105 Brewing Marbled Rye Bread

April 25, 2025

Drawing by Vince Long, © 2025

105 Brewing opened early in 2025, the first brewery in Billings Heights.  I visited a few times and had some excellent teas in a very modern yet cozy environment.  There are plenty of table options and even some couches and easy chairs near a fireplace.  

However, they did not start serving beer until April 21 but I believe it was worth the wait.  While I haven’t worked my way through their entire menu, the Sassy Bandit IPA is a real winner.  With plenty of hops, a nice malty background, and a great mouthfeel, it is evident that the brewer did not economize on the ingredients.  That said, taking an IPA into a bread is not something I’ve tried to do yet due to the bitterness, an asset in a beer but not what one expects in a bread.  Instead, I selected the Rusty ‘73 Amber because I was looking for a beer that would enhance a recipe for marbled rye.  The amber is a bit darker than I might have expected but it brings along a rich and toasty maltiness that begs to meet my yeast and flours.

Marbled rye is a very popular bread style and harkens back to the “Old World” and the delicatessen, finding itself paired with corned beef or pastrami.  Turned into a grilled cheese sandwich with a bit of Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and a premium mustard is heavenly.  A pint of the Rusty ‘73 Amber alongside makes it complete.

Ingredients

There are two doughs required.

The Light Dough

1-1/4 cup (10 ounces) (60 grams)  Rusty ‘73 Amber from 105 Brewing at room temperature 

1 cup (50 ounces) (140 grams) bread flour

1-1/3 cup (6.2 ounces) (177 grams) rye flour

2 teaspoons (.2 ounce) (6 grams) instant yeast

1 teaspoon (.3 ounce) (7 grams) regular salt

2 tablespoons (.8 ounce) (23 grams) sugar

1-1/2 teaspoon (.2 ounce) (4 grams) caraway seeds

4 teaspoons (,4 ounce) (13 grams) vegetable oil

1 cup (50 ounces) (140 grams) bread flour to be added last

The Dark Dough

1-1/4 cup (10 ounces) (60 grams)  Rusty ‘73 Amber from 105 Brewing at room temperature 

1 cup (50 ounces) (140 grams) bread flour

1-1/3 cup (6.2 ounces) (177 grams) rye flour

2 teaspoons (.2 ounce) (6 grams) instant yeast

1 teaspoon (.3 ounce) (7 grams) regular salt

2 tablespoons (.8 ounce) (23 grams) sugar

1-1/2 teaspoon (.2 ounce) (4 grams) caraway seeds

4 teaspoons (,4 ounce) (13 grams) vegetable oil

2 tablespoons (.5 ounce) (15 grams) cocoa powder

2 tablespoons (1 ounce) (28 grams) molasses

1 cup (50 ounces) (140 grams) bread flour to be added last

Yield: 2 loaves

Procedure

For the Light Dough, add all the ingredients to your mixing bowl except for that last cup of flour.  Mix them, either by hand or with a mixer, until they are all combined.  Start adding the additional flour.  When the dough becomes stiff enough, either turn it out onto a floured board for kneading or switch to the dough hook of the mixer.  Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.  Place it into a bowl, spray the top with some oil and cover with plastic wrap to let it rise.

For the Dark Dough, repeat the process used for the Light Dough.  

Let the doughs rise until doubled, which, depending on temperature, could take 1-2 hours.

After they have risen, deflate them, divide them, roll the out, layer, and roll them up.  See the illustrations below.

Let rise again.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes at 375°F in a conventional oven or 350°F in a convection oven.  The internal temperature should measure 190°F.  Cool on a wire rack.

Illustrations

The two doughs shown, above, after rising.

Divide each dough into two.

Further divide those in twos.

Roll each ball into a rough rectangle as shown above, doing two of each color at a time.

Stack the rolled pieces as shown above.  If you want a light colored crust, put the light dough on the bottom.

Start rolling the stack up from the shorter side, tucking the dough in as you go.

Pinch the ends in and roll the dough a bit to tighten it up.  This one will be baked in a traditional loaf pan.

