Sprouted Spelt Bread At Home: a Baking Saga

Remember my visit to Larry from Tree-Top Baking and his demo of baking with sprouted spelt? Well, once I got home, I couldn't wait to get started and I immediately set some spelt berries to soak. But since I can never leave well alone, I also read up on the notes I took at WheatStalk during Frank Sally's* Baking with Ancient Grains workshop. Frank said (and I quote): "Spelt sprouts real fast (one day). When sprouting, keep them submerged for ten hours, then drain and let them rest. Do that again two or three times, then they are ready to grind in the meat grinder." He added: "The grain is often very wet. If that's the case, hold back half of the water when mixing. On the contrary, if it's dry, you need to add more water."
Frank also recommended adding the oil and honey towards the end of the mixing (holding off with the water even if the dough looked a bit stiff because the oil and honey would help loosen it up) and he said to add gluten as spelt didn't have much of a push and the resulting dough wouldn't have a lot of strength.
Food for thought there! I had seen Larry's sprouted spelt and it had been soaking wet. So, in accordance with SFBI's original formula, he had used very little water in the mixing. But mindful of Frank's advice, I had drained the grain for twelve hours, it ended up much drier than Larry's. Therefore I knew I would need to add water.
As far as gluten was concerned, I really didn't care to add any. Since I have seen what gluten strands look like once all other matter has been rinsed out of a dough (basically like an used chewing gum such as those you see stuck on the sidewalks in New York City), I have not been too keen on gluten as an additive. So I decided to follow Larry's example (he had not used any the day I visited although he sometimes does) and skip it. So far so good.
I made the dough, added as much water as I thought it needed, followed all the advice on mixing duration and speed, and ended up with a dough I really liked only to realize I didn't have the proper pans to bake it in (I had thrown out my old pans when we moved - they had been very cheap to begin with and had become gross - and never gotten around to buying others!) I had no choice but free-shape the loaves and hope for the best.

We actually liked the resulting bread very much (nice nutty taste and pleasant texture) but the dough had spread a bit too much during the proofing and I still wanted good sandwich bread for slicing.

So I bought two pans and tried again. This time though, I didn't bother to re-read the recipe (why would I do that?) and just winged it all the way. I made the sponge, thawed the ground-up sprouted spelt (leftover from the first batch) overnight and proceeded with the mixing. Of course I didn't remember not to add all the liquids upfront and since the dough did indeed seem stiff, I was generous with water too. Also, as I didn't recall that gluten had to be fully developed (improved mix) before the dough was set to ferment, I did my usual short mix (usual when mixing by machine, that is, as I normally hand-mix) and called it a day (see Modern Baking  magazine for more info on the various mixing methods).
To add insult to injury, I baked with steam. Which means that the breads were not only gummy from over-hydration and under-mixing but they also burst open in the oven!  Some people have bad hair days, others bad bread days! Others still (like me) have both...

Despite the gummy crumb, the bread is actually okay toasted and we are half-way through the second loaf. But still...
Not to be deterred, I tried again last week: I soaked a humongous amount of spelt berries (enough for three two-loaves bakes) and decided to follow Larry's example and not to drain the grain at the twelve-hour mark. But a baker's life is full of surprises: at the twenty-four hour mark, the berries had barely moved. So much for spelt being a quick sprouter! I guess it all depends where you live and what the season is. I live in the American Northwest and temperatures in my house aren't exactly balmy in early December. It took all of 48 hours before the berries were tender enough for the endosperm (the white stuff) to start coming out (it had been way faster in early October when I had made my first attempt and of course even faster in Chicago in late June).
I knew the sponge would keep well in the fridge, so I wasn't worried on that score. But the 24-hour delay had thrown off my baking schedule so that the berries reached their peak on the morning I was due to watch my fifteen-month old grand-daughter while her mom was running errands and keeping doctors' appointments and so forth. I don't know if you have ever baked with a toddler around but believe me, it has its own constraints. Lily being the ninth grand-child, I knew it from experience. So I waited and hoped that the berries would too. I was concerned though because when I took SFBI's Whole Grains workshop in San Francisco back in 2009, Keith Giusto had forcefully underlined the fact that if you saw even the beginning of a germ on the sprouted grain, then the enzyme activity was too far along and you might just as well throw everything out and start again. Accordingly I didn't dare leave the berries in the water a minute longer than necessary and I drained and rinsed them before the baby arrived.
A few hours later when my baking day actually started, the berries still looked pretty much the same and I was relieved. We ground them (a team effort in my house), I packed two one-kilo ziploc bags which I put in the freezer and started the mixing process with the remainder. This time I did everything by the book. I still had to add a bit more water than the first time to get the proper consistency but I was careful to hold it off until after the addition of oil and honey. I mixed to improved and got a nice gluten window. The dough fermented for about 90 minutes at 80°F/27°C in the little countertop proofer (truly a welcome tool in my part of the world in the winter) then, once divided in the two pans, proofed for one hour at room temperature (I had the oven on so the room had warmed up a bit). I remembered not to steam. The bread came out just as I hoped it would and the best part is that Lily loves it! Baking with her will have to wait a bit but baking for her sure carries its own reward: she is already a true bread head.

