60% Rye with Flaxseeds

JMonkey

A hearty, German-style rye that’s loaded with flaxseed
This recipe was adapted from “Bread” by Jeffrey Hammelman.

Formula
Whole rye flour: 60%
White flour: 40%
Flaxseeds: 10%
Water: 80%
Salt: 1.8%

40% of the flour (rye) is in the starter at 100% hydration

Ingredients
White flour: 200 grams or about 1.5 cups
Whole rye flour: 100 grams or 1 scant cup
Rye starter (at 100% hydration): 400 grams or 1.25 cups
Water: 200 grams or ¾ cup + 2 Tbs
Salt: 9 grams or 1.25 tsp
Flaxseeds: 50 grams


Soaker the night before
Mix the flaxseeds and 150 grams (about 1 cup) of the water together. Cover and let sit overnight.

Mixing
Add the remaining water to the flax seed soaker, and then mix with the starter. Separately, mix the the flours and the salt, then mix all ingredients until everything is hydrated.

Dough development and the first rise
You’ll want to do either the stretch and fold or traditional kneading, though traditional will probably serve you better. Either way, it’ll be a little tricky because the rye – and there’s a lot of it in this bread – will make the dough sticky. Keep at it. The dough will come together, though it will be much more clay-like than a 100% wheat dough.

The first rise will take about 3 hours at room temperature.

Shaping
Rounds and batards are the traditional shapes.

Second rise
You can let it rise for another 2 hours at room temperature. You can also speed things up (and increase sourness) by placing the dough on an upturned bowl in the bottom of a picnic cooler, throwing a cup of boiling water in the bottom and covering it quickly. After an hour, throw another cup of hot water in. The rise should only take about 90 minutes this way.

Baking
Score the bread as you like. Hash marks are traditional for rounds, and batards usually take a single, bold stroke down the center or a couple of baguette-style slashes.

While you can certainly bake this bread on a cookie sheet, it benefits from a stone and some steam, or a covered baker. However you do it, bake at 450 degrees for about 40 minutes.

Because of its high rye content, this bread should cool for at least 3 hours and up to 24 hours to allow the bread set up. If you cut into it too early, the center will be more liquid or gelatinous than solid.