Carrot and walnut bread: the recipe

Name: Carrot and walnut bread
Cook time: 37 min
Total time: 18 h 12 min
Yield: 2 pieces of 680 g
Ingredients: 78 g Wheat flour; 97 g Water; 16 g LiCoLi; 221 g Wheat flour; 306 g Wheat flour; 322 g Water; 13 g Salt; 153 g Carrots; 153 g Walnuts; 3.0 g Yeast

Carrots aren't a common ingredient in bread baking today, and the idea of a crumb tinged with orange can seem puzzling at first. In fact, the final colour and flavour are far more subtle and delicate than you might expect.

The carrots' main contribution is their ability to hold moisture in the dough, giving the bread an outstanding shelf life and a soft crumb for a long time.

The carrot's natural, gentle sweetness pairs perfectly with the toasted, slightly bitter notes of the walnuts, creating a harmonious and surprising aromatic profile.

This recipe is freely inspired by, or adapted from, a formula by Master Jeffrey Hamelman.

At a glance

Method: Preferment, without autolyse
Preferment: Liquid sourdough starter — 13% of the flour
Mixing: Stand mixer

Number of pieces: 2
Weight per piece: 680 g
Preferment weight: 190 g
Dough weight: 1171 g
Total dough weight: 1360 g

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Ingredients

Quantities for 2 pieces of 680 g, kitchen at 21 °C

Preferment

Wheat flour (0, W320)78 g
Water97 g
LiCoLi16 g

Dough

Wheat flour (0, W320)221 g
Wheat flour (Whole wheat, W290)306 g
Water322 g
Salt13 g
Carrots153 g
Walnuts153 g
Yeast3.0 g

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Method

Prepare the carrots (see notes)
LiCoLi: make it and let it ferment (at room temperature) (14 hours)
- Weigh the ingredients
- Use water at 30 °C
- Mix the flour, water and starter until you get a smooth batter
- Transfer to a container, covered but not airtight
Weigh the ingredients and knead (30 min)
- Use water at 22 °C
Mix all the ingredients except the carrots and walnuts. Once the dough has come together, fold in the squeezed carrots and the walnuts.
End of mixing, start of bulk rise (at room temperature) (2 hours)
Reinforcement fold 1 of 1
Divide/shape: weigh and form the pieces (5 min)
Divide the dough into 1.5-pound (.68-kg) pieces (or larger, as desired); shape round or oval, or use a loaf pan.
Start of proofing (at room temperature) (1 hour)
About 1 hour at 24 °C.
Ready to cook
Score the loaves as desired before baking.

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Baking

- conventional oven, with steam
- Overall temperature: 240 °C
- Time: 15 minutes
- Normal steam
- conventional oven, without steam
- Overall temperature: 220 °C
- Time: 22 minutes
- Lower the temperature and finish the bake.

The calculator adapts baking times to the weight of your pieces. Open the calculator

Preparation notes

Carrots: Grate them and squeeze out the excess water well before adding them to the dough.
Bassinage: Hold back part of the water from the recipe and pour it in gradually toward the end of mixing, once the gluten has developed.

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