If you’ve ever tried Central Market’s Burgundy Walnut Bread and thought it might be nice to make it at home, you’re in luck. This recipe is very close. With flavor coming from the onions, walnuts and walnut oil, it’s a step up from typical nut or onion bread.
While I’ve been making this recipe for years, I never knew the source. Recently, Mary posted it and said it was from “Beard on Bread” where it’s credited to Jane Grigson. On her blog, One Perfect Bite, Mary makes the full batch. However, I usually halve the walnut bread and make two small loaves.
One thing I’ve learned over the years is the flavor will vary a bit depending on what brand of walnut oil you use. I love using the stronger walnut oils such as La Tourangelle, but for this batch I used what was available at the grocery store, the milder flavored Spectrum, which still worked well. If you don’t want to spend the money on walnut oil (but you really should, it is so good), no worries. You can use olive oil or butter.
Update: I now cook the onions in a little olive oil. In addition, the bread is fine with only 1 1/4 teaspoon of salt as opposed to 1 1/2 teaspoons, so I’ve changed the salt amount. Toasting the walnuts is not necessary because a lot of the nuts rise to the top and toast as the bread bakes. However, you can toast them anyway if you want. A large loaf should take closer to 40 minutes, but if you make two smaller size loaves they’ll probably be done in 35.
If you’d like a non-dairy version, you can use hazelnut milk or almond milk. The bread in the photo above was made with unsweetened hazelnut milk so it’s non-dairy.
Walnut Bread from Southern Burgundy
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour (320 grams), plus more if needed
About 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt (Diamond Crystals)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 package active dry yeast or 1 packet instant (fast rising) yeast
About 1 cup warm milk OR you can use non-dairy milk such as hazelnut milk or walnut milk
1/4 cup walnut oil or olive oil or 4 tablespoons butter, melted but cool
1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped — use more if you like (I use way more)
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a mixing bowl. If using instant yeast, add the yeast at this point.
Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup of warm milk (skip this step if using instant), and pour it into middle of the flour, together with walnut oil (or butter) and 1/4 cup of the remaining milk. Stir dough and if it seems very dry, add remaining milk. Knead well until dough is firm and blended into a smooth, springy ball, about 10 minutes. I recommend doing this with a stand mixer and dough hook.
Transfer to a bowl lined with walnut oil (or whatever oil you like), cover and let rise for 2 hours. If using instant yeast, 1 hour.
While the dough is rising, saute the onions in a small amount of olive oil. Set them aside until dough has risen.
Punch down dough, mix in walnuts and onions, shape into two rounds, and leave on a greased baking tray to rise for 45 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees F for 35- 45 minutes (I recommend shielding tops loosely with foil after the first 20) or until loaves sound hollow when tapped underneath. Internal temperature of baked bread should be 200 or slightly over. Yield: 2 small loaves
Marv, if you’re a bread baker you should give this recipe a try. Central Market’s might have been a tad darker, but this one has a similar flavor.
The photo doesn’t look as dark and rich as the loaves I used to purchase at Central Market in Dallas. Sadly, they don’t make SBWB anymore, even for special order. I believe I was told the onions were caramelized. Maybe that was the source of the darker color. It is certainly a delicious bread! I miss it so much.
I stopped by to thank you for the link to my blog and to wish you a happy New Year. I hope 2011 brings you continued health and happiness. Blessings…Mary
This sounds interesting! I’ll have to try i!
So weird, I just bought “Beard on Bread” last night! Tonight I’m making the very first recipe, as it’s the one for which he gives the most explicit directions.
I finished school in December and suddenly have all this free time and really like to bake in the winter. I’ve decided to concentrate on making bread, as the ingredients are usually cheap and I don’t have the “feel” for making yeast doughs the way I do batters and doughs.
Anyway, long story short, once I get a little practice in with simple (cheap) loaves, I’ll definitely try your version of the walnut onion bread, as it looks delicious!
Sounds good–minus the onions for me. 🙁 But I love nuts in bread.
Ahh, that bread looks divine. I just need a big slab of butter on my slice, warmed!
Happy New Year!
Sue, one of my kid tasters refused to eat it because she didn’t like the texture of cooked onion in bread. Maybe that’s why you stopped making it? Fuzz loved it as is.
Hi Mike,
Thanks! I don’t have the original version — just the version I picked up on the Internet years ago (which didn’t have a source).
My version does have more walnuts and onions and that’s how I like it. In fact, sometimes I think I could use a few more walnuts. The onions I use are Texas Sweet and probably fairly mild, so the bread doesn’t seem overwhelming with 1/3 cup. I love your idea of using sauteed onions, though.
I’ll go ahead and add a note about the original version add-ins.
Yes, I use twice the amount of walnuts and it still seems like it could use more. As for the onion, I like your idea of
I, too, have made this recipe many times. Beard on Bread has many tasty recipes. 🙂
Oops. Mike is right about the walnuts and onions being slightly different amounts.
I have Beard on Bread and that is indeed half the recipe. My notes indicate that I’ve made this and we liked it. I wonder why I forgot about it? It’s probably kid related. When my kids were young they wouldn’t touch things with nuts in them so I probably stopped making it because of that. Thanks for bringing that back to my attention!
I had already reached for my “Beard on Bread” before clicking through.
This version has twice the amount of walnut & slightly less onion than Beard’s recipe.
I haven’t made this in a while. Strong onion can overwhelm the bread’s flavor. Choose a mild onion — also, I’ve liked the results with lightly sauteed onion in this bread.