When we shared this delicious recipe that lets you home-made fresh sourdough bread can bake, reader Janny emailed her recipe for spelt sourdough bread. Too crazy! May we share this recipe with our readers? ‘Definitely,’ was her reply. The rest is history. And so this coming weekend, you can enjoy your homemade spelt sourdough. Enjoy!
Spelt sourdough starter
To bake sourdough bread, you first need a sourdough starter. You can buy this ready-made, but it is even more fun and tasty to make the starter yourself. In this article, you will find an easy step-by-step guide on how to make your own sourdough starter. Do you already have a starter? Then you can super-easy bake your own sourdough bread with this recipe.
What exactly is sourdough bread?
Sourdough bread has the same ingredients as regular bread, only there is one important difference: instead of yeast, in this case good bacteria in the sourdough starter ensure that the bread rises well. This not only gives sourdough a special flavour, but also makes the bread easier to digest. Moreover, sourdough bread keeps longer than bread baked with yeast. And you can easily and cheaply make it yourself with just a few ingredients. So plenty of reasons to get started and bake your own sourdough bread.
Spelt sourdough bread: what exactly is spelt?
Spelt, also known as ‘Triticum spelta’, is one of the oldest cereals we know. This ancient grain has been cultivated for more than nine thousand years and used to be widely eaten in Europe, especially by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Spelt is a cereal closely related to wheat, yet slightly different. It has a firm outer husk that provides protection against diseases and pests, making it a popular choice for organic farming. It has a nutty flavour and slightly sweet undertones, making it a favourite in many cuisines, especially in breads, pastas and cakes. Moreover, spelt is rich in nutrients such as fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals, making it a healthy choice for people looking for a nutritious alternative to common wheat.
Steps for making your own spelt sourdough bread.
Making your own spelt sourdough bread
Kitchenware
- oven
- baking sheet
- come
- tea towel
Ingredients
- 150 ml water (room temperature)
- 60 gr sourdough starter
- 275 gr spelt flour
- 5 gr salt
Instructions
Prepare
- Add the water to the bowl and dissolve the salt.
- Mix the water with the sourdough starter in a large bowl. You can read how to make a sourdough starter here.
- Then add the spelt flour and knead the dough just until the liquid is well absorbed.
- Meanwhile, moisten a tea towel and place it over the bowl. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes and then start folding the dough every 20 minutes. You do this three times in total. You take a piece of dough and fold it over the dough and repeat this about six times. After the last folding, clean your countertop and sprinkle some flour on it.
- You take your dough out of the bowl and place it on the floured countertop. Next, you start forming a ball out of the dough. You do this by folding the dough again, but then fold the points towards the middle. Then turn the dough over and rotate the dough with your hands. That way, the dough will get tension. Then take a rising basket or a bowl with a tea towel, sprinkle it with flour.
- Next, place your ball of dough upside down in the bowl and cover it again with a damp tea towel. Then let the dough rise for 3 hours; the dough will rise about 25 to 40 per cent. Then leave the bowl covered overnight in the fridge.
Baking bread
- The next morning, place a baking dish with a lid or a pan with a lid in the oven and turn on the oven to 230°C. Meanwhile, remove the bowl from the fridge and invert it onto baking paper. Remove the tea towel, sprinkle the dough with flour and make a cut in the middle of the dough. When the oven is up to temperature then remove your baking dish from the oven. Be careful because it is incredibly hot.
- Remove the lid and place the baking sheet with dough in the baking dish. Put the lid on and put it in the oven for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, remove the lid and continue baking your bread at 210°C for 20 minutes. If all goes well, your bread will get a nice golden brown colour. Remove the baking dish from the oven and let it cool.
Notes
- If you don't have time to fold the dough, you can also mix everything well and let it rest at room temperature. Finally, do put your mix in the fridge overnight before baking.
- For a large loaf, you can do all the ingredients times two.
- Variation tip: add sultanas for a sultana bread.
More tasty recipes from thegreenlist.nl
- Savoury cake: vegan pumpkin curry quiche.
- Game pesto: Dutch pesto of ground elder and wild garlic.
- Healthy sweet snack: candy made from dates.
Sources: smarticular, book: die neue traditionelle Ernährung. Photo credits: Janny Brouwer.
