Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød #BreadBakers

Made with whole seeds and oats, Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød has a lovely nutty flavor with a bit more richness than the Finnish and Swedish versions.

And while Swedish and Finnish crispbread is traditionally round, with a hole in the middle for hanging, Norwegian crispbread is usually rectangular-shaped which seemed like a much easier thing to make!

What they all have in common is rye flour, which happens to be the main ingredient for this month’s Bread Baker’s theme. I used a dark rye. 

Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød

You can serve these plain or spread with butter. They are delicious topped with cheese, jam or chutney. 

Ingredients

1 cup or 135g rye flour

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking powder

¼ cup or 28g rolled oats

¼ cup or 32g pumpkin seeds

¼ cup or 34g sesame seeds

2 tablespoons golden flaxseeds

3 tablespoons olive oil

⅓ cup water or a little more if needed

Method

Preheat your oven to 400° or 200°C. 

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them together well so that all the ingredients are evenly distributed.

Add the oil and water and combine well. 

It will be somewhat crumbly but if you take some and can press it into a firm ball that holds together, that’s probably enough water. 

If it’s too crumbly to stick together, add just a little more water, mixing well, until it does.  

Turn the mixture out onto a silicone mat or a piece of baking parchment the size of a half sheet pan (18 x 13 in or 46 x 33cm) and press the dough out to flatten it a little. 

Use a rolling pin to press it flat, pushing the sides in with your fingers to shape it into a rectangle.

My dough didn’t stick to the rolling pin but if yours does, you can use a second piece of baking parchment or cling film on top. 

Transfer the silicone mat or parchment to the baking pan. Score the top of the dough to make rectangles where you want to cut the crispbread into pieces.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for around 20-23 minutes until the top is dry and firm and the edges are just starting to become darker.

Leave them to cool a minute or two then cut along the score lines to break the crispbread into the rectangles. 

Because of all the seeds, you might be left with a small pile of seedy crumbs on the cutting board once you plate up the crispbread. These are the baker’s treat! 

Enjoy! 

It’s the second Tuesday of the month so that means it’s time for my Bread Baker friends to share their bakes. Many thanks to our host, Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Cam who asked up to explore the world of rye by making rye or pumpernickel recipes. Check out the link list below.

• Connie's Swedish Rye by Culinary Cam
• Marbled Rye Bread by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• New York Jewish Deli Rye by A Messy Kitchen
• Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød by Food Lust People Love
• Pumpernickel Rolls by Sneha's Recipe
• Swiss Onion Rye Batard by A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Pin this Norwegian Crispbread aka Knekkebrød!

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Overnight Rye Buns #BreadBakers

By volume, these overnight rye buns are about half unbleached bread flour, that is to say, wheat, and half dark rye flour, which means they have plenty of flavor and a lovely texture. Lighter than all rye and chewier than white bread, these buns are the perfect combination. Eat them split open and spread with creamy butter!

Years ago I found a blog that I loved so much that I actually signed up to get new posts in my inbox. It’s not that the recipes were extra fabulous. I read it because the author was so funny and honest about the challenges in her life that just reading her posts cheered me up. Sadly, she stopped adding posts years ago, but I am pleased to say that she’s left the blog up. Occasionally I visit just for a laugh.

I saved this recipe way back in October of 2014 because it sounded so easy, and indeed it was. Who knows why it took so long for me to make it!

Overnight Rye Buns

I followed the recipe trail back to the person who taught Esther of the Recipe Rifle to make these buns. Her name is Maria Mayerhofer and she has made a video so you can see how easy these are!  I am wondering if the same method will work with other combinations of flour and I cannot wait to experiment.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups or 150g dark rye flour
1 1/2 cups or 190g unbleached bread flour
1 rounded teaspoon dried yeast
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
2 heaped tablespoons natural yoghurt (I actually subbed probiotic cashew yogurt because that was all I had. You could also use sour cream.)
1 1/4 cups or 295ml cold water

Method
Use a wooden spoon to mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl. It's a soft and sticky dough.

Cover the bowl with cling film and pop it into your refrigerator for at least eight hours or overnight.

When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C and prepare a large baking pan by lining it with baking parchment. Put another large empty baking pan on the lower rack of the oven. When you put the buns in, you’ll add a cup of water to the hot pan to create steam.

Fill a small bowl with water and put two serving spoons in it.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and use the wet spoons to scoop out bun-sized dollops onto your prepared baking pan.

The goal is to keep as many of the bubbles as possible so just scoop and plop. Make sure to dip the spoons back in the water between each dollop.

Slide the baking pan into your preheated oven and add 1 cup or 240ml of water to the bottom pan to create a steamy environment for the buns.

Bake the buns for about 20-25 minutes or until they are puffy and lightly browned.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack before serving.

These are great with a smear of butter.

Enjoy!

This month my Bread Bakers group are sharing mostly recipes made with rye flour. Because of the pandemic, our host, Karen of Karen’s Kitchen Stories, has loosened the restrictions and all of our members can participate, even if they aren’t able to buy rye flour. Thanks, Karen! Check out the link list of recipes:

• Black Pepper Rye from A Messy Kitchen
• Coffee Scones with Maple, Raisins, and Rye from Palatable Pastime
• Everyday Multigrain Rye Sourdough from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Light Rye Sourdough Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Multigrain Spiced Raisin Bread from Passion Kneaded
• Overnight Rye Buns from Food Lust People Love
• Sourdough Rye Boule from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Spelt and Rye Breakfast Sourdough Bread from Cook with Renu
• Sweet Rye Bread from Making Miracles
• Tangzhong Method Rye Bread from Sneha's Recipe

#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 Bread Bakers home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Pin these Overnight Rye Buns!

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