Instead of throwing away that stale box of cereal, use it as the base for a delightful loaf of fresh, homemade bread.
Who doesn't have a stale box of cereal sitting in the pantry every once in awhile? Next time, don' t throw that box away! Being stale does not mean it is no longer nutritious, it just doesn’t taste as good in it’s current form. Breads and cereals are both grains, so using cereal to create bread produces loaves as delicious and unique as the original cereal.
Any type of breakfast cereal can be used in the following recipe. Each batch can be unique and also a fun way to experiment with bread flavors. The cereal used can be one type or a mix of different ones; try combining granola and flake style cereals for a wholesome and healthy bread. Traditional kid’s cereals also work, but reduce the molasses to ¼ cup if it is a sugared or frosted cereal.
Ingredients
- 2 cups warm milk (about 115°F or 45°C)
- 2 cups stale cereal
- 2 packages active dry yeast
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- ½ cup warm water (about 115°F or 45°C)
- ½ cup quick-cooking or rolled oats
- 1/3 cup molasses
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 5 ½ to 6 ½ cups flour
Directions
- Warm the milk in a pan. Add the cereal and let it soak for 5 minutes.
- In a large, non-metal bowl, sprinkle the yeast and sugar over warm water. Stir until dissolved.
- Add cereal mixture, oats, molasses, oil, salt and 2 cups flour. Use a mixer or wooden spoon and mix until well blended (about 2 minutes).
- Add 1 cup of flour and mix for another 2 minutes.
- Stir in more flour until the dough is somewhat soft.
- Remove dough from bowl and knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
- Form the dough into a ball and place it in a large, lightly greased bowl. Turn the dough over once.
- Cover with a towel and let it rise in a warm place for about 1 ½ hours, or until about double in size.
- Punch down the dough then divide it in half. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Shape each half into loafs. Place each loaf in a greased loaf pan.
- Cover the pans and let rise about 1 hour, or until about double in size.
- Bake in a 375° F (190° C) oven for 40 to 45 minutes. The loaves are done when dark brown and sound hollow when tapped.
- Immediately remove from pans and place on racks to cool.
- Slice and serve with butter, peanut butter, jam or honey or enjoy it plain.
Makes 2 loaves.
