Spicy Batter Bread

I make spicy masala bread all the time. But, I didn't have the time or patience to knead and let it raise, shape and bake the loaf today. I chose an easier option but a healthy one. I chose to make batter bread.

For those who are not used to this lingo, batter bread is a combination of yeast bread and quick bread you could say. Quick bread is something that you mix it up and bake and is ready within an hour time from start to finish. Whereas yeast breads are let to raise, shaped and baked. Batter bread has yeast as an ingredient, left to raise only once and not shaped at all. I had borrowed a book from library - 'Betty Crocker's Homemade Quick Breads'.

This book has a recipe called 'Fresh Herb Batter Bread'. I modified it a lot to my taste and here is my take on spicy batter bread. Those who want to enjoy authentic spicy bread you get in bakeries in bangalore, you could try my Masala Bread. This comes very close to that and quickly too.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup All purpose flour
• 1/2 cup fine soji
• 1/2 cup cornmeal (stone ground fine ground)
• Green chillies - 12 chopped
• Sugar - 1 TBSP
• salt - 1 tsp
• Dry yeast - 1 package or 2 1/4 tsp
• 1 1/4 cups warm water
• 2 TBSP vegetable oil 
• Two medium carrots grated
• 2 TBSP chopped mint (you could use the herb of your choice or a combination)
• Little butter or oil to brush the baked bread.

Method:

Grease a 9 X 5 loaf pan. Mix 2 cups of the flours, sugar, salt and yeast in a bowl. Add warm water and beat for a minute till everything is mixed well. Add chopped chillies, carrots, mint or herb of choice. With a wooden spoon, mix and add the rest of the flours (Please note that the original recipe had only all purpose flour). Pour the batter into the pan and smooth the top with the spatula. Cover loosely with a greased aluminum foil and keep in a warm place for 40 minutes. I kept it in the oven and left the light on for an hour.

Towards the end of the raise time, preheat the oven to 375 F (I baked mine at 350 since I was using a dark pan). Bake for 45 minutes to 50 minutes or till golden and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the oven and brush the top with butter or oil. Cool on the wire rack and slice when completely cool. This bread was very good with a little bit of crunch from soji.

Enjoy with a cup of coffee or tea.

Notes:
Original recipe didn't have chillies or carrots. I added some and you can saute onions and add them too. It makes a healthy bread with different grains and not lot of fat.

Happy Baking!! Pin It