Boston Brown Bread (traditional)

Place a canning rack, jar lids, or something similar on the bottom of your pot that you will set your cans on. If you have an electric kettle, fill it with water and heat it up to boiling. If you don't have an electric kettle, use another pan on the stove.

Spray the insides of your cans and two of the foil squares with cooking spray. Rub a generous amount of butter all over the inside of your cans.

Whisk the flours together with the salt and baking soda.

Stir in the wet ingredients with a spatula and scrape the sides.

Immediately put the batter in your cans, filling half to three quarters of the way up. If you have a canning funnel, it will make this easier.

Place the oiled foil squares, followed by the other foil squares, on the cans and fold them all down around the cans. Use a length of kitchen twine, wrapped around twice, to tie the foil on.

Put the cans in your pot. Add boiling water from the kettle (or other pan) to bring the water level to about halfway up the cans.

Return the water to a low boil, put the lid on, set the heat to medium, and steam your cans for 2 1/2 hours. Check periodically to make sure a little steam is escaping your pot lid, indicating boiling. If it is not, turn the heat up, if it's a lot, turn the heat down.

Pull the cans out, with canning tongs if you have them, and set them on a trivet or cooling rack. Uncover and let cool in the cans for 20 minutes.

Ease the bread out onto a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

Traditionally toasted in a pan with butter and served with some baked beans, occasionally with hot dogs, or just a slather of softened cream cheese.

Eat within a few days.