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I got this out of The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book, but don't blame her for what I did to it. While you can make bread by hand, I don't. I recommend going back to Laurel for the real recipe, especially if you're going to adapt it further to other equipment.
Why would anyone do this? Because it's a way to get extremely tasty, 100% whole grain loaves that are very low sodium. That's actually kind of hard to buy. You probably won't ever make back the money you shell out on the mixer, the mill, the organic wheat berries, but the equipment reduces the time committed and buying the wheat berries improves the flavor so much you won't miss the salt. I'm making a single loaf at a time because low-sodium bread molds quickly. You could freeze a loaf; I haven't so I can't say how well that works with this bread.
Mix:
1 Tsp. active dry yeast
1/4 Cup 110 degrees Fahrenheit water
Warm the cup first, to make sure the water doesn't drop immediately.
Mill:
450 grams Hard Wheat Berries
Combine in bowl of stand mixer:
Whole Wheat Flour
sea salt
I don't measure the salt; I twist the grinder a few times.
Combine in pre-warmed bowl or measuring cup:
slightly less than 1 Cup lukewarm water (not higher than 110)
honey or other sweetener
olive or other oil
Again, just pouring, not really measuring. The wheat measurement matters, as does the water. Everything else is pretty flexible, but think in terms of a tablespoon or so.
Make a well in the flour. Pour in the yeast and water, and the liquid ingredients. Turn the mixer with dough hook on to a medium speed. Do not leave. Watch closely. After it assembles, peels off the bits on the side, and starts thumping a cylinder around the edge, watch for it to get sticky again. When it does, stop immediately.
Use a silicone scraper/spatula to make sure the dough isn't adhering to the bowl anywhere, set it in a warmish spot, cover with a clean towel weighted with a cutting board over it.
Once the dough has risen (1-2 hours, doubled or tripled or more in size, possibly escaping the bowl), a floury fingerprint on the dough will not fill in (but hopefully it won't smell beery -- that's a sign you waited a bit too long). Use your scraper/spatula to thoroughly squash the dough back down. Do not put holes in it.
Grease a 4" X 8" loaf pan:
oil
soy lecithin
You can pre-assemble and refrigerate the oil/lecithin mix. Or you can just oil the pan and sprinkle lecithin in and move it around with your fingers. You aren't likely to hurt the bread by using too much oil or lecithin.
Massage the dough into a loaf shape, being sure to squeeze it as small as it will go. If you leave a hole in it, that hole will expand in the loaf. If you care, Laurel has elaborate suggestions on how to prevent that. Put the loaf in the pan and cover it with a towel not weighted down. Allow it to rise. Preheat the oven to 425. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the heat down to 325 and finish baking, about 45 minutes to an hour total.
Loaves are done when: brown on top, sound hollow when the bottom is thumped, reach an internal temperature of 190 (soft) - 200 (drier, crustier) degrees fahrenheit.
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Copyright Rebecca Allen, 2002.
Created February 188, 2009 Updated February 18, 2009