Spelt Sourdough Bread w/Mixed Seeds

 

One of the nice things about the blogging world is that you get to see what other bakers and cooks are doing and thinking about  foods. For a self-taught bread maker like myself, it is an invaluable window into the baking world of those who share similar experiences.   It’s even better when you can share some humor while you’re at it.  You’ll see what I’m talking about if you check out Angie’s Fiesta Friday.

The last several weeks have found me trying out spelt flour in sourdough bread and tortillas.  I had used it a couple of times before in regular bread but appreciated it’s flavor and qualities much more when I recently made 100% spelt flour tortillas as well as this sourdough bread.  It has won me over as a flour to keep in my kitchen.  Today I’m presenting a take on spelt sourdough with 3 kinds of seeds.  By coincidence Elaine and Ginger were also baking versions of sourdough bread with spelt flour in the ingredients. Their delicious looking loaves are more complex in flavor with their use of rye berries, oats, and seeds. It’s always very interesting to read as they generously share how they approach their breads.  They are two who take baking and cooking very seriously…  Meanwhile, I was taking a less complex route!

To get a better feel for using spelt I kept it simple and used a minimum of ingredients.   There are equal amounts of bread, spelt, and whole spelt flour.  I wanted to make sure I would get some decent gluten action. When I make sourdough bread,  I usually aim for a loaf with alveoli big enough to drive a truck through.    What I understand about spelt is that it is somewhat comparable to whole wheat flour in the amount of gluten it can develop.   So you bet I’m going to go for a high hydration percentage,  70.5% in this case.  I also thought about what effect the seeds might have on the developing gluten.  I read somewhere that even some of the ground components in whole wheat flour can cut gluten that’s trying to build up as you knead.  Who knows to what extent that’s true.  Perhaps if you knead for a long time it would make a significant difference.  However,  I have noticed in several recipes I’ve come across that nuts or seeds are not added until the middle or end of kneading.   None explained the reason for delaying the addition of these extra ingredients.  It occurred to me that  seeds or nuts would interfere with the dough and perhaps even cut some “strands” no matter how carefully it is stretched and folded.  So this dough had been proofing at least an hour before I carefully folded in the seeds.   This I believe, would give the dough some time to develop and strengthen.

This is a very wet and sticky dough that requires some deft handling in case you’re not used to it.  As the portions rested for the 1/2 hour before shaping, they flattened out to the form of a thick pancake.  Even at the end when I placed the finished dough in the oven, they flatten out on the baking stone.  As I misted them with water during the first 10 minutes of baking I could see them magically began their oven spring.

 

I underestimated the gluten potential in spelt. The holes came out larger than I expected.  The flavor and texture turned out very nice too.  Spelt flour adds a “sweet”flavor to the bread  and has very little if any of the bitter taste you find in whole wheat flour.  The toasted seeds added a nice nuttiness and bite.

I’ll just give a summery of the process with key points.  If you want more details, let me know, I’ll be happy to further elaborate.

 

For two medium size loaves:

Levain:

1/2 to 3/4 Tablespoon starter (refreshed 8 to 9 hours before)

100 grams water

100 grams bread flour

 

Final Dough:

All the levain

600 grams water 80 degrees F.

300 grams bread flour

300 grams spelt flour

300 grams whole spelt flour

20 grams salt mixed with 35 grams water

150 grams mixed toasted seeds (I used 50-55 grams each of sesame, sunflower, and pumpkin seeds)

 

1. I made the levain the night before.  It was ready to use in about 10 hours in my 75 degree F. kitchen.
2. The pumpkin and sunflower seeds were toasted in the oven. The sesame seeds were pan toasted over a stove.
3. The levain was dispersed in the 600 grams water and the flours were mixed together then added to the water/levain.  All the flour was evenly moistened.  Autolyse lasted 1 hour.
4. The salt and 35 grams water was mixed together, then squeezed into the dough. I then covered the dough and gave 6 turns over 3 1/2 hours.  I added the seeds during the turning phase after about 1 hour.
5.  I took it out of the bowl and divided it into 2 portions.  Each was formed into a ball, covered and allowed to rest about 30 minutes.
6. I shaped them,  then placed them in bannetons.
7. Final proofing lasted 5 hours.
8.  They baked in an oven pre-heated to 500 degrees.  I lowered the temp to 420 after 10 minutes.  During the first 10 minutes I also misted the oven several times with water to mimic a steam-injected oven.
9. They baked in about 15-20 minutes.  I let them cool completely before slicing.

 

Here are the baker’s percentages if you’re interested.

Final dough

Bread flour  33.3%

Spelt flour 33.3%

Whole spelt flour 33.3%

Levain 24%

Water 70.5%

Salt  2%

Seeds 16.6 %

Levain

Bread flour 100%

Water 100%

Starter 14%