AuthorSteve Nubie
Semolina bread is made with semolina flour added to all-purpose flour. Semolina is a flour made from a very hard wheat grain called durum. The flour is traditionally used in Italy to make pasta, but it was in Sardinia that semolina bread emerged. You might have a little trouble finding Semolina flour in the traditional baking section of your local grocery store, but many stores have specialty sections where you can often find more diverse and obscure flours. Don’t buy the big bag for this recipe because it only calls for one cup. The good news is that it’s an easy bread to make from start to finish in your bread machine.
The recipe for this bread calls for one cup of semolina flour to 3 cups of all-purpose flour. However, you can increase the proportion to 2 cups of semolina added to 2 cups of all-purpose flour if you want a bread with a more golden color and firmer texture.
Semolina bread is a great sandwich bread and is also good when dipped into olive oil or any sauces that typically accompany an Italian dish. A favorite Sardinian combination is a spread of soft cheese and olives, or the classic Sardinian accompaniment -sardines. The bread will keep for days if wrapped and longer if refrigerated or frozen. This recipe makes a 2-pound loaf. If you want a 1-pound loaf just divide the proportions of the ingredients in half.
Add all of the ingredients to the bread pan of the bread machine in the order indicated in the ingredients section and select the basic white bread setting for a 2-pound loaf and medium crust.
Press start and as usual, open the lid during the kneading process to double-check your dough consistency. If it appears to dry after 5-minutes of kneading, try scraping down any flour from the side of the bread pan with a plastic spatula to incorporate the flour better. If it’s still too dry, add a tablespoon of water at a time until you see the right consistency. If the dough appears to wet or loose, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until you get the desired result. You want a whole, cohesive dough ball with no flour clinging to the sides of the pan.
When the bread is done remove the loaf from the pan and let rest on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Slice and serve or wrap and store.
Ingredients
Directions
Add all of the ingredients to the bread pan of the bread machine in the order indicated in the ingredients section and select the basic white bread setting for a 2-pound loaf and medium crust.
Press start and as usual, open the lid during the kneading process to double-check your dough consistency. If it appears to dry after 5-minutes of kneading, try scraping down any flour from the side of the bread pan with a plastic spatula to incorporate the flour better. If it’s still too dry, add a tablespoon of water at a time until you see the right consistency. If the dough appears to wet or loose, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until you get the desired result. You want a whole, cohesive dough ball with no flour clinging to the sides of the pan.
When the bread is done remove the loaf from the pan and let rest on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Slice and serve or wrap and store.
I’m not sure what you mean by a true semolina texture but the results we got from kitchen testing this recipe were good. You could always try baking it in the oven. Use the dough cycle on the machine and let rise in a buttered bread pan for 1 hour and bake at 325 for 30 to 35 minutes and you might get a better overall texture.
I have tried this recipe and many others and true semolina texture is not obtainable in a bread machine.