Everyone deals with stress in different ways. Some work out. Some go shopping. Some smoke. Some eat.
Me, when I’m stressed out, I look at real estate listings of properties on the coast of Maine that I’d never be able to afford, and imagine a cool spring morning on the screened-in porch, scooping big knife-fuls of soft, creamy butter and slathering them into warm, straight-from-the- oven hunks of anadama bread, that ubiquitous sweet-rustic loaf that crops up on tables across the upper New England coast, from Gloucester to Eastport.
Debate rages over how it got its name (one popular tale cites a disgruntled husband decrying another boring dinner from his wife, Anna, and deciding to “damn her” and make his own bread), but in such matters, it’s important to remember that speculating is more fun than knowing the truth.
And besides, whatever the derivation, there’s no denying that this molasses-and-cornmeal loaf is totally delicious and addictive.
Here’s an easy recipe for spring-morning anadama bread, which is just as good around a Denver kitchen table as it is on that screened-in porch Down East.
For a softer anadama bread, zap the cornmeal and molasses mixture in the microwave for 3 minutes, stir, zap another minute, then allow to cool before adding to the yeast mixture.
Anadama Bread
From “The Windjammer Cookbook,” by Jean Kerr & Spencer Smith. Linda Lee, a co-captain of the windjammer Heritage, is credited with the recipe. Tested at high altitude. Makes 1 loaf.
Ingredients
1 package active dry yeast (about 1 tablespoon)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/3 cups warm water
1/3 cup molasses
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups white flour, more if needed
Directions
Dissolve the yeast and sugar in 1/3cup of the warm water. Set aside until foamy.
In a small bowl mix together the remaining water with the molasses, vegetable oil, salt and cornmeal. Add this mixture to the yeast mixture.
Add the flours and mix to form a dough. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes until a smooth, elastic dough is formed, adding more flour as needed if the dough is too soft or sticky. Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size.
Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes, then place back in the bowl, cover, and let rise again until doubled in size (about 90 minutes).
Grease a 9-by-5-by-2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Knead the dough again for 2-3 minutes, then shape into a loaf and place in the prepared pan. Cover and let rise until doubled in size (about 30 minutes).
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake loaf 30 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. To test, remove loaf from the pan to see that it is golden brown on the bottom. If it is still light, cook until golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes in the pan, then unmold and cool on a wire rack.
