Oatmeal Bread with Cooked Oatmeal

Source: James Beard – Beard on Bread

There are two or three favorite recipes for oatmeal bread in this
country.

I first encountered this one in Nevada, in a restaurant that
was made famous by Lucius Beebe, and it was so good that I extracted the
recipe from the owner and have been using it for many years. It is an
interesting, loosely textured bread with an unusual light-brown color and a
rich, full flavour. It is delicious with sweet butter, and it keeps well.

2 small loaves
1 cup coarse rolled oats
1 cup boiling Water
2 packages active dry yeast
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
1 cup warm milk
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
4 to 5 cups all-purpose flour approximately

Cook the oats in the boiling water until thickened, about 3
minutes.
Pour into a large mixing bowl and allow to cool to lukewarm, Mean-
while stir the yeast and teaspoon of sugar into the warm water
until dissolved, and allow to proof. Add the warm milk, salt, brown sugar,
and yeast mixture to the oats and stir well, then Stir in 4 cups of
flour, 1 cup at a time. Turn out on a floured board, Knead into a
smooth, pliable, elastic dough, if necessary using as much as 1/2
to 1 cup, or more, of additional flour to get it to the right
feel. (This will take about 10 minutes, ) Shape the dough into a
ball, put into a well-buttered bowl, and turn to coat on all
sides. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until
doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Punch the dough down. Knead for 2 or 3 minutes and shape into two
loaves. Thoroughly butter two 8 x 4 x 2-inch tins.

Place the dough
in the tins, cover, and let rise in a warm place until about even
with the top of the tins, or almost doubled in bulk.

Bake in a 375°F oven for about 50 minutes.