Missing Molasses

  Costco use to carry these cute little loaves of molasses bread which I quickly learned to love. Unfortunately, after about 6 months (and a significant attachment on my part) they stopped carrying them. Alas, I have missed them! So yesterday, after deciding on beef stroganoff  for dinner, I purposed to bake my own darn loaves of molasses bread and stop the griping. The recipe below is what I came up with. Now, mind you, it's not quite the same as those cute litttle loaves I used to purchase, but it turned out quite good just the same. A tender, moist loaf that went great with stroganoff and sliced beautifully for turkey sandwiches today.
Happy baking, friends!
P.S. I put this all in a bread machine and let it do the work, but you can do it by hand as well.

Honey-Oat Molasses Bread


1 tsp. sugar
1 pkg. dry yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp.)
1/4 cup warm water (110-120 degrees)
Mix this together in a small bowl and set aside to proof.( proofing means to activate the yeast)


Stir together:
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup honey
1 cup oats


Add to above mixture:
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 cups wheat flour
2 cups white flour
2 Tbsp. vital wheat gluten ( I always add this to my bread. It improves the elasticity a lot.)
Now add yeast mixture into flour/oat mixture and set Bread machine to Dough cycle. When it's finished  shape it into a round and put into a greased pie plate.(I brushed it with butter and added some oats to the top at this point)  Let rise for about 30 minutes. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, or until golden and tapping on it results in a hollow sound. Let cool 10 minutes before removing from pan.  Yields: 1 large loaf ( about 12 slices or wedges)


(If you're doing this by hand, just mix the above mixture together as well as you can with a spoon. Then turn out dough onto a floured counter or board. Knead for at least 10 minutes. Cover and let rise for about an hour until dough has about doubled in size.Punch down dough and shape into loaf. Then bake as directed.)