It’s in the pan with a light coat of spray oil.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise.

Repeat the rolling and layering with the second loaf.  With this one I want a darker crust so the darker dough was on the bottom of the stack.  I also want to bake its as a longer loaf, somewhere between a baguette and a batard so I rolled it back and forth, stretching it towards the ends.  I placed it on a parchment-covered baking sheet and gave it a light spray of oil.  I put the loaf pan alongside it and both will be covered with plastic wrap.  They will proof for about an hour.

After proofing, below, with the longer loaf slashed.  Then it was into the oven.

And, below, after baking.

 

Montana Brewing - Espresso Porter Oatmeal Bread

 March 14, 2025

Drawing by Vince Long © 2025

Montana Brewing was the first brewery in Billings and has established itself as a go-to place for both food and beer in the center of downtown.  I've been visiting the location from its earliest days and the beer has been a solid hit from the beginning and the quality has done nothing but improve over the years.  I have eaten there a few times and the menu is quite extensive and never disappointing.

When it came time to do a bread based on one of their beers, I leaned toward their stout which has always been a good representation of the style and thought that an oatmeal bread might compliment it quite well.  When I visited the brewery they happened to be out of the stout so I decided to sample the Espresso Porter and was VERY pleasantly surprised.  

A porter is a cousin to the stout and, as it is historically brewed, tends to be harsher than its relative, something that I tend to appreciate.  That said, this version is very smooth and has an almost creamy taste.  If I didn't know better I'd think that it was served on nitro with its thick head.  The coffee notes from the espresso were there but did not get in the way of the dark roasted malts.  The brewer is to be complemented on the balance achieved in this beer.

As I was sipping it, I thought about the bread and still wanted to stay with the oatmeal approach.  With the espresso and the oatmeal I figured that I had two common ingredients found at the breakfast table and knew I'd have a hit.  I added molasses to the recipe to tame any residual hops that might remain but other than that, this might be the simplest recipe I've concocted in this series of brewery breads.

A side note:  I started baking bread when I was in junior high school.  My mother would bake bread on occasion and it was always a treat.  I was very interested in cooking and hung out in the kitchen quite frequently, always enjoying looking through her cookbooks.  I kept coming back to the "Yeast Bread" chapter of her mid-1950s Betty Crocker Cookbook and made my first of many forays into the baking world by trying my hand at the Oatmeal Molasses bread.  It really turned out well and I thought of it as I was putting this recipe together.

Ingredients

2-3/4 cups (1 pound, 7 ounce) (670 grams) Montana Brewing Espresso Porter, at room temperature

1/4 cup (3.3 ounces) (42 grams) dark molasses

3 cups (10.3 ounces) (291 grams) old fashioned rolled oats

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 teaspoons instant yeast

3 cups bread flour

2 cups additional bread flour

Yield: 20 loaves

Procedure

Place the beer, molasses, oats, salt, and yeast in a mixing bowl.  Stir until mixed.  Let stand for 5 minutes for the oats to absorb some of the liquid.

Add the 3 cups of flour and mix by hand or with a stand mixer until well-combined.

Add a cup of the additional flour and mix until it becomes thick enough to knead.  Switch to the dough hook on the mixer or use an alternative kneading method described on the first page.

Knead until smooth and elastic, adding the additional flour as necessary.  I used 5 cups of flour total when I made it.

After kneading is complete, give the dough a light spray of oil then cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Set aside to ferment until about doubled in size.  I let mine go for about 2-1/2 hours.

When rising is compete, turn it out onto a floured board and flatten it out, pressing to remove the gas that built up.  Divide the dough in two and shape into two loaves.  Place these in oiled loaf pans, spay the tops with a little oil, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to proof when they will about double in size..

Before proofing is done, preheat the over to 350 degrees F.  I use a convection oven so you might try 375 in a traditional oven.  Bake the bread for about 40 minutes.  Check for doneness by removing the loaf from the pan and thumping the bottoms with your fingers.  If it sounds hollow, it is done.  Cool on a wire rack.

