Spelt Bread
Spelt is the natural offspring of durum wheat, and was once a common Mediterranean weed, it was the primary wheat used during the roman empire and the middle ages. Roman wedding breads, called confarreatios, were made from spelt. Now grown in America as a specialty wheat, spelt is a tasty alternative to regular wheats and growing in popularity because it tastes so good and is easy to handle. Some bakers use a bit of spelt in all their whole wheat breads for the extra flavor. Spelt flour absorbs water much quicker than regular whole wheat flour since it is so soft, so be prepared to have a dough that comes together much quicker and with less liquid than regular whole wheat breads. I like a combination of spelt and bread flour best, since an all-spelt flour loaf is good, but very compact. I use a brand of organic spelt flour from Purity Foods called Vita Spelt.
CostInexpensive
Total Timehalf-day
Dietary Considerationegg-free, halal, kosher, peanut free, soy free, tree nut free, vegetarian
Equipmentbread machine
Taste and Texturechewy
Type of Dishbread, yeast bread
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup water
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 tablespoon whipped reduced-fat margarine
- 2¼ cups whole grain spelt flour
- ¾ cup bread flour
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon gluten
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons SAF yeast or 2½ teaspoons bread machine yeast
- ½ cup water
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 tablespoon whipped reduced-fat margarine
- 3 cups whole grain spelt flour
- 1 cup bread flour
- 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons gluten
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2¼ teaspoons SAF yeast or 2¾ teaspoons bread machine yeast
Instructions
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Place all the ingredients in the pan according to the order in the manufacturer’s instructions. Set crust on dark and program for the Whole Wheat cycle; press Start. (This recipe is not suitable for use with the Delay Timer.) The dough ball will look sticky. Do not add too much flour, the dough will smooth out.
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When the baking cycle ends, immediately remove the bread from the pan and place it on a rack. Let cool to room temperature before slicing.
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2000 Beth Hensperger