The following recipe is based on SFBI's and Larry's formula, slightly adapted.

Ingredients (for two 800 g-loaves)
Sponge

• 93 g whole spelt flour (I used freshly milled)
• 79 g water
• 1.9 g salt
• 1.9 g malt
• 0.5 g yeast

Final dough

• 877 g sprouted spelt berries, ground in a meat grinder or a food processor
• 292 g whole spelt flour (I used freshly milled)
• 77 g water, divided
• 93 g raisins, briefly soaked and pureed to a slurry
• 19 g salt
• 12 g instant yeast
• 47 g honey
• 23 g vegetable oil
• 175 g sponge (all of the sponge)

Method

This time, except for the fact that I drained my berries earlier than he did his and consequently had to add more water and I held off with the oil and honey,  I followed Larry's directions to a tee.

The Sprouted Spelt Bread is going to Susan for Yeastspotting.

*Frank Sally who teaches at SFBI and with whom I had the pleasure and privilege of taking not only Baking with Ancient Grains at WheatStalk but also Artisan I and Artisan II in San Francisco is all set to open his own bakery, La Fournée, in Berkeley, CA, at the beginning of the year. Take a look at the photos already posted on the website and even if you don't personally know Frank for the amazing artisan baker he is, you'll understand why I can't wait to go and visit!

Larry's Sprouted Spelt: A Felicitous Case of Mistaken Identity

As is often the case with the best things in life, it all started with a mistake. Larry Lowary of Tree-Top Baking on Whidbey Island, WA, was stirring the grain he was soaking for his weekly bake of sprouted wheat bread (a customers' favorite) when he noticed that the berries were already germinating when they should have been barely waking up. He checked the bag and realized he had sprouted spelt instead of wheat (spelt sprouts much faster). It was too late to go back, so he ground the grain, mixed the dough and baked. Other than the fact that it tended to crumble a bit under the knife,  he thought the bread had turned out pretty well and as I happened to be visiting the next day, he kindly gave me a loaf to take home.
Eager to have a taste, I sliced it open that very night and was somewhat surprised not to find it as tasty as I thought it would be. Spelt is one of my favorite grains and I expected more depth. But my disappointment turned to wonder when I had another slice at breakfast the next morning. The flavor had set in (the crumb had probably dried out just enough to concentrate the taste) and the bread was all I had been looking forward to and more. I immediately begged Larry to please make the same mistake again and invite me to come and watch.
Not that I hadn't already seen sprouted berries turned into loaves... When I took Whole Grains at SFBI with Didier Rosada a few years ago, Keith Giusto came and demonstrated the making of his popular Power Bread (which involved sprouted wheat, required the addition of almonds and walnuts and was marvelously sinful). We also made a simple sprouted whole wheat pan bread. The latter recipe is the one which Larry had adapted for use at his bakery. I had never made it at home since I took the class because I didn't own a grinder until very recently. A refresher's course was therefore most welcome.
Between one thing and another (notably a very busy market season on Larry's side and school vacation and grandchildren on mine), a few months elapsed between the day Larry made his propitious mistake and the day I finally boarded the ferry to watch him make it again. It had been early summer then. Now it was early fall. But the boat ride and the island were as lovely as ever...

When I arrived at the bakery, Larry was ready for me. The only things he had done ahead of time were to soak the grain in water for 26 hours (stirring every eight hours or so) and to mix the sponge (which had to ferment overnight). For good measure, he had sprouted spelt AND wheat (he had soaked the wheat for two days), so that we could see how spelt compared. From the photo below, it is clear that it performed very well in terms of rise and plumpness. But even though spelt is probably my favorite by a tiny margin, I also love the taste and texture of sprouted wheat. Something happens during sprouting which not only greatly boosts the nutritional value of the grain but also maximizes its flavor. Heady stuff for a bread lover!

