Oatmeal Date Bread

A new found love for the "bulk bins" at the grocery store I shop at has filled my pantry with jars of awesome stuff! From dried fruit, to grains, to beans, I love good 'ole "unprepared" food.
A few weekends ago, when my mom came to visit, I decided to make a favorite of hers - oatmeal bread. This recipe calls for steel cut oats (from the bulk bins) and whole-wheat flour (from the bulk bins) which makes for a good, hearty, bread. I also had some dates (from the bulk bins) that have been the butt of my experiments lately, so why not add a few of those? You could also throw in your favorite nut (from the bulk bins) if you so choose! The bread came out tasty as ever. Everyone seemed to like it enough that when I remembered to take a picture it was almost gone! Slightly sweet, healthy, and toasted to perfection!

Oatmeal Date Bread (from the bulk bin!) :)
recipe adapted from Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C whole wheat flour
1 C unbleached all-purpose flour
1 C steel-cut oats
1 Tbs yeast
1/2 Tbs salt
2 Tbs vital wheat gluten
1 1/2 C luke warm water
3 Tbs agave nectar
2 Tbs neutral-flavored oil
3/4 C dates, finely chopped
Egg wash
Raw Sugar for sprinkling on top

Directions:
1. Whisk together the flours, oats, yeast, salt and vital wheat gluten in a bowl.
2. Combine the liquid ingredients and dates and mix them with the dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon, a 14-cup food processor (with dough attachment), or a heavy-duty stand mixer (with paddle). You might need to use wet hands to get the last bit of flour to incorporate if you're not using a machine.
3. Cover (not airtight), and allow the dough to rest at room temp. until it rises and collapses, approximately 2 hours.
4. The dough can be used immediately after its initial rise, though it is easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate it in a lidded (not air tight) container at use over the next 7 days.
5. On baking day, lightly grease a 8 1/2  X 4 1/2 inch nonstick loaf pan Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and shape into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
6. Elongate the ball into an oval and place it into the loaf pan; your goal is to fill the pan about three-quarters full. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Allow the loaf to rest and rise for 1 hour 45 minutes (60 minutes if your using fresh, unrefrigerated dough).
7. Just before baking, use a pastry brush to pain the top crust with egg wash, then sprinkle it with raw sugar.
8. Place the loaf before baking, use a pastry brush to paint the top crust with egg wash, then sprinkle it with raw sugar.
9. Place the loaf on the stone or on a rack near the center of the oven. Bake for about 45 to 50 minutes, until richly browned and firm.
10. Remove the bread from the pan (see page 50) and allow it to cool slightly on a rack before slicing and eating.

I sure hope you have bulk bins at your grocery store. If you do, stop by and grab a bag of something new!