Walnut and Date Whole-Wheat Round

unsalted butter, at room temp, for greasing the baking dish (or just Pam)
2 c. whole-wheat flour, plus a little bit more (can use white wheat or traditional)
1 T. brown sugar
1 t. salt
1 package (1 scant T.) quick-rise yeast (I used instant)
1 c. hot water
1 c. pitted dates, cut into quarters
1 c. walnut halves, toasted in a 325-degree oven for 10 minutes

Lightly grease a 9-inch round cake pan and lightly sprinkle the bottom with flour.

Combine the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in the large bowl of a stand mixer. Add the hot water and beat on low speed; the dough will form and pull away from the sides of the bowl within 3 minutes. Add the dates and walnuts. Beat on low speed for 5 minutes, stopping to scrape down the beaters when the dough gets bound up.

With lightly-floured hands, gather the dough into a ball and roll it around in the palms of your hands to smooth it. Form into a ball and place in prepared pan; the dough shouldn't touch the edges of the pan. Use a sharp knife to cut a shallow cross in the top of the dough. Sprinkle the top lightly with flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for 30 minutes or until it expands to fill to the edges of the pan. (In my cold house, it took nearly an hour.)

After the dough has risen for 15 minutes (or 45 minutes in my case), position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees. Discard the plastic wrap and bake the bread for about 35 minutes, until the top feels firm and is lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

This bread will remain soft for 2 days if stored at room temp. It can be wrapped and frozen. I thought it was GREAT. C didn't like the texture of the dates, but since he doesn't generally like dates, I wasn't surprised. The toasting of the nuts made a big difference. But YUM.