Fruit n’ nut bran loaf

Trust me, it’s far better than it sounds

If I was to write down my personality on paper and get people to guess my age, they’d probably say anywhere from 75-95. I knit every evening, nap each afternoon and will munch down at least 2 bowls of fruit n nut bran flakes before the sun has even risen.

Not sure what it is but I genuinely love the taste of bran cereal, flaked, sticked, shredded, you name it, coco pops and cheerios got nothing on all bran.

And yes, some people say it tastes like cardboard but I think the tough texture adds an extra level of reward to the flavour, like de-shelling pistachios, you have to work for each bite.

Anyway, this is not a recipe for cereal, this is a recipe for cereal bread! Trust me, it’s not as strange as it sounds.

It’s nutty and soft with flakes of malty fibre…again trust me, it really is delicious.

Ingredients

500g bread flour

10g salt

4g dried yeast (1tsp)

1tbsp sourdough starter (optional)

340ml water

80g bran cereal - I’m using fruit n’ nut!

Method

1) Pour all your ingredients into a large mixing bowl, mix into a shaggy dough. Pop a cloth over the top and leave for anywhere between 3-12hrs.

2) Scoop the dough out onto a floured surface, pinch all the sides into the centre and roll into a ball. Line your mixing bowl with a floured tee towel or flour a banneton, and place in the dough seam side up, pop the cover back over the top. Proof for 1hr then pop in the fridge for anywhere between 2-24hrs (this develops flavour).

3) Pop a Dutch oven (casserole dish) or any strong deep pan with a lid into your oven, Preheat your oven to 250c/230fan.

4) Flip your dough (seam side down) onto a piece of baking paper, cut the top with either a pair of scissors or razor blade. Lower down into your dish or pan, sprinkle some water over the top and pop the lid on.

Bake for 30 mins, then remove the lid and bake for a further 15 mins until golden.

Enjoy!