FIG & TOASTED HAZELNUT WHOLEMEAL BREAD

A good-looking, great-tasting, not too heavy loaf that’s good with butter, served with cheese and cold meats, or try it toasted with hummus or pate, plus salad for lunch.

Makes 2 medium loaves

Ingredients:

100 grams blanched hazelnuts

350 grams stoneground wholemeal

350 grams white bread flour

2 1/4 tsp instant yeast

10 grams sea salt, crushed

500 ml lukewarm water

1-2 tsp olive oil, for kneading

150 grams soft-dried figs

Directions:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Tip the nuts into a small baking dish and toast in the oven for 6-8 minutes until a light golden brown (nuts burn easily). Leave to cool, then chop roughly.

Meanwhile, start the dough: Put both flours, the yeast and salt into a large bowl (or the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook). Mix well, gradually work in enough lukewarm water to make a soft but not sticky dough (may need a bit more or less water). Leave the dough in the bowl, uncovered, for 5 minutes so the flours can become fully hydrated.

Rub a teaspoon of oil onto your hands, then punch down the dough to deflate it. Turn it out onto a lightly oiled worktop. Knead the dough for 10 minutes until smooth and stretchy (or 5 minutes in the mixer on the slowest speed).

With the kitchen scissors, snip the woody stalks from the figs, then cut large figs into 8 chunks, smaller ones into 6 chunks. Scatter the figs, and toasted nuts over the dough and knead for a couple of minutes until evenly distributed.

Divide the dough in half. Shape each piece into an oval about 22 x 12 cm — these loaves don’t have to be perfectly neat, they’ll look better if they are not. Set each on a lined baking sheet. Slip the sheets into large plastic bags, slightly inflate so the plastic won’t stick to the dough as it rises and secure the ends. Leave the loaves to rise at normal room temperature for 50-60 minutes until almost doubled in size. Towards the end of the rising time, heat your oven to 425 degrees F.

Uncover the loaves and bake in the heated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and bake for a further 20 minutes until the bread sounds hollow when the underside is tapped. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.