Orange, Nut and Date Bread

Name: Orange, Nut and Date Bread
Total time: 4 h 30 min
Yield: One loaf
Ingredients: 1 package active dry yeast; 1 cup warm water; 1/4 cup honey; 2 tablespoons rum; 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled; 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for kneading; 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, finely chopped; 1/2 cup toasted pecans, finely chopped; 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, skinned and finely chopped; 1 tablespoon grated orange zest; 2 teaspoons salt; 1 cup chopped, pitted dates; 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

By Molly O'Neill

Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes
Rating: 4(58)
Notes: Read community notes

Featured in: Certifiably Nuts

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Ingredients

Yield:One loaf

1package active dry yeast
1cup warm water
¼cup honey
2tablespoons rum
4tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3⅓cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for kneading
½cup toasted walnuts, finely chopped
½cup toasted pecans, finely chopped
½cup toasted hazelnuts, skinned and finely chopped
1tablespoon grated orange zest
2teaspoons salt
1cup chopped, pitted dates
½teaspoon ground nutmeg

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
In a large bowl, stir the yeast and water together and let stand 5 minutes. Whisk in the honey, rum and butter. In another bowl, combine the flour, nuts, orange zest, salt, dates and nutmeg. Stir half of the flour mixture into the yeast mixture until smooth. Stir in the remaining flour mixture.
Step 2
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes. Place in a buttered bowl, cover with a towel and set aside to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours.
Step 3
Punch the dough down. Butter a baking sheet. Shape the dough into a loaf and place on the baking sheet. Cover with a towel and set aside in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1¼ hours.
Step 4
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 350 degrees. Bake until the bread sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom, about 40 minutes longer. Set on a rack to cool before slicing.

Ratings

4 out of 5

58 user ratings

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Allison1 year ago

I used vanilla and apple cider instead of rum, because we dont drink. I am not a good bread baker, but this turned out great!! Molly O'Neill was my first NYtimes cooking recipe almost 40 years ago. I LOVE HER SIMPLICITY. Loved this bread, made it for turkey curry sandwiches (thanksgiving leftovers)

Lucy3 years ago

I made this bread on Saturday and it turned out wonderfully. I substituted additional pecans for hazelnuts because I didn't have the hazelnuts. I chopped the dates quite small and, in kneading the dough, most of the date bits broke down into the dough, giving just enough sweetness to the final product. The bread is satisfyingly dense, as is expected with lots of fruit and nuts and goes well with butter or cream cheese or goat cheese. The crust turned out lovely and shiny. A keeper!

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