The process

Mixing raisins and water in the food processor

Rinsing and draining the sprouted grain

Grinding up the grain

Combining sponge, salt and ground-up grains and starting to mix

Mixing, checking gluten development and taking dough temperature

Fermenting and folding

Done!


Dividing, pre-shaping and shaping


Proofed

Baking


Finished!

The Formula (an SFBI original, as adapted by Larry)

Ingredients
Sponge

• Flour - 100 %
• Water - 85 %
• Instant dry yeast - 1.5 %
• Salt - 2 %
• Malt - 2 %

Final dough

• Sprouted spelt - 80 %
• Whole Spelt Flour - 20 %
• Water - 5.25 %
• Gluten (optional) - 2 %
• Instant dry yeast - 1 %
• Salt - 1.65 %
• Raisins, soaked and puréed - 8 %
• Honey - 4 %
• Canola oil - 2 %
• Sponge - 15 %

Method

• The original formula called for raisin juice concentrate which is both very difficult to find and super expensive. Larry's solution is to add warm water to raisins in the food processor and make a slurry. It works just fine. The bread can probably be made without it but as Larry explained, raisins have mold-inhibiting properties. They have been used for years to prolong bread's shelf-life
• It is best to sprout more than needed as sprouted grain can be kept in the freezer (scale the quantity you need in ziploc bags and take it out as needed 24 hours ahead of time)
• If whole spelt flour isn't available, white spelt can be used instead. The crumb will look a little bit lighter
• If the sprouted grain has been kept in the fridge, use hot water
• The sponge can be made up to four days ahead and kept in the fridge
• The water percentage is very low because the sprouted grain is soaking wet. In case you need or want to drain the grain ahead of time, you will need to adjust the water amount
• Mix ground-up sprouted grain with all of the liquids for two or three minutes on first speed, then add all the dry ingredients and mix again on first speed until desired dough consistency is reached (4 to 5 minutes)
• Then mix on second speed for 5 to 7 minutes
• Desired dough temperature: 80°F/27°C
• Ferment for one hour
• Scale at 800 g
• Pre-shape as hard as possible in a tight roll
• Shape as a tight batard
• Proof for about one hour at 85°F/29°C
• Bake for 50 minutes at 400°F/204°C (or lower depending on your oven as the raisin slurry and the honey put the dough at risk of burning at high heat)
• You know that the bread is done when the sides are brown and no longer pliable
• Enjoy!

Thank you, Larry, for being such a patient instructor and a wonderful source of information and inspiration, not to mention a very dear friend! I am currently sprouting some spelt and hope to be able to bake tomorrow. I'll report on the experience as soon as I get a chance and post the ingredient amounts for just two loaves.

Teff Mash Bread

Now that I know how to bake with teff, I would buy truckloads of it and make teff bread on a regular basis if it were not so expensive: not only is it very nutritious but the taste is unique and marvelous. How best to describe it for those of you who are not familiar with it? Think deeply caramelized black walnuts with a hint of raw dark cocoa and maybe, maybe a tiny whiff of the soul-warming spices used in African cooking. Think exotic, seductive and subtly addictive. Think "Wow! I can get all that flavor from just 10% of flour?" and you'll have an idea of what teff is like.

Of course the teff flour I am baking with here might taste different from the one to be found here in America but I have no way of knowing until I go home to the Northwest and actually buy a bag (as far as I know, there is none to be had for love or money where I am now). The one I have was brought to me from Ethiopia by a kindly colleague a few years ago.

I kept it in the freezer while we still lived back East and when we moved to the Northwest, since I was trying not to move everything cross-country, I brought it here to the little camp by the St-Lawrence River where we have been spending our summer vacations for the past twenty-six years.
Together with all the other grains, nuts and flours, I put it in a sturdy insect-, rodent- and waterproof trunk which weathered the winter under the cabin, sitting directly on the bedrock. Nothing like permafrost to keep everything fresh as I am sure the Native Americans who used to live here discovered ages before me.
Some people don't like teff and I suspect that is because they only ever had it in injera form at Ethiopian restaurants. Injera is traditionally made from a teff starter that is left to ferment until it is quite acidic and some cooks make it more sour than others. I love injera and Ethiopian cuisine and injera is actually what I planned to make with the teff my colleague brought me since I had never had much success with teff bread before.
I learned why at WheatStalk: teff flour has the annoying habit of first absorbing water like crazy and then of releasing it sneakily when one least wishes it to do so. The trick is therefore not to use it dry but to make a mash of it before incorporating it into a dough. Soaking it in hot water sets both the protein and the starch, making it much more stable. In the words of Frank Sally's (my instructor for the Baking with Ancient Grains lab), "baking with teff is a nightmare otherwise." Good to know!
To make a mash

