With the new year well under way, it seemed a natural thing to go through old blog posts and figure out how I could improve them or what could be changed. I came across the original post for this recipe and decided that it needed a new home and a bit of a facelift. Speaking of new homes, we are loving our new area despite the cold rain that has been drizzling from the skies this last week. Somehow, I imagined January to bring us snow, and instead, the temperatures have been mild and the rainy weather makes me a little sleepy. The forecast says snow next week, but I'm not holding my breath. 

As with every new year, I got the urge to purge (that is kind of catchy, though I imagine I am not the first one to say it...). If you follow along on Instagram, you may have caught wind that I'm streamlining my life; getting rid of unnecessary clutter that has accumulated over the past few months, and creating a better daily routine. I'm also striving toward a more homemade vegan pantry. Every year is more successful than years past, and I'm reminded that intentionality in every area of life is extremely important. I almost feel that I have a hang of it.

But enough about that, and enough rambling. Let's talk bread! 

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You already know why I choose to make bread rather than buy it. I've recently added a few new recipes to my repertoire, but I'm re-sharing this tried and true bread that I go back to here and there when I'm feeling too lazy to make our favourite bread. Yes, I get lazy. It only requires one bowl, 5 minutes of my time, and does the rest of the work itself. Can't complain about that! You know I looooove adding all sorts of fun things to my bread, so of course it has all kinds of seeds in it. I'm thinking I should try nuts sometime...Speaking of nuts, this is also delicious with a tomato roasted almond spread. Oh man, I'm getting hungry!

Whole Wheat Artisan Bread with Seeds

What you need:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour

• 2 cups all-purpose flour*

• 1 tsp active dry yeast

• 2 tsp sea salt

• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds**

• 1/4 cup flax seeds**

• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds**

• 2 1/2 cups warm water

*note: you can substitute all-purpose flour for whole wheat. It works perfectly fine!

**note: I've added three different types of seeds here, but you could really add anything at all! Ground flax is a favourite of mine.

What to do:

1) Mix all the dry ingredients into a large bowl.

2) Add water slowly and mix well. The dough will be quite shaggy (rough-looking dough) when all together - you may not need all the water depending on what kind of flour you use.

3) Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and let it sit on the counter for 12-18 hours.

4) Preheat your oven to 450 F (not for 12 hours, please!). Put a cast iron pot** into the oven (with lid ON) to heat as the temperature rises. Once heated, remove the pot, as well as the lid.***

5) Flour a workspace and your hands and gently remove the dough from the bowl. Roughly shape the dough into a ball and place it inside of the pot. Place the lid on the pot and put it inside the oven.

5) Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on and another 15-20 minutes with the lid removed - until a perfect golden brown.

6) Carefully remove from oven and place on rack to cool completely.

**note: you do not have to use a cast iron pot (dutch oven). ANY oven-safe covered vessel will do, I’ve even read people use a crock pot insert with foil over the top instead of the lid!

***note: if the pot is not hot enough, your dough will stick to the bottom! To avoid this, do not skip this step!

Freezer Friendly: Once cooled, wrap well and freeze right away for a few weeks. To thaw, place on counter overnight.

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What intentional choices are you making this new year? Let me know in the comments below!