My favorite thing about the characters in THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND by Jules Verne is how innovative they are. They make a forge, an irrigation system, and even a telegraph system! One of my favorite moments is when they create their own oven using clay bricks. They spend almost a year yearning for bread before they’re able to grow enough wheat for flour. As you can imagine, the first loaf of bread enjoyed in the story is quite a celebratory moment, so I wanted to include some bread in my MYSTERIOUS ISLAND menu.
I decided to go with a whole wheat bread, since that’s the type of flour the castaways would have used (in fact, they might have even used something closer to graham flour, if you want to go that route). I made some slight variations to a recipe by Kneading Adventure, including swapping out the honey for maple syrup, an ingredient the castaways were able to harvest from maple trees on the island.
This no-knead maple whole wheat dutch oven bread is probably the most artisan-looking bread I’ve ever made, and it was super easy. It’s wholesome and hearty, perfect toasted and slathered in butter. The inside is soft with a close crumb, making it a good sandwich bread as well. I love the contrast of the soft interior with the crunchy crust, and the long rise time gave it a mild funky flavor similar to sourdough.
Also, it smells PHENOMENAL while it’s baking. I had mine in the oven at night, and my 8-year-old (who was waiting for me to tuck him in), came downstairs just to tell me how good it smelled. We were both so excited to eat it in the morning, and it didn’t disappoint. This might be one of my new favorite breads!