Joghurtkruste – Cold Oven Crusty Yoghurt Bread

With Medium Rye Flour	With Whole Rye Flour & Spice

With Medium Rye Flour

Crusty yoghurt bread is an extremely popular and ideal for beginners as it is very easy to bake, requires little experience and, with just a little yeast and no sourdough. But the beauty of this recipe is that the bread is baked in a cold oven. This bread combines the creaminess of natural yoghurt with the rustic flavour of wholegrain rye flour (or medium-dark rye flour) and the mild sweetness of honey. The fresh yeast ensures a wonderfully light texture, while the balsamic vinegar adds a delicate, subtle acidity. The result is a bread with a perfectly crispy crust, tender crumb and a unique flavour. It makes a perfect breakfast and ideal for making bruschetta or crostini for lunch or as an accompaniment to soups or salads. If you don’t have German bread spice mix, leave it out or use ¼ teaspoon of each crushed (not ground) caraway, fennel, anise and coriander.


1 tbsp Honey 10 g Fresh yeast (or 5 g dried yeast) 240 ml Lukewarm water 350 g Organic white bread flour (or plain flour) 150 g Organic whole rye flour (or med-dark rye flour) 1 tsp German bread spice (optional) 100 g Natural yoghurt 2 tbsp White balsamic 1½ tsp Sea salt 150 g Chestnuts, chopped (optional)

Dissolve the honey and yeast in lukewarm water.
Mix white bread flour and rye flour in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and form a well in the centre. Pour the yoghurt, white balsamic and yeast mixture into the well.
Knead everything for about 3-4 minutes, then add in salt and knead for a further 3-4 minutes to form a smooth dough, and then add the chopped nuts at the last minute if using. Cover and leave to rise in a warm place for 2 hours. The dough should rise beautifully.
Place the dough on a floured work surface and stretch and fold it several times (fold the dough from the outside towords center) and shape it into a round or an oval. Dust with a little flour.
Lightly oil a cast iron pot and dust with a little flour. Place the bread in the pot and score the surface several times with a sharp knife. You can score a simple cross or a grid. Put the lid on and place on the lowest shelf in a cold oven.
Bake at 240C/460F for 55-60 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake the bread for another 10-15 minutes. After baking, remove the bread out of the pot and leave to cool on a wire rack.

With Medium Rye Flour

8 comments:

DEZMOND 27/12/25 13:09: Oh, that is so pretty und soft, deary, I would stuff myself silly with it!
David M. Gascoigne, 27/12/25 13:17: I have never heard of yogurt bread, but I am sure it’s wonderful.
Tom 27/12/25 14:14: ...another work of art!
eileeninmd 27/12/25 14:47: Hello Angie,
Your crusty bread looks delicious. Thanks for sharing.
I wish you all the best in 2026, a happy and healthy New Year for you and your family. Take care, have a great weekend.
Anonymous 27/12/25 16:00: Yummy -Christine cmlk79.blogspot.com
MELODY JACOB 27/12/25 17:17: Merry Christmas! I hope your day is as warm and cozy as a fresh loaf of bread.
My name is Erika. 27/12/25 18:54: This looks so tasty. I'd love a nice sandwich made from 2 slices of it right now. :) Happy weekend.
Pattie @ Olla-Podrida 27/12/25 19:23: Despite having owned a KitchenAid stand mixer for about 17 years now, I have never once used the dough hook. Over Christmas family members were talking about the great successes that they had had making bread using the dough hook, so I think this is in my immediate future. This is certainly a beautiful loaf.