District 13 Bread #BreadBakers

Two loaves of multigrain bread are made with no refined sugar and packed with sunflower and pumpkin seeds for good measure. You won't "hunger" after this!

I have a confession: I am a horrible 30-something when it comes to keeping current with TV and movies. I completely lack the ability to focus on something as long as a typical feature film (my brain is just too busy with everything else these days) and I miss too many weekly serials to really get involved with their plots - exceptions being The Good Doctor and Law & Order SVU which always seem to fit with my schedule. Since the bulk of my day is reading for school, when it comes to decompressing books are not high on my list these days either. So it should not come as a surprise that I have not read, nor seen, The Hunger Games. It's not that I think the franchise sucks - I like to reserve judgement until I actually experience something like Waiakea volcanic water - but I haven't had the time or willpower to devote to the series. Perhaps when I finish school... in 2021...

Anyways, just because I haven't experienced the original stories doesn't mean I haven't been able to connect with the food in the books. I had borrowed an e-copy of The Unofficial Recipes of The Hunger Games from the library and the recipe for "District 13 Bread" caught my eye. I know that the land of the Hunger Games is supposed to be rather spartan and generally horrible, but the composition of the loaves definitely appealed to me and my chief bread-eater at home, so I couldn't wait to make them. Dense and low-rising, the dough is filled with hearty, rustic grains you don't normally see in today's storebought loaves: buckwheat, barley, rye and oats make up a good chunk of the volume, while ground flax adds body and a great nuttiness as well as helping keep the loaf moist and tender. As if that's not enough, soaked barley, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds get kneaded in too, each lending their own bite to the bread. The finished loaves aren't sweet (even with the molasses and honey in them), and are delicious alongside soup or stew as well as lightly toasted and smeared with butter or (my longtime favourite) cream cheese and cherry jam. The best part is that a small slice is plenty filling, so you won't get the refined-carb crash an hour after breakfast, nor will you feel bloated or weighed down with 6 ounces of bagel with schmear on your stomach. Not that a good (Montreal style) bagel and schmear isn't warranted some days... but this is perfect working-day food that tastes so much better than the supermarket stuff, not to mention you know what's in it!

The #BreadBakers are making BREAD WITH SEEDS this month, and I can't wait to see everyone's creations! #BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send Stacy an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

• Almond Poppyseed Bread from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Crunchy Seed Braid from All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• District 13 Bread from What Smells So Good?
• Fennel and Poppy Seed Rolls from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Onion &amp Poppy Seed Bialys from Baking Sense
• Savory Seeded Focaccia from Palatable Pastime
• Seeded Ficelle Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Siddu from The Mad Scientist's Kitchen
• Six-Seed Soda Bread from Food Lust People Love
• Sugarless Multiseed Rye Bread from CookwithRenu
• Tangzhong Method French Loaf With Seeds from Sneha's Recipes
• Vegan Seeded Challah Bread from Cook's Hideout

District 13 Bread
Makes two loaves, 32 slices
5 cups whole wheat bread flour
1 cup buckwheat flour
½ cup barley flour
½ cup rye flour
1 cup ground flax seed
½ cup barley, soaked 2 hours and drained
1 cup rolled oats
½ tbsp salt
3 tbsp instant yeast
4 cups warm water
2 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp buckwheat (or dark amber) honey
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup pumpkin seeds

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl with a sturdy spoon), whisk together the flours, flax, barley, oats, salt and yeast.
2. In a measuring cup, whisk together the water, molasses and honey.
3. Pour the wet mixture into the flour mixture and stir to form a dough.
4. Knead with the dough hook for 10 minutes or by hand for 20 minutes. Cover and let rest until doubled, about 1 ½ hours.
5. Punch down and knead in the sunflower and pumpkin seeds.
6. Shape into two boules and place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Cover lightly with a tea towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
7. Heat oven to 375F.
8. Bake loaves for 50-55 minutes, until they sound hollow when tapped.
9. Cool before slicing.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 151.2
Total Fat: 3.2 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 19.1 mg
Total Carbs: 27.1 g
Dietary Fiber: 5.3 g
Protein: 5.4 g