1. Bring 100% water to a roiling boil
2. Pour it over 100% flour
3. Make a paste (it will be full of soft lumps)
4. Let cool
5. Add to the dough as a soaker

The mash should be made the morning of the mix. According to my instructor at WheatStalk, if you'd rather do it the day before, you need to make it, let it cool and then add it to your levain build.

For this bread, I didn't want to use a WheatStalk formula: there might be copyright issues (I need to check into that) and anyway I didn't have the necessary ingredients. So I made up my own recipe with what I had on hand here at camp and as you'll see, it is fairly minimalistic. If you have all-purpose flour, a mature starter and a bit of teff flour, you are all set to go.

Ingredients: (for four loaves)

• 890 g unbleached all-purpose flour
• 200 g teff mash (100 g teff flour + 100 g hot water)
• 555 g more water at warmish room temperature (or more or less according to the flours you use. Even if they are the same brand, they will always be different from mine. The consistency of your dough will always be a better guide than the amount of water used by the author of any recipe)
• 535 g liquid starter @ 100% hydration (mine is currently fed with 40% whole grain - wheat, spelt and rye - but a white one -or better yet, a teff one - would work fine)
• 27 g salt

Method: (This bread is made over two days. The dough was hand-mixed.)

1. Make the teff mash using the method described above
2. Mix all the other ingredients* (I used only 450 g water to start with) until incorporated and add the teff mash when lukewarm (I have developed a method for adding water which is really no-hassle: I first put in as much as needed to hydrate the flour, then I pour the rest (in this case, 105 g) into a spray-bottle and I spray the dough as I go, making sure to spray after each fold just before covering the bowl. The dough acts like a sponge as it relaxes and absorbs the water with minimal work on my part. Not that I don't love folding the dough over and over. I actually do but my wrists have apparently remained French-ier than the rest of me:  they tend to go on strike at the drop of a hat...)
3. Fold resulting dough onto itself several times, cover and let rest for 30 minutes
4. Repeat three times at 30-minute intervals (more if necessary, judging from the dough consistency)
5. Let ferment, covered, for another hour 
6. Then refrigerate for 12 to 16 hours (make sure your fridge isn't set on super cold)
7. The day after, bring back to room temperature
8. Turn on the oven to 475°F/246°C, making sure your baking stone is in it as well as a metal dish for steaming
9. Transfer to a flour-dusted worktable
10. Divide @ about 500 g, trying to keep the pieces as square as possible
11. Shape (no pre-shaping) by pulling each piece of dough upwards (from the upper long side) then folding it upon itself once and closing the seam
12. Transfer seam-side down to a sheet pan lined with semolina-dusted parchment paper
13. Proof for one hour
14. Dust with flour if desired and score shallowly down the middle holding the lame at an angle
15. Bake with steam for 5 minutes at 475°F/246°C, then turn the oven temperature down to 450°F/232°C and bake another 35 to 40 minutes (the oven is old and quirky in this little cabin and I always turn the loaves 180° for the last ten minutes of baking)
16. Cool on a rack
17. Enjoy!

*When mixing by hand here at camp, I often skip the autolyse. I  mix flour + salt + liquid levain + the bulk of the water until everything is hydrated, then I cover the bowl and let the dough rest anywhere from 20 minutes to half-an-hour before proceeding with the recipe from step 3 on. It is much easier on the wrists (less folding) and it yields excellent results. Of course it may have to do with the temperature and humidity which are both in the high range here in the summer. Back home in the cool Pacific Northwest, I'll  probably need to hold the salt back until the end. I'll still add in the levain with the water and the flour but I may experiment with much longer resting times (if you interested in fiddling with autolyse, you may want to read Teresa Greenway's excellent posts on the subject: Experimenting with Autolyse #1 and Experimenting with Autolyse #2).

The Teff Mash Bread is going to Susan for this week's issue of Yeastspotting. Thank you, Susan!