I truly believe this is my all time favorite bread. It is packed with flavor, subtly sweet, and it's a breeze to make, as there's no yeast with which to contend.
D'épices? Anise seed, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and ground cloves; and, they all blend with two types of flour. I have had at least one piece every day this week, some plain with my coffee in the morning, some slathered with chèvre for lunch, and some with foie gras and a chilled sauterne as the sun goes down. It's a dense bread that will also freeze well.
Who do I thank for this one? David Lebovitz. A professional cook and baker, Lebovitz spent thirteen years at Chez Panisse in California working with Alice Waters and Executive Pastry Chef Lindsey Shere. He moved to Paris in 2004 and is now a very successful author and blogger (davidlebovitz.com). This gem of a recipe is from his book My Paris Kitchen which I recommend as a good read as well as a wonderful cook book. His perspectives on Paris in comparison to America are very entertaining.
Honey-Spice Bread a.k.a. Pain d'épices
(1 9-inch-loaf)
¾ cup honey (amber for lighter/sweeter; dark for assertive/deeper flavor)
½ cup packed light brown sugar
¾ cup water
½ teaspoon sea salt or Kosher salt
1 ⅓ cups of all-purpose flour
⅔ cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon whole or ground anise seed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cloves
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
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- Preheat the oven to 350 ℉. Butter a 9-inch loaf pan and line the bottom with a sheet of parchment paper.
- Heat the honey, brown sugar, water, and salt in a saucepan until it begins to boil. Decrease the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup of the all-purpose flour. Let cool to room temperature.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining ⅓ cup all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour. baking powder, baking soda, anise, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
- In a small bowl whisk together the egg and egg yolk.
- Stir half the honey mixture into the dry ingredients, add the eggs, then the rest of the honey mixture, stirring just until smooth. (If any bits of flour remain, whisk the batter briefly to break them up and incorporate them.)
- Scrape the mixture into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool 20 minutes, loosen the sides of bread from the pan with a knife, then tip the bread out onto a wire cooling rack and cool completely. If possible, wait a day before slicing. Pain d'épices will keep for at least 1 week at room temperature, if well wrapped. It can also be frozen for up to 2 months.
VARIATION: Replace ¼ cup of honey with wild-flowered molasses for a more robustly flavored pain d'épices.
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