Embrace your Irish side with this heart-healthy Irish oatmeal bread. Steel-cut oats and whole wheat fiber provide you with 3 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein per slice!
St. Patrick's Day is around the corner, and being Irish myself, I'm quite happy to see everyone embracing their Irish side. Shepherd's pie, colcannon, champ, soda bread, and Irish coffee recipes permeate my blog reader feed.
They probably permeate yours, too, which is why I decided to go a slightly different direction for Saint Patrick's Day. I made oatmeal bread with Irish steel cut oats.
Steel cut oats don't differ all that much from traditional rolled oats. They have 20 fewer calories per quarter cup of uncooked oats, hardly any sugar, and they're slightly slower on the glycemic index (meaning they have less of an effect on your blood sugar level than traditional rolled oats). Combined with the whole wheat flour in the recipe, just one slice of this bread provides a heart-healthy 3 grams of fiber.
They have a nutty flavor, and are slightly chewier than rolled oats. Both of these features make for delicious, tender bread. Have a toasted slice with fruit preserves for breakfast, or use the bread to make a sandwich for lunch. It's very versatile, and stands up very well to being frozen.
Irish Oatmeal Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoon boiling water
- 1 cup steel-cut oats, not quick-cooking
- ½ tablespoon salt
- 1 ½ tablespoons butter
- 1 ½ tablespoons light brown sugar
- Pinch of granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon package instant yeast, 2 ¼-oz pkg
- ¼ cup warm water, 100° to 110°
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- Combine the first 5 ingredients (boiling water through light brown sugar) in the bowl of a stand mixer, and let stand 25 minutes.
- Dissolve the granulated sugar and yeast in warm water; let stand 5 minutes or until foamy. Add to the oat mixture. Combine 1 ¼ cups of the all-purpose flour and all of the whole wheat flour. Gradually add the flours to the oat mixture. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes), adding enough of the remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands if necessary (dough will still feel moist).
- Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover with plastic wrap, then a clean kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Punch the dough down; cover with plastic wrap and let rest 5 minutes. Roll the dough into a 14 x 8-inch rectangle on a floured surface. Roll up the rectangle tightly, starting with a short edge, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets; pinch the seam to seal. Place the loaf, seam side down, in a 9-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- Uncover dough and bake at 350º for 45 minutes or until loaf is browned on bottom and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pan, and cool on a wire rack.
Recipe barely adapted from Cooking Light
Heather | girlichef says
This looks like an amazing loaf of bread - that I just so happen to have everything to make! Can't wait to try it.
Yum Girl says
Thank you so much for submitting and I hope you will continue to submit - I am adding a category to your post called Green Drinks and Recipes - that category is being featured on the sidebar and will be later this week on FB including your ST. Patrick's Day bread recipe.
P.S. - my favorite way to have this is to toast with butter..........I LOVE oatmeal bread!
Coleen says
Thanks so much for adding my recipe to the featured sidebar!
Diana says
Not sure what happened, but never got to use anywhere near the amount of flour. Now dough feels too dry and thick.
Coleen says
I'm sorry to hear that. Did you make any substitutions? Do you measure your ingredients by weight or volume?
Diana says
Thanks, I measured by volume, cooking it now, just in case. I had to leave a lot of flour out.
JEANNINE says
BONJOUR SOUHAIERAI AVOIR TA RECETTE EN FRANCAIS MERCI.
Anonymous says
Made it today and it was great. Nice and moist, and did not take a long time (as yeast breads go).
Anonymous says
This is my new favorite! Perfect loaf on the first try. Great for a sandwich and perfect toast in the morning.
Coleen says
Hi David,
So sorry about that confusion -- there was an issue when I switched recipe card plugins. It is 1 tsp of yeast from a 2.25-oz packet. I'll fix the formatting -- thanks for bringing it to my attention!
- Coleen
Ed Zeiser says
The bread was delicious. I substituted honey for brown sugar. I had to add additional white flour. I also added two tablespoons each of gluten and dough enhancer.Thank you for publishing the recipe. It is a keeper.
David says
Thanks for the recipe. I have a novice baker's question about the amount of yeast.
The recipe states 1 tsp package instant yeast 2 1/4.
Do I add 1 tsp or 2 1/4?
Thanks again. I'm looking forward to trying this.
Anonymous says
I made this recipe with 1 full packet of instant yeast and totaled up all the water. It came out excellent and will bake again.
