Black Sesame Loaf

I attended a few baking demos recently and this is one of the bread recipes I picked up which has since become a family favourite. This recipe yields a delicious and healthy black sesame sandwich loaf with a soft and fluffy texture.

I did not know black sesame has so many health benefits. A little research online showed that they are an excellent source of many essential minerals as well as a very good source of vitamin B1 (thiamin) and dietary fiber. The nutrients found in sesame seeds may contribute to cardiovascular health, reduce inflammation, support respiratory health, protect against colon cancer and osteoporosis as well as other conditions. I am using organic black sesame seeds and paste from the health food store, which hopefully makes it even healthier.

The bread keeps well and its texture remained soft for a couple of days (not as soft as when freshly baked but much better than loaves baked in the bread machine) . It has a light  sesame taste which is not over-powering, making it a delicious loaf to go with your favourite spreads. I did not think my kids were going to eat this bread, but they really enjoyed it with jam, peanut butter and chocolate spread.

Black Sesame Loaf (Makes 3 loaves of 300 g each)

Recipe adapted from a baking class at Phoon Huat

Ingredients

• Plain flour 340 g
• Bread flour 160 g
• Water 300 g
• Salt 2 tsp
• Dry Yeast 10 g
• Full cream milk powder 2.5 tbsp
• Fine sugar 20 g
• Vegetable oil 30 g
• Black sesame seeds (toasted) 60 g
• Black sesame paste 30 g

Method

• Put all the ingredients into the mixing bowl except for the salt, oil, black sesame seeds and paste.
• Mix on slow speed till a soft dough is formed then add in salt, oil, black sesame seeds and paste (total 2-3 mins of mixing).
• Turn the mixer onto high speed and mix the dough for 7-8 mins.
• Take the dough out of the mixer and rest the dough for about 30 mins, covered
• Divide the dough into 3 balls and rest for another 20 mins, covered
• After the 20 mins, take each ball of dough and roll it out on a floured surface (Step 1 and 2 below). Roll the dough up like a Swiss Roll (Step 3 below) and tuck the sides in (Step 4 below).
• Place each piece of dough into individual baking tins. Cover the tins and let the bread loaves proof for another 45mins to 1 hour till they double in size.
• Bake at 190 degrees C for 20-25 minutes till the surface of the loaves are evenly browned.