Malted wheat flakes and Maltex wheat cereal
I have been eyeing some recipes using malted yeast flakes. King Arthur Flour is a source for them. However recent reviews on their website and elsewhere say that what is currently being sold is of poor quality. One can buy from the UK but in the end with shipping the price becomes quite steep for what is just wheat flakes.
In their book 'Whole Grain Baking' KAF says that Maltex cereal can be substituted 1:1 for malted wheat flakes. (They call it a nifty little secret). The only difference between the two is how the whole grain of wheat is chipped/sliced during processing. The flavor contribution to bread is identical.
I don't know either of these products. Has anyone who has used used either or both comment, please, how it tastes in bread and whether they might be interchangeable?
Thank you!
You mention "malted YEAST flakes" and "malted WHEAT flakes" --- so I'm not sure which one you are looking for!
Realistically, "malted WHEAT flakes" is just going to be the generic term for wheat berries that have been sprouted and dried ("malted") and then put through a flaker to make a "rolled" or "flake" shape. The flavour that they bring is going to be the same whether they are in flaked form (similar to rolled oats), or in a chopped form (similar to steel-cut oats - which would be the Maltex cereal) or have been ground in to a powder --- but you'll need to find out what "colour" of malt they are. If I remember correctly (it's been a long time since I've done home brewing), the "malted wheat flakes" were non-diastatic and were toasted to the "crystal" or "red" stage, for a slightly sweet / slightly spicy flavour.
I use rye malts for flavouring, but do like to add toasted flaked or chopped grains (oats / rye / barley / spelt / wheat). I find that toasting them really brings in a deeper "grain" flavour - similar to what toasting the finished bread does for it.
It's really all about personal preferences, so play around with things and see what works for you!
Yikes, I did mean malted Wheat flakes! You have given me quite a complete answer though, Thank you!