Illustrations

All but the flour added.  The oats are soaking up some liquid.

Kneading is complete.

Fermentation step is complete. The dough has doubled.

The loaves are starting the proofing step.

Proofing is complete and they are ready to bake.

The finished loaves.  I got a nice oven swing with these.

The crumb.

Diamond X Beer Co. - Engine #7 Orange Rye Bread

March 7, 2025

Drawing by Vince Long © 2025

Diamond X opened on the west end of Billings a few years ago and as a restaurant and brewery it offers plenty of food options along with what it brews and, with a full license, they also feature a variety of cocktails.  While I haven't eaten there, I did drop in to check out the beer offerings looking for what might make a great bread.

I was interested in their AMbear, an amber that promises "rich, toast & toffee maltiness" which sounded great but, alas, they were out.  However, the nice server suggested their Engine #7, a Vienna lager, as a substitute and it was a worthy stand-in.  It's a light colored brew but with a full mouth feel and a caramel flavor all the way through.  As I sampled it, I envisioned it in an orange rye bread and knew it would make a perfect match.

The origin of this recipe is the "Fleischmann's Bake-It-Easy Yeast Book" from 1972.  Back then there was an offer for it on the back of a package of yeast and I sent away for it for something like 50 cents.  It is still one of my "go to" sources.  With the exception of the beer replacing the water, this pretty much follows the original recipe in the book for "Orange Rye."  It produces a very aromatic bread, especially the orange overtones, and is surprisingly light considering how much rye flour is used.

Ingredients

2-3/4 cups (1 pound, 7 ounces) (650 grams) Diamond X Engine #7 Vienna lager, at room temperature 

2-1/2 teaspoons instant yeast

2 teaspoons kosher salt (if using regular salt, use a little less)

1/2 cup (3.5 ounces) (100 grams) dark brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup (2.9 ounces) (83 grams) dark molasses

3 tablespoons (1.6 ounce) (44 grams) margarine, softened

3 tablespoons (.7 ounce) (22 grams) orange peel, grated

3-1/2 cups (1 pound, .7 ounce) (472 grams) rye flour

3 cups (16.6 ounces) (462 grams) white bread flour

1 cup (5.5 ounce) (154 grams) additional white bread flour

Yield: 2 loaves

Procedure

Place the beer, yeast, salt, brown sugar, molasses, margarine, and orange peel in a mixer bowl and stir/mix together.

Add the rye flour and stir/mix until well combined.

Add the 3 cups of bread flour and mix on medium high for 2 minutes.  As it thickens, switch to the dough hook on the mixer or turn the dough onto a floured board and begin the kneading process.  Kneading options are explained on the front page.  Add the additional cup of bread flour as necessary to obtain a dough that is not too soft.  Knead until it becomes smooth.  In my stand mixer this took about 7 minutes.

Give the top of the dough a light spray of oil then cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Let it ferment for about 2-3 hours or until it doubles in size.

Place the dough on a floured board and flatten it out to remove the gas.  Divide it in two and shape into loaves.  Place each loaf into a pan that has been misted with oil.  Give each a light misting on their tops before covering them with plastic wrap.

Let them proof until about doubled.  This took mine about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Remove the plastic wrap and place the pans in a preheated over.  The original recipe instructs to preheat to 375°F and to place the loaves on the lowest rack of the oven for 40 minutes.  I use a convection over so I preheated to 350°F and baked on the middle rack for 40 minutes.

Check for doneness, remove from the pans, and cool on a wire rack.

Illustrations

The orange rind, grated.

Ingredients combined before adding the bread flour.

The kneading.

Kneading completed, getting ready for the fermentation step.

After rising.

Punched down to remove the gas, ready to shape into loaves.

The loaves ready to rise.

Out of the oven.

