Like a supercharged granary loaf this malted sandwich bread recipe combines BakeryBits range of grains and seeds – sunflower, linseed, oats, pumpkin, and corn – with one of my favourite flours from way back. Matthew’s Organic Cotswold Crunch is a white wheat flour mixed with powdered malt and rolled and toasted malted barley grains. Making an exceptional granary-style sandwich bread: perfect for a great cheddar cheese Ploughman's with pickle, or an amazing grilled vegetable sandwich.

I’ve left the water in the recipe quite low as it uses a soaker at the start – where you steep the seeds and grains in water to make them soften, and stop them stealing moisture from the crumb – and depending on how thirsty your seeds and grains are you might want to add more water to suit the dough you’re comfortable working with.

Makes one large family-sized loaf

Method

Put the seeds in a bowl and pour on the boiling water. Leave for 10 minutes to soften and swell, then add the cold water and stir together evenly.

Add the yeast, stir again until dissolved then add the molasses and mix well. Add the salt and flour, and stir to a smooth even dough, adding more water if you need to so the dough is pliable and soft. Then cover the bowl and leave for 30 minutes.

Lightly flour the worktop and knead the dough gently for 10-15 seconds. Shape the dough into a ball, return to the bowl, then cover and leave an hour to rise somewhere warm.

When the dough has risen roughly half its original size, get a baking tray ready lined with a sheet of non-stick baking paper. Using a little flour shape the dough into a ball once more and then place it seam-side down on the tray. Cover and leave for about an hour until risen again.

Heat the oven to 200C. Uncover the loaf, brush the top of it with water and press extra seeds into it. Slash the top of the loaf with a sharp blade, then bake for 30 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 160C fan and bake for a further 20-30 minutes until a rich deep brown on top. Leave to cool on a wire rack before slicing.