In the Kitchen ~ The National Loaf

My quest to make the majority of our meals from my 1940s cookbooks continues..and so far.. the results have been pretty good

So this week I was planning to make my weekly baking of bread and I thought to myself...

 "I think the time has come, and I must make the British National Loaf from WW2."  

In Wartime Britain most of the flour used to make “white” bread was imported from abroad, so there was a great shortage. A ban on commercially baked white bread went into effect on April 6, 1942 and The Ministry of Food introduced a grey and gritty bread that was to be the staple of British eating. It was even  dubbed “Hitler’s Secret Weapon,” 

So you can imagine I was quite dubious. But, I must say I am pleasantly surprised as the taste and texture is pretty good. It was particularly good spread with homemade strawberry jam and I will be making it again next week

The National Loaf

1 ½ lb wholemeal bread flour

1 ½ tbsp salt
1 ½ tbsp dried yeast
1 dsp honey or treacle (two teaspoons)
450 ml tepid water (about 2 cups)

• Mix together all the ingredients 
• Knead for about 10 minutes until you have a soft dough.
• Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a dish towel
• Leave until dough has doubled in size (around 2 hours).

• Knock back the dough, give a short knead 
• Cut into two equal pieces. 
• Place in 1.5 litre loaf tins (8 X 4 X 3 loaf pans) and allow to rise for a further 2 hours.
• Pre-heat oven to 200°C (400° F) 
• Bake loaves for 30 min. 
• To test the loaves, turn them out of their tins and give the base a tap; if it sounds hollow, they are ready. 
• Allow to cool on a wire rack.