The crumb.

  rich, toast & toffee maltiness, toast & toffee maltiness rich, toast & toffee maltin

Meadowlark Brewing - Scottish Ale with Smoked Gouda

February 24, 2025

Drawing by Vince Long © 2025

Meadowlark Brewing opened in Billings just a few years ago in a large, purpose-built facility located across the street from Zoo Montana.  It is a brewery and a restaurant with meeting rooms and play area for small children.  Originally from Sidney, Montana, they expanded here and seem to be doing pretty well.  

I had one of their beers at a beerfest in 2018 and thought it would be fun to try them at their original brewery.  So, a friend and I flew on Cape Air to the Sydney airport and walked from there to the brewery.  The flight was beautiful and the walk was nice, about a mile.  The beer and the food were great.

Meadowlark Brewing is also a donor to the Yellowstone Rim Runner's annual Run Turkey Run race held on Thanksgiving morning in downtown Billings.

When I perused their beer selection, I decided to pick the Ole Gus Scottish Ale to build a bread around.  While making a bread with just the beer would be pretty easy, I wanted to add something to make a little bit special.  I thought about food pairings and the malty, semi-sweetness of a Scottish ale goes well with a smoked cheese so that was it.  It would be a cheese bread made with Ole Gus and smoked gouda.

The flour mix I use is my standard, a blend of bread flour, whole wheat, and a bit of rye.  This brings a bit of complexity into the flavor and works well with most recipes plus, the Ole Gus is made with rye so that is just another reason they should play well together.   I also decided to make this with standard yeast rather than a sourdough as I wanted the sweetness from the ale to step forward.

Ingredients

Makes 2 loaves.

2-1/2 cups (21.85 ounce) (622 grams)  Meadowlark Brewing Ole Gus Scottish Ale at room temperature

2 teaspoon kosher salt

2-1/4 teaspoon instant yeast

1 teaspoon brown sugar

2-1/2 cup (12.4 ounce) (350 grams) white bread flour (Montana Wheat is the best)

1 cup (4.8 ounce) (135 grams) whole wheat flour

1/4 cup (1.4 ounce) (40 grams) rye flour

3 cups (12 ounce) (340 grams) smoked gouda cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes

4 cups (20 ounce) (566 grams) additional bread flour, approximate

Procedure

Place the ale, salt, yeast, and brown sugar in a mixing bowl.  Stir until dissolved.

Add the 2-1/2 cups of bread flour, the whole wheat flour, and rye flour.  Stir either by hand or by mixer for a few minutes and then let it stand for 5 minutes.

Start adding the additional bread flour stirring until it becomes thick enough to begin kneading.  Either knead by hand or use a dough hook in stand mixer.  You can also use the stretch and fold method.  These are described on the first page of this site. 

Just before the kneading is complete, add the cubed cheese.  Knead until it is evenly distributed.

Spray the dough with a bit of oil and cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Set aside and let it ferment.  The dough should double in size.  I let mine go for about 2-1/2 hours.

Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured surface.  Punch it down to degas it and cut into two equal amounts.  Shape each into your desired type of loaf.  I did mine as rounds and placed them on sheets of parchment to proof.  You can also shape them as traditional loaves and place each in an oiled loaf pan.  Let them proof until doubled, about an hour.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  I am baking mine in a convection oven with the bread placed inside a Dutch oven which is preheated in the oven as well.  When it is up to temperature, slash the top of the loaf, place it in the Dutch oven, and bake for 16 minutes with the lid on.  Remove the lid and bake for another 16 minutes.  If doing regular loaf pans, you might try baking at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

When the bread is done, cool it on a wire rack before slicing.

Illustrations

Kneading is almost done.  The dough looks smooth rather than shaggy.  Time to add the cheese.

The cheese is incorporated.

The dough is done fermenting and ready to shape.

In the proofing stage.

Into the Dutch oven to bake.

Halfway through the baking.

The finished loaves.

The crumb.

By All Means - Pink Slip Raspberry Bread with Chocolate

February 11, 2025

Drawing By Vince Long

By All Means is a gastropub and brewery located on the south end of 24 Street West in Billings.  I would define it as “upscale” in that their food offerings are unique and their beer selections run from the familiar to the exotic.  The brewery is related to the recently closed Uberbrew and the beer I selected for this recipe, Pink Slip, was actually a standard at Uberbrew.  It’s great that this one made the move.

