I'm a long time lurker and first time poster.

Last week I finally got a decent sourdough starter going, based on the instructions in Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads. I used it successfully to make Pierre Nury’s Rustic Light Rye and some Sourdough Waffles, both of which came out well with the clear instructions provided. I decided to try making some 100% whole grain bread, which I've never had much success with, and finally settled on jmonkey's recipe.

I used the stretch and fold technique for kneading, shaped it into a boule, and baked it in a 450ºF oven on a stone. Also, since I can only get soft whole wheat here, I added vital wheat gluten to the flour to compensate (around 2-3 tsp/cup).

It might be too caramelized for some tastes, but I liked the way it came out (thanks jmonkey!). I expected the crumb to be more open based on what the recipe said, but I think I may have underproofed the loaf a bit. Next time I will also put the stone lower in the over since the bottom took much too long to finish. As far as taste goes, it was delicious, one of the best whole grain breads I've had. What do you think?

Chris

For over 3 years I've been baking artisan style breads in my (really lousy) gas oven without a baking stone but was never quite satisfied with the result. I finally purchased a good baking stone. This is my first effort with the baking stone...

Sourdough Sesame Seed Batards with Spelt Flour

The height of each of these batards is about 4 inches (compared to the 3-1/4 inch height I got without a stone) for a similar type of dough and prebaking dough weight.

The recipe (one of my own devising) uses a white flour 100% hydration sourdough starter. About 20% of the total flour weight is spelt flour (home milled from organic spelt). In an attempt to add sesame flavor to the bread without compromising rising, I use 8% sesame seed meal, which is ground from whole sesame seeds using a small electric coffee mill. Additional sesame seeds are on the outside of the dough. Dough hydration is 68%

I am pleased with this first effort using my new baking stone, although I obviously need to become familiar with this newest addition to my bread baking equipment arsenal.

Onwards and upwards - SF

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For those who are interested, this stone is a Dacor baking stone. It is 1/2 inch thick and measures 15" x 20". This was a good size for my oven, as my oven rack measures 17" x 25". I believe that smaller size baking stones from Dacor are marketed under the brand name Old Stone Oven; these smaller stones are widely available.

The stone was purchased from fantes.com for $50 USD plus shipping. The packaging was excellent and shipping was prompt.

I am including two images of this baking stone from the fantes.com site in this post to give an idea of what the baking stone looks like...

I'd love to find a store that sells a great selection of flour, preferably in larger quantities, like 5 pounds or maybe 25 pounds for a staple like bread flour.  Living in DC, I'm able to get just about anything I want, but many times they are in small packages and expensive.  For example, I can find a rather pricey 2# bag of spelt (I think it was about $5-6) or even Teff flour at a local egyptian grocer.  There aren't any farms in the area; the closest spelt seems to be north of harrisburg, which would be a long trip.  Shipping flour is quite expensive; for example a $30 bag of 25# of spelt is like $11 to ship and ends up being a better, but not exactly great price at ~$1.60/lb. and 25# of flour is a lot to keep around of kind of flour for an individual baker.

Any ideas on where I could get a good selection of specialty flour in semi-bulk packaging?  I love this sourdough spelt recipe but at $7/loaf its a bit steep to justify making all the time :)

I tried out this recipe:

http://www.breadtopia.com/spelt-bread-recipe/

And it was great!

I especially loved the honey, which was added to aid in fermentation, but left a nice residual sweetness behind as well.  I think I might have had a bit extra honey in there when I made it.

The ingredients were thus:

530 grams (about 5 cups well fluffed up) whole spelt flour
350 grams (~1+1/2 cups) water
10 grams (1+1/2 tsp) salt
3 Tbs honey or sugar or 2 Tbs agave
1/4 cup sourdough starter

The video goes into details which I've summarized below:

You basically combine the ingredients and let sit for 3 hourr at room temperature, doing a single stretch-and-fold at one hour intervals.  You then let it bulk ferment overnight, pinch the top to make a tight skin and seal, let sit in a proofing basket for an hour and a half and bake until 200F on the inside.

Has anyone else tried this recipe?  I think this is the best wheat bread I've tasted in my (short baking) life.

Eric's latest video masterpiece at Breadtopia is a whole spelt sourdough.  I was anxious to try it.  So anxious that I didn't notice that I had white spelt flour, not whole spelt.  No matter, the flexibleness that is bread took over, and it came out fine.

Hi, I'm a new poster, though have been reading for a few weeks since another forum posted a link. It's certainly a fantastic resource.

I tried a spelt loaf for the first time yesterday, from R. Bertinet's Crust book. The dough was very stiff (only 65% hydration). It turned out ok, but not brilliant, so I doubt I'll be in a rush to do it again.

