Canada: Newfoundland White Bread

 I grew up eating whole wheat bread. My father was rather ahead of his time and had my brothers and I eating whole wheat bread, brewer's yeast powder drinks and wheat germ on our cereal. This was...uncommon and underappreciated by my brothers and I. However, my taste developed with whole wheat bread as the norm and, due to this, I found white bread bland and unappealing.

I still buy only whole wheat sliced bread and whole wheat pasta, but since I started baking, I have developed an appreciation and a taste for white bread. Not the sliced white bread you find in the bread aisle, but in handmade loaves and bakery loaves, There is a delicious variety of white breads out there.

This is why I wanted to try Newfoundland White Bread as my next bread. It is a traditional bread in...you guessed it, Newfoundland. This white bread was a staple in most kitchens and it was hard to find a housewife without her own white bread pan. The pan was long and deep and is not easy to find anymore. Many of the bread pans in this traditional shape that are still around have been passed down from mother to daughter. 

This bread was treasured and saw many a Newfoundlander through lean times and there are many variations of a basic Newfoundland White Bread recipe to be found. Some recipes include added on information for a food item called Toutons. Toutons are the scraps of Newfoundland White Bread dough that are fried and served with jam as a sweet treat. I opted for a recipe I discovered here: https://www.acanadianfoodie.com/2017/07/21/traditional-newfoundland-white-bread/. This recipe also gives information on Toutons, but I am only going to be making the bread.

This is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 5 cups or 635 grams All Purpose Flour
• 1 package or 7 grams traditional active dry yeast 
• 2 teaspoons or 10 grams of fine salt 
• 3 tablespoons or 45 grams sugar
• 3 tablespoons or 55 grams butter, melted (need only 45 grams, use the rest to grease proofing bowl)
• 2 cups or 290 grams milk, lukewarm

Instructions for Making by Hand

1. Dissolve 1 tablespoon of sugar into half cup lukewarm water; sprinkle yeast over surface of water. Let stand for about 15 minutes until yeast foams well, then stir to combine.

2. Combine 3 cups of flour, 2 tablespoons sugar and salt into large bowl; add prepared yeast, melted butter and warm milk. Using wooden spoon, mix for 4 to 5 minutes until mixture is smooth.

3. Slowly incorporate remaining 2 cups flour; mixing gradually until soft dough forms and leaves sides of bowl. You may need to use a little more or a little less flour: add only enough flour to form a dough that releases from sides of bowl and remains slightly tacky but able to be handled with your bare hands.

4. Turn the dough out onto work -surface to knead; knead for 8 minutes, then form into ball and place in large greased bowl.

5. Cover dough; proof in warm place for one hour until double in size.

6. FOR TOUTONS: Slice off portions of dough, shaping them by hand into rustic circles; lay on cloth until ready to fry.

7. Punch dough down; knead a few minutes by hand before resting for another 10 minutes.

8. Grease 2 medium loaf pans; divide dough into 4-6 equal portions. Form each division into a ball, placing 2 or 3 balls of dough in each loaf pan.

9. Cover with clean tea towel; proof until about 2 inches above rim of loaf pan (approx. 2 hours, depending upon room temperature).

10. Bake at 350 F for 30-40 minutes depending on size of pans, or until loaves are golden and sound hollow when tapped.

11. Turn loaves onto wire rack to cool; brush tops with melted butter to soften top crust.

The result:

The honey brown crust was gorgeous and it smelled great. The right third has a different look from the rest of loaf. I did have a 9 year old helper today that was responsible for forming one of the balls before it went into the baking tin, so I am thinking that accounts for the difference.

It was very tasty. However, it was underdone. It was cooked for 35 minutes and felt hollow, but was it was not ready. That said, my family kept asking for extra pieces, which I consider a mark of success. A success, albeit an slightly underdone one.