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Wheat Sheaf Bread Loaf
Prep Time
2 hrs 20 mins
Cook Time
18 mins
Total Time
2 hrs 38 mins
 
Break bread in a most unexpected way. Skip traditional rolls this holiday in favor of a bread loaf that looks like you plucked it right from a wheat field. This wheat sheaf-shaped bread is fun and easy to make. A braided band of dough ties it all together for a deliciously attractive dinner side.
Servings: 8 -12
Author: Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Magazine
Ingredients
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup warm water
  • 1 tablespoon of barley-malt syrup check natural food stores
  • 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
  • Two-thirds cup of buttermilk
  • 1/2 stick unsalted butter melted and cooled
Instructions
  1. Sprinkle yeast over warm water. Let stand for about 5 minutes, until foamy. Whisk in 2 teaspoons of malt syrup. Stir in flour, coarse salt, buttermilk and 3 tablespoons until well-combined. Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface. Dust hands with flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic. Shape dough into a ball.
  2. Transfer dough ball to a butter-brushed bowl, cover and allow to rise for about 1 hour.
  3. Divide the dough into half a dozen balls. Roll about 20-24 pieces into ropes measuring @12-15 inches long.
  4. Dip thumb into flour and then press thumb into top of rope to create leaf shape. You may need to pinch the tip to give it a point.
  5. Use the tip of a knife to score leaf veins into the leaf tip.
  6. Arrange the ropes into a sheaf on a piece of parchment paper. Overlap the leaves, fan out and bend the leaves.
  7. Roll remaining pieces of rope into a rope and carefully braid the pieces.
  8. Drape the braid over the sheaf. Cover the dough and allow to rise for about 20-minutes.
  9. Brush with a beaten egg.
  10. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown.