I'm used to caraway being paired with rye flour in breads. Usually a mix of rye and wheat, but there's still generally at least some rye in the mix. Not this one though! This is an entirely white flour caraway bread. With orange zest. And brown sugar. Definitely a somewhat unusual mix. And it's also tiny. I'm used to using ~450g of flour for a standard 20x10cm (8x4") pan loaf. This recipe only calls for 250g of flour! It makes the ittiest, bittiest loaf. I baked it in an oven-proof bento container! It was adorable. Shortlived, but adorable.

Swedish Caraway Bread

Slightly adapted from Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

Ingredients

• 3/4 c. water
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
• grated zest of 1 orange
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 tsp. caraway seeds
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (or 1 3/4 tsp. instant yeast)
• 250g hard (strong/high grade/bread) flour, divided

Directions

1. Combine the water, sugar, orange zest, butter, and caraway seeds and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
2. Reduce heat to medium and continue boiling for 3 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and allow to cool to ~45°C (115°F).
4. Add salt, yeast, and ~1/2 of the flour to the water mixture and beat for 2-3 minutes.
5. Cover and set aside to rise at room temperature for ~1 hour.
6. Mix in ~1/2 of the remaining flour.
7. Spread the rest of the flour onto the work surface and dump the dough out on top of it. Knead until dough is smooth and supple (8-10 minutes) adding a little more water if necessary.
8. Round the dough, cover, and rest for 5-10 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, grease a very small loaf pan (18x8cm/7x3").
10. Shape the dough into a loaf by your preferred method. (I like to do a letter fold and then roll it up like a jelly roll.)
11. Place the loaf, seam-side-down, into the prepared pan, cover, and set aside to rise for another hour or so.
12. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 30-40 minutes.
13. Turn out onto wire rack to cool.