrigerator? What are the signs to look for? And shouldn’t Step 9 really come before Step 8?
Thank you for your recipe.
Cathy says
The dough should bulk ferment on the counter for a couple of hours before placing it in the refrigerator overnight to cold ferment. Step 9 is completed during the bulk ferment which begins in step 8.
Sea Watcher says
So just a couple of hours regardless of how cool my kitchen is? It’s usually pretty cool-in the low 60s. No particular visual cues?
Cathy says
I typically bake in a cooler kitchen in the winter, about 65 degrees. For this dough, you don’t want it to fully proof (or double in size) before placing in the refrigerator overnight. You just want to get the yeast activity started. I edited the timing a bit in the recipe.
Jacki says
On my third bake with this bread. Lovely all around! Wish I could send you photos and smells.
Cathy says
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this bread. It’s one of my favorites as well. I would love to see photos. It is too bad we can’t send smells over the web. If you post your photos to social media, you can tag Bread Experience.
Sandy says
Just put the ingredients together for my first loaf of your oatmeal bread with sourdough discard 😀I’m looking forward to baking it tomorrow . Thanks for sharingit
Cathy says
Cool! I look forward to hearing how the bread does with the sourdough discard.
Christine Scott says
I’m making this right now. I added some sunflower seeds into as well. So far so good. Getting ready to put in the fridge overnight.
Cathy says
The addition of sunflower seeds sounds delicious. Let me know how it goes.