Hovis Bread

It's probably quite obvious by now that I am always searching for new whole wheat sandwich bread recipes to try. This recipe is quite different from others I have tried before, and welcome to a change, I decided to try it. Also, the fact that it is a "no-knead" bread appeals to me, it generally makes the process faster and less labor intensive. That isn't to say I mind kneading bread, it can be quite therapeutic at times, but it does get a bit tedious at times. This recipe still contains yeast though, and is a slow rise bread. The first rising takes ninety minutes, and the second forty minutes. I found this recipe in Company's Coming "Breads". This is my go-to bread book. In fact, I have pretty much worked my way through the majority of recipes for whole wheat breads that do not require the use of a bread machine. I have also made some white breads in here (some using whole wheat flour), and some sweet breads, such as Panettone, Ollie Bollen, and Challah. I have made pita bread, English muffins, and Bannock from this book too. I like to try new recipes a lot, but I don't know what I will do when I complete all the recipes I would like to try in this book. I may be compelled to make some of the breads again.
This no-knead hovis bread is a dark, solid loaf. The book states it is reminiscent of a European bread. I am not sure about that, as the only European bread I have ever tried was white, but this certainly is a hearty and nutritious bread. It contains all whole wheat flour, natural bran, and wheat germ or ground flax seed. It also contains a small amount of cocoa, a touch of ground ginger, and half a teaspoon of gravy browner. I figured since they amount of gravy browner was so small, it wouldn't matter much if I left it out, since I didn't have any on hand. Not sure what the purpose of this is, but it likely adds more flavor, just like the ginger. And the cocoa, there is one quarter cup, but it certainly seemed quite prevalent when I was mixing up the dough. They say a little bit of dark chocolate is good for you, so why not? I like chocolate, even in bread I suppose. The more chocolate, the better. This bread also contains a large proportion of molasses, I suppose to add some sweetness to counter the bitter cocoa, but it is by no means a sweetbread. This bread is heavy, dense, and nutritious. It is good for breakfast or sandwiches, but slice it quite thinly! It does not rise a lot, but that is just the type of bread it is. It may also have something to do with the fact the yeast is added with the dry ingredients and not proofed first, which often works fine, but proofing it initially is generally more successful.