My Rye Bread Resistance

Christmas is over. I scrambled to get ready for family and friends, then ate, drank and thoroughly enjoyed their company until Christmas morning. December 24 is the more important day on the Polish calendar so December 25 saw me saying goodbye to everyone and settling down for a quiet day.

I baked up a storm for the holiday, including three types of rye bread. It was my way of spitting in pemphigus’s eye and going about my business as if it had never come back. Both my in-laws and brother-in-law are big rye bread fans so I wanted to give them something they’d enjoy for a while. First up was a recipe I found in a fabulous Polish cookbook: “The New Polish Cuisine,” by (recently deceased) Chef Michael J. Baruch. Chef Mike grew up in Chicago, that most Polish of American cities, and worked in bakeries and restaurants all his professional life. I’ve had this book for years and it’s never failed me. Each recipe was carefully researched and developed, adding a touch of class to a cuisine that sailed over with our peasant ancestors. I tested a loaf called Pulaski Sandwich Rye with Caraway and Dill. It came together easily – no easy thing with rye breads – and tasted exactly like the ryes we bought at Polish bakeries in Buffalo, where I grew up. I prepared the dough, tossed it into two loaf pans, and watched it rise in the oven. It was light and flavorful, with a crisp but not crunchy crust. My husband (another rye bread fan) and I gobbled it down and I bookmarked the recipe for Christmas. I changed the name to Polish Bakery Rye and handed it out on the 24th.

Next on the agenda was a sourdough recipe mis-labeled “The Easiest Rye Bread Ever.” Sorry, but there’s no such thing as “easy” rye bread. Rye flour is notoriously difficult to work with, even this no-knead loaf. It’s sticky and doesn’t like to rise unless you pump it full of gluten from other sources. It threatens to flatten out to a disk if it’s shaped free-form. You have to beat it into submission and know exactly when to stop adding flour to the mix. Too little flour and you get rye pita bread. Too much flour and the bread is dry and crumbly.

“The Easiest Rye Bread Ever” produces a loose, shaggy mass that’s between a batter and a dough. On some level it is “easy” (well, easier). A dough hook is not necessary; neither is hand-kneading if you decide to go that route. I mixed it in my Kitchen Aid using the flat beater, then let it rise. After that it went into the refrigerator to cool its heels overnight. That was it. There was no fighting with rye flour, just mix and let rise. That rise took forever, but it was a very leisurely time spent. It did the work, not me. I plopped the wet mess into two, greased medium pyrex bowls. The recipe calls for a bread cloche to aid in forming and rising the bread but I’m too cheap for that. I’m not paying $120.00 for two fancy bread cookers. The end result is knobby and weirdly shaped but delicious. The sourdough flavor comes on strong and is aided by a generous scattering of caraway seeds. I’d recommend trying this recipe if you’ve got the time on your hands.

Finally, I pulled out my copy of Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Breads. He’s got a recipe for onion rye that’s to die for. The onions sweeten the bread and moisten the loaf. Caraway seeds are the icing on the cake. There’s no sourdough flavor here, just luscious and aromatic onion that softens during baking. I only regret that the recipe made one loaf rather than two. I cut it in half and gave one section to my in-laws and the other to my brother-in-law. They’ll be back for more.

I’m starting rituximab infusions in mid-January. With any luck, the drug will push the pemphigus back into remission as it did before. Until then, I’m cooking and baking. I’ll be very, very immunocompromised after the infusions, so I’ll stay home and cook and bake some more. Take that, pemphigus!

Want to try these rye bread recipes? Here you go:

Easiest Rye Bread Ever: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/the-easiest-rye-bread-ever-recipe

Polish Bakery Rye (Pulaski Sandwich Rye with Caraway and Dill): From The New Polish Cuisine. Chef Mike is no longer with us, but his book lives on. Read more about this book at: https://www.polana.com/products/book-the-new-polish-cuisine-by-chef-michael-j-baruch. Book also available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Polish-Cuisine-Michael-Baruch/dp/0971531307

Onion Rye: From Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Breads. May be out of print but still available at your local library. Available to purchase from a number of sources, the least expensive of which is Thriftbooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/bernard-claytons-new-complete-book-of-breads_bernard-clayton-jr/275059/all-editions/