I'm planning on trying bagels for the first time next, "Crust" has a recipe, but I'm going to have a look at some here before I get stuck in.

This is the most delicious Bread that I have ever made:

The 1/3 cups of water added noticeably more moisture to the bread than the recommended 1 1/4 cups for 4 cups of flour.  Breads with the recommended amount were a tiny bit too dry.

Mixed Grain Juniper Berry Bread:

1 1/3 cups Water

2 cups Spelt Flour

1 cup All Purpose Flour

1 Cup Buckwheat Flour

3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

2 Teaspoons Sea Salt

4 Tablespoons Juniper Berries

1 1/2 Packages of Red Star Active Dry Yeast

Finding a satsifying recipe for a high-extraction miche has been an ongoing quest over the last few months. I've tried numerous recipes including Peter Reinhart's BBA recipe and Hamelman's Pointe à Callière  with varying success. This, my most recent attempt is one of the best so far. The hydration is at 73% and the dough contains roughly 26% whole spelt flour. Sourwise, it's mild, much like the Poilâne miche from which I've drawn a lot of inspiration. For those who like it uber-sour, you can always extend the bulk ferment (refrigerated overnight perhaps?) and reduce the amount of first build in the final mix. For me though, this has the balance that I like - sweet, sour, savoury and nutty which should get even better overnight. 

First Build

67g Sifted Whole Wheat Bread Flour
50g Whole Spelt
50g Bread Flour
83g White Starter
83g Whole Wheat Starter
167g Water

Final Dough

200g Sifted Whole Wheat Bread Flour
150g Whole Spelt
150g Bread Flour
300g Water
500g First Build
15g Salt 

Mix all the ingredients for the first build and leave to ferment for 4 to 5 hours until it reaches peak activity.

For the final dough, mix all of the mature first build, flour and water and leave to autolyse for 20 to 30 minutes.

After autolyse, sprinkle the salt on the dough and incorporate by mixing for about 1 minute.

Knead the dough briefly until it just starts to feel smooth and elastic (no more than 5 minutes)

Bulk ferment the dough at room temperature for 2 hours with 3 stretch-and-folds at half hour intervals.

Turn out the dough and shape into a large boule.

Proof the dough in a well floured/lined circular container (eg banneton) for 45 minutes in a warm place

Turn out the proofed dough and score as desired.

Bake in a preheated oven with steam at 500F for 10 minutes followed by a further 30 to 40 minutes at 375F until it reaches an internal temperature of at least 200F.

Allow to cool completely before slicing. 

Enjoy!

FP 

I have a variety of grains in my arsenal, and I thought it was time I tried something other than the usual.  I settled on spelt and found bwraith's post on Marcel's Grandmother's Spelt Bread (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/2828/marcels-grandmothers-spelt-bread).

There were a few obstacles.  First was the uncertainty whether the 1/2 cup water used to dissolve the yeast came out of the 500 grams in the ingredient list.  I proceeded assuming it did, but the resulting dough was too dry, so I added it back in.  Then there was the question about rises.  Apparently the only rising is of the loafed bread in the heating oven.  Then there was the fact that I make mini-loaves (I got eight mini loaves out of this one-loaf recipe).  Finally, there's my own klutziness when it comes to matters of art and grace.

I pretty much followed the ingredient list.  I used double caraway seeds because I neither like nor have anise seeds.  But instead of going directly from mixer to loaf pans I went through my traditional bulk rise after a bit of kneading (which apparently was also not required).  I rolled the formed loaves in the sunflower seeds rather than just having them stick to the sides of the pans.  Finally, I was afraid to try the cold oven approach.  As it was, one hour in a pre-heated oven was more than enough.

The dough had a wonderful feel.  It reminded me of Play Dough.  But in the end, the bread did not rise particulary much.  Maybe that's okay.  I looked at Bill's picture, and it's about the same density.  Remember, I got eight mini-loaves out of the recipe - I shouldn't expect much height.

Bottom line is that I couldn't stop eating it.  One mini-loaf (177 grams before baking and before sunflower seeds) is in my stomach.  The taste is different.  I believe some of that is attributable to the nutritional yeast, but despite that it's wonderful.

If I define success in baking bread by how willing I am to eat the final product, then failure is extremely rare.  It may not be tall and light, but it's always good!

Rosalie

I went down to our local mill and purchased some exotic flours the other day.  I want to use them as additions to our favorite whole wheat recipe.  I was just wondering if anyone else has worked with these flours and has some good recipes for them.  I started out today by adding some quinoa to the recipe and it came out dense, but boy was it good.

Thank in advance.
Lydia