*Apologies to all our Danish friends. Adding diacritics to our keyboard alphabets is just too much tech to learn at this stage in our lives. 'Rugbrod' and 'Smorrbrod' should both contain accents through the o's.
Here we go again. 'Sister of the Traveling Knickers' took yet another trip without bothering to invite me, though she did invite me to do a cooking assignment.
Nordic food. I expected to get an assignment dealing with fish or an odd veggie. But rye bread? Danish rye bread, or Rugbrod, is unlike the traditional rye we enjoy here in the States. It bursts with healthy seeds and flavour, so I agreed to try it. Delving into the fascinating history and science of rugbrod, I feared I would fail.
Sourdough is the main ingredient for Danish rye. I'm not the best baker, so I chose a recipe without sourdough from Nordic Food Living.com. This is a food and travel blog that I’m sure you will enjoy. Thank you NFLiving.
Rugbrod is the base for Danish open sandwiches called smorrebrod and the loaf is oblong in shape. It is usually low in fat as it contains no added oils or fats.
This differ from most breads. The bread is rich in dietary fibre, has little or no sugar and a very healthy alternative to white and wheat breads.
I've modified the recipe to US measurements and reduced it to make two small loaves. I used metal loaf pans sprayed with cooking oil.
Preheat the over to 400F.
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, keep stirring.
When dissolved, add all the grains, salt and yogurt, stirring to mix. Finish by adding the flours and kneeling to a sticky dough. I did this in the mixer...hate getting sticky!
Let the dough rise, covered, for about one hour in a warm, draft-less place.
Pour the dough into the two oiled loaf pans and let rise an additional 30 minutes.
After the rise, brush the dough with water and sprinkle with the pumpkin seeds. I actually pushed them into the dough a bit to make sure they stayed put.
Place the pans in the oven and reduce the temperature to 325*. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let the bread cool before slicing.
This actually slices like a pound cake and is very pretty. My tasters found that it was a bit stodgy and dry without a big smear of butter and jam. I can see this as a very good base for an open sandwich with a heavy dollop of cream cheese and lox.
