This slightly sweet Oatmeal Bread with molasses is a simple bread recipe that anyone can make. This bread is perfect for sandwiches, toasting for breakfast or tastes great on its own as a snack. Baking this bread doesn't require too much skill, but it sure tastes like it does!
This recipe was one of my grandma's and it had very minimal instructions. I rewrote this one with more detail and a few minor adjustments. I initially added in a few steps that I thought this recipe needed, but quickly realized that the way my grandma had written it down was pretty much exactly how I needed to make it for it to turn out perfectly! Imagine that!
We think this bread is most delicious freshly baked and still warm from the oven. Of course we love it slathered in butter but it's also great toasted with peanut butter!
Ingredients Needed
- Oatmeal-Old fashioned oats are going to work and look best for this recipe.
- Molasses-I always have Grandma's Original Molasses on hand and I think this is the best.
- Butter: Unsalted butter is best for baking so you have more control over the amount of salt in the recipe.
- Salt
- Yeast-You will need to use quick rise yeast.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is used in this recipe.
How to Make Oatmeal Bread
Prepare the Oats
To begin, in the bowl of your mixer, add the oatmeal, molasses, butter and salt. Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the oatmeal mixture and stir it well to combine. Let the mixture cool, about 30-40 minutes.
Once the mixture is cool, add 2 cups of the flour to the bowl. With your dough hook attachment, set your mixer to medium and mix until the flour is mixed in. You will need to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to get all the flour incorporated.
To activate the yeast, add the yeast to ⅓ cup of hot water. You will want the temperature of this water to be about 110°-115°F. If it's too hot, you will kill the yeast and your bread will not rise. I usually just let my kitchen tap run until it is as hot as it will get and then measure out my water. Let the water and yeast mixture sit for 5 minutes before adding it to the oatmeal mixture.
Add the yeast mixture to the oatmeal mixture along with the rest of the flour. Mix for five minutes on medium speed, scraping the sides again to be sure all the flour is combined. The dough will be very sticky! Cover the bread with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise for two hours.
Prepare Pans
Prepare two loaf pans by spraying them with cooking spray. Cover the bottom of the loaf pan with oatmeal and shake the excess along the sides of the pan, coating the entire inside with a layer of oats. Next, you will divide the dough between the two loaf pans. This is a bit of a messy task because the dough is very sticky. I just use a large spoon and my hands to transfer the dough. It's not pretty, but it works! I prefer to use my scale to be sure I've evenly distributed the dough between my two loaf pans. You wll now cover the two pans with your clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise again for about an hour and half.
Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place the loaf pans in the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Once the bread is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then remove from the pan and let it cool completely on a wire rack.
FAQ
- Do I have to use old fashioned oats? No, you could use quick-cooking or rolled oats if that is what you have. The old fashioned oats provide a heartier texture and they look nice on the outside of the bread.
- Why did my bread turn out rock solid and not very tall? The problem here may be that the yeast is old or the water was too hot and it killed the yeast. If your yeast does not get bubbly and foamy when you mix it with the hot (110°-115°F) water, then your yeast is either old or the water is too hot. Get you some new yeast or cooler water!
- How should I eat this Oatmeal Bread? Well, all bread is best freshly baked and warm. But this bread is just as good toasted in the toaster. I like to slather it with butter, peanut butter and/or jam.
Looking For More Delicious Recipes?
Try these:
- Apple Banana Bread
- Cheese and Onion Scones
- Italian Dunkers
- Brown Butter Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Cookies
- Brown Butter Pecan Spice Cookies
Recipe
Oatmeal Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup oatmeal
- ½ cup molasses
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 5 ½ cups flour, divided
- 2 ¼ teaspoons quick rise yeast
Instructions
- In the bowl of your mixer, combine the oatmeal, molasses, butter, and salt. Add 2 cups boiling water. Stir and then let cool. About 30-40 minutes.
- Once cool, add 2 cups flour. Using the bread hook attachment on your mixer, mix on low until combined. Scrape sides with spatula if needed.
- Combine hot water (110°F-115°F) and yeast in a measuring cup and let stand 5 minutes. Add to oatmeal mixture. Add remaining 3 ½ cups flour and mix on medium for 5 minutes, scraping sides with rubber spatula as needed.
- Cover bowl with clean kitchen towel and let bread rise for 2 hours.
- Spray two loaf pans with cooking spray. Sprinkle oatmeal in bottom of loaf pans and shake to coat bottoms and sides. Divide dough evenly between pans. Cover with towel and let rest for 90 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes in pan then remove from pan and let cool completely on wire rack.
Amy
We made this and brought it to a church function today. It was gone before the cookies and brownies! Everyone loved it and many asked for the recipe. We will definitely be making this again!
Ashlyn Meredith
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Amy!