Kathy says
Could I substitute all-purpose unbleached flour for the whole wheat? My family won't touch whole wheat bread.
Coleen says
I don't recommend it. It's not an equal substitution: you'd need 1 cup + 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour per cup of whole wheat flour, and this is already an incredibly dense bread.
Vanessa says
Hi, what would happen if I used rolled oats plus all whole wheat flour? Would like to try but because I don’t usually have steel cut oats on hand, I would have a lot left over.
April says
I’d like to know the same thing! I couldn’t find any steel cut oats but have a ton of rolled oats on hand
Coleen the Redhead Baker says
Sorry, no, you can't substitute rolled oats. They absorb liquid much more readily than steel cut oats, so the recipe wouldn't work.
Paula says
Can you modify the recipe for a bread machine?
Coleen says
I have never used a bread machine, so I wouldn't know how to modify it.
Suzanne McCahill Perrine says
Thank you! If I have quick cook steel cut oats, how would you suggest varying the recipe?
Coleen says
You may not need to, although quick-cooking oats tend to absorb water faster, you may need to add extra if your dough is very dry. But know that the texture of the bread will be different because of the smaller size of the quick cooking oats.
Ginna says
I have been baking bread for a while now with success, but this recipe I am having trouble with. The first time, I used 1 teaspoon of yeast and it did not rise at all, second time, I used a full package of yeast. It has been rising 45 min. And has made no progress. Any suggestions on what I am doing wrong?
Coleen says
What type of yeast are you using? What is the "best by" date on the package?
Anonymous says
Thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly. I don’t remember the name of the yeast, it is instant and I buy it by the pound. It comes in a foil bag so I transfer it to jars, keeping one in the fridge and one in the freezer. The best by date on the bag was February 2021. The flours and oatmeal was purchased last week. I used my KitchedAid with the dough hook to knead, possibly to strong? I made flat bread with the first batch and while it was gummy, the taste was great. The next batch is still sitting in the bowl and has not risen at all in 6 hours. It is in a warm place.
Becky says
Could I let the dough rise in the refrigerator over night?
Coleen says
Absolutely! Up to 48 hours.
Kathy rose says
Can I use cooked steel cut oatmeal? I guess the real question is how much cooked oatmeal? I use 1cup oats to 3 cups water. Thx. Recipe looks great. Kathy.
Coleen says
Hi Kathy,
No, you can't use cooked oatmeal, because it would throw off the moisture ratio of the recipe.
Lee Rosenthal says
how would this be with currants or golden raisins added?
Coleen says
Sounds delicious! If you try it out, let me know!
Jim says
I, too, was a little confused by the amount of yeast called for. Ended up using one 1/4 oz packet of yeast and it seemed to rise ok. Using my dough hook and adding the correct amount of flour, the bread dough was very dry. Ended up adding wee amounts of water, but the dough was pretty stiff. Removed from mixer bowl and hand kneaded for a bit. 1 1/2 hours rising and now in second rise in bread pan. Hoping for the best 🙂
Carmyn says
This is amazing. I used olive oil and a little honey and spelt and whole wheat combined. Covered with a cotton towel. Very good bread! Grateful thatyou shared recipe!
Debby says
What is the Nutritional Value of 1 slice 🤗 as I’m having to watch my Sugar and Carbs these days But lots of whole grains with & Fiber is a plus 🤗
Coleen the Redhead Baker says
@Debby, you'd need to consult a registered dietician. I'm not one, and can't give you an accurate answer. The dietary information provided with the recipe is just an estimate.
Gary says
I made this bread with one difference. I used a tbsp of honey instead of the sugar. I had no issue with the dough. It came together very well. I did bake it in a "poor man's" dutch oven
at 400˚F for 30 minutes covered and an additional 7 minutes uncovered. It was great! Even better toasted!
Lee says
Could I use white whole wheat for most of the AP flour, with some added water and vital wheat gluten? Thanks
Coleen says
I don't see why you couldn't. Having not tried it myself, I can't guarantee it'll turn out.
LindaT says
OMG!! this bread is delicious and my new favorite! Read and follow the directions and you will have a loaf of bread that looks as perfect as the one in the pictures. I had steel cut oats to use up, searched for recipes, and found this one. Now I'll have to buy more steel cut oats because I will absolutely make this bread again. LOL! Thank you so much for sharing.
Susan Ruesch says
Perfectly delicious