Sprouted Whole Wheat with Dark Chocolate Balsamic Bread

  One of these days I will sprout my own whole wheat berries and grind them into flour, but for the time being I will use the KAF flour version.  The combination of the Sprouted Wheat flour along with the KAF European flour, spelt and potatoes made this a moist bread with a nice open crumb and chewy crust.

The KAF European Artisan flour is one of my favorites and contains a small amount of white whole wheat flour and comes in at 11.7% protein level which is ideal for artisan loaves.

I decided to add my Apple Yeast Water as part of the liquid to make things interesting and give it a more tender and open crumb which it most certainly did achieve.

I wanted to get a slight nutty flavor without adding nuts so I used some walnut oil and to further enhance the flavor profile I added some Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar.

While the hydration level of this dough came in at only 70% I will tell you with this combination of flours it was a very wet dough.  I probably should have done a few more stretch and folds in the rising bucket but in the end while a little more flat than preferred it had good oven spring and tastes great.

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.  I usually do this the night before.

Either use in the main dough immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 day before using.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, and 350 grams of the liquids together in your mixer or by hand until it just starts to come together, maybe about 1 minute.  Let it rest in your work bowl covered for 20-30 minutes.  Next add the salt, starter (cut into about 7-8 pieces), balsamic and walnut oil and mix on low for a minute.  Add the rest of the liquid unless the dough is way too wet.   Mix on low-speed for another 5 minutes.  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.  I made 1 large miche using a lined wicker basket.  Place your dough into your proofing basket(s) and cover with a moist tea towel or plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to put them in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

After 1 minute lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

Max enjoying the fall pumpkin crop. It was hot for October....he needs a beer!