The beer is soft, tangy and somewhere between a fruit beer and a sour with just the right amount of raspberry.  When I thought about its profile and how I might marry that with a sourdough bread, it didn’t take me long to conclude that chocolate would balance the tang with a bit of bitter-sweetness. 

I wanted to include raspberries but this posed a challenge.  The fruit is so delicate that it might disappear in the kneading process.  I discovered that a freeze-dried version was available and when I went on a hunt to obtain them I came across some beautiful fresh, organic ones so I decided to include both.  I added the freeze-dried berries, slightly crushed, at the end of the kneading process and folded the fresh ones in before I set the dough aside to ferment.

Ingredients

1-2/3 cup (14 ounce) (400 grams) sourdough starter, see Note below *

2-1/3 cup (1 pound, 3-1/2 ounce) (550 grams) By All Means Pink Slip beer at room temperature 

4 cups (1 pound, 2 ounce) (513 grams) Montana Wheat bread flour

1/2 cup (3-1/4 ounce) (90 grams) whole wheat flour

1/2 cup (2 ounce) (50 grams) rye flour

2 teaspoons kosher salt (use a little less if using regular salt)

1-1/4 cup (6.8 ounce) (200 grams) additional bread flour

1 cup (3/4 ounce) (170 grams) freeze-dried raspberries, whole

1/2 cup (2-1/2 ounce) (70 grams) fresh raspberries, whole

1 cup (6 ounce) (170 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Note*

If you do not have a sourdough starter, you can substitute it with

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup water (or beer)

2 teaspoons instant yeast

Combine the three ingredients.  It’s best to let it stand for a bit but you could use it right away.

Yield: 2 loaves

Procedure

Place the sourdough starter (or its alternative) in a bowl and add the beer.  Stir to combine.  Add the first addition of the bread flour, the whole wheat and rye flours, and the salt.  Stir to combine either with a spoon or with the paddle on a stand mixer.  Once everything is wetted, let it stand for 5-10 minutes for the flours to absorb the liquid.

Start adding the additional flour a little at a time and when the dough begins to stiffen, either turn it out onto a floured board to knead by hand or switch to the dough hook of the mixer.  You could also use the stretch and fold method described on the first page.  Knead until the dough becomes smooth and elastic, adding the additional flour as necessary.  

Slightly crush the freeze dried raspberries and cut the fresh ones into quarters.

Just before kneading is completed, add the freeze-dried raspberries and the chocolate chips. Knead until they are evenly distributed. Stretch the dough out on a board and spread the fresh raspberries out on it.  Roll and fold the dough gently to incorporate the berries.

Place the dough in a bowl, give it a small spray of oil, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and set it aside to ferment.  For mine, using a sourdough starter, I let it ferment for about 4 hours.  The dough had doubled in that time.  If using yeast it might happen sooner.

Form the dough into two rounds.  Set each on a sheet of parchment paper and give the tops a small spray of oil.  Cover them with plastic wrap and let proof.  I let mine go for a bit over an hour.

Preheat your oven to 425°F.  

I bake in a Dutch oven, one loaf at a time, and have the Dutch oven preheated.  I slash the top of the loaf, lift it with the parchment, and drop it into the Dutch oven.  Cover the Dutch oven with its lid and bake for 17 minutes.  At that point, remove the lid and bake for another 17 minutes.  Remove the loaf and let cool on a wire rack.  Repeat the process for the second loaf.

You can bake them in a conventional oven, side by side, on a baking sheet.  I would use 375°F and bake for about 40 minutes.

Illustrations

The freeze-dried raspberries prior to crushing.

The fresh berries spread on the dough.

The dough ready to ferment.

The dough, fermented, split in two before forming into balls for proofing.

A load halfway through the baking with the lid on the Dutch oven just removed.  Notice how the loaf has expanded due to “oven spring.”

Freshly baked.

An interior view of the crumb.