Spelt Sourdough Bread Problems
hey guys, i just started a new spelt sourdough starter 2 weeks ago and started using it recently. I ran out of spelt few days ago and had to feed it einkorn flour instead since it's what I had on hand at the time. I'm feeding it spelt flour again, but I was curious if that might affect the starter since I fed it a different flour for 1 or 2 feedings?
also, I'm having problems with the sourdough bread that I bake. It tends to come out very dense, anybody experience similar issues? I'm using sprouted whole spelt flour to be specific if that helps.
also, lastly I have been having issues with using white flour and yeast so this is ultimately what caused me to start a sourdough starter in the first place. however, I still have a good amount of white flour left from the last time it was used I was thinking to feed it to the spelt sourdough starter for a couple of feedings until i don't have anymore white flour. I'm just curious how this will affect my starter. I dont plan to bake with white flour going forward and would like to only use ancient whole grains like spelt for example. I keep reading how whole wheat is hybridized to the point that it's basically indigestable and is responsible for an onslaught on diseases among a host of all kinds of horror stories. idk, i just dont want whole wheat anymore if that makes any sense. hopefully i'm not just crazy.
thanks guys. ill try and post my horrific first few breads. i also tried to bake my sourdough loaf in a pullman loaf pan. came out not fantastic but the taste was great. its the crumb structure. it's just too heavy man. dense and thick. i just need some help man. just wana make a whole spelt sourdough loaf thats comparable to sandwich type loaf. good luck yall. thanks in advance.
Won't be a problem at all. Some people say they experience a change of behaviour in their starter if fed different flour or at a different hydration. But commonly, and in my own experience, it'll remain healthy and respond well. If your starter is rising on cue as expected then fine.
As for the breads some photos, recipe and method followed will help.
I’m not sure this is possible. “just wana make a whole spelt sourdough loaf thats comparable to sandwich type loaf. good luck yall. thanks in advance.”
Spelt is extremely extensible. Meaning it is very stretchable. On top of that whole grain will turn out more dense than flour. The good news is, you can bake great tasting bread that are not heavy bricks. But you may need to adjust your expectations some.
I’ve never baked 100% whole spelt, but others here have. Hopefully they will share their knowledge.
Dan
Delected, double post
You may learn some tips for the handling of whole spelt sourdough in dabrownman's post of 100% whole spelt soudough (50% sprouted flour): http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/41827/100-whole-spelt-sd-w-50-sprouted-flour-spelt-sprouts-baked-scald
Here are my two recent attempts with slight modifications of dabrownman's formula:
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/56381/only-ten-steps-away-lucy%E2%80%99s-half-sprouted-100-whole-spelt-sd
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/56402/reattempting-half-sprouted-100-whole-spelt-sd
These are not designed for sandwich loaves but I can't see why you can't bake in it a loaf tin. The texture would not be the same as typical sandwich bread. You might consider dropping the hydration to achieve the sandwich-bread-like texture.
Hope this helps!
What I do for spelt bread is using a stiff sourdough. Gives more structure to your bread. I avoid autolyse or any other thing that relaxes the dough. With spelt bread I try to bake the same day (no retarding system). I show you a loaf of spelt + roasted bacon and pepper I made some time ago.
IMG_2423.JPG
Abel, like most of your other breads, that is a masterpiece!
What was the hydration. Do you have the formula/instructions available to easily post? I’m curious to take a look.
Dan
I think it was 1 kilo spelt flour (T80 stoneground, it means not whole not white), 700 ml water, 300 gr stiff sourdough, 20 gr salt + roasted bacon. I made it when I was living in Europe. For spelt bread, I avoid autolyse. I mix directly, first 65% hydration, and once the gluten net is made I add the remaining water. Temperature of the dough after mixing, around 26ºC is OK. I remember my stiff sourdough was very active because I had been making panettone those days. Bulk rise could be around 3 hours, and final proof around 1h30 aprox.
See you, have a nice day.
Thanks for the tips Abel. Spelt is always challenging for me.
Wow thank you guys so much for all of your responses. I appreciate all of your guys help with this as I'm new this whole starter thing in general. I've been baking bread for years but never used a starter in my life until 2 weeks ago. I will post some pictures later on of the failure breads. They are in the freezer right now and I am currently baking a new loaf as I write this. I will post pictures of the new loaf as well later on today. I'm really impressed btw Abel's boule sourdough loaf looks amazing. I'm baking this new loaf in the pullman pan as well and I used a recipe I found called "basic sourdough recipe" on geniuskitchen.com. We'll see how it goes man. To be continued...
failure spelt sourdough loaf attempt (had a few of these:
after many failure breads....finally made this successful spelt pullman loaf:
lookin good...
crumb was nice chewy. still dense but reasonable. the outer crust still hard as nails though. maybe lower hydrated dough could help.
either way at the end of the day pb&j thats all i gotta say. hey.
also big thanks to my trusty spelt starter aka spelty spelterson
pullman loaves are awesome