Holiday Baking: Honey Saffron Bread

I've posted about basically the same recipe before, but I've changed it a bit and am now using fresh yeast rather than dry. It still results in one really large bread, but feel free to make two smaller loaves instead. You can use loaf tins, too.

Anyway. It's yummy, and it goes very well with a sharp cheddar cheese. I highly recommend this for the holidays!

Honey Saffron Bread

500 g all-purpose flour
250 g wholewheat flour
50 g fresh yeast
400 ml water, cold
0,5 g saffron
1 tbsp warm water
1 tbsp salt
4 tbsp honey

Stir together half of the all-purpose flour, all the wholewheat flour, the yeast - crumbled - and the water. Don't knead it, just mix it. Cover and leave for one hour.

Mix the saffron with the hot water and add this to the dough, along with salt and honey.

Knead very well, and add additional all-purpose flour as needed, if the dough is too sticky. Different flours bind different amounts of water, so you might not need the full amount. I've baked this bread with anything from 500 to 750 g of flour.

Leave the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Shape the dough into one large round loaf, and place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with flour, and cover. Leave to rise for about one hour.

Slash the surface with a razor or a very sharp knife just before putting it in the oven. Bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes. Let it cool completely before slicing.

Recipe in Swedish:
Saffransbröd med honung