Spelt Amaranth Sunflower Bread Recipes

AMARANTH-SUNFLOWER-SPELT BREAD

Steps:

• Place 1 cup water and 1/4 teaspoon sea salt in a 1-quart saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Add amaranth, lower flame, and cover. Simmer for 45 minutes or until water is absorbed.
• Preheat oven to 350°F
• Spread the sunflower seeds on a baking sheet and toast for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
• Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, 1/2 cup of the toasted sunflower seeds, and remaining sea salt in a medium-size mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the soy milk, amaranth, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and maple syrup.
• Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly, but do not overmix. Batter will be thick but pourable.
• Lightly oil (or pan-spray) a 9- or 10-inch pie pan.
• Pour in the batter and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

PERFECT SPELT BREAD

Steps:

• Combine the yeast, water and honey in a large warm bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes or until the yeast softens.
• Stir in the butter and salt and 3 cups of flour. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon.
• Add the remaining flour in increments until the dough become too stiff to stir, then place the dough on a lightly floured surface.
• Knead for about 6 minutes, adding the remaining flour as necessart, until the dough become smooth and elastic. Do not overknead!
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about 2 hours or until doubled in bulk. (I find that sometimes it only takes an hour, make sure to check!).
• Grease two 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf pans. Punch the dough down to deflate it and divide it in half. Form each half into a smooth loaf and place in a prepared pan.
• Cover and let rise in a warm draft-free spot for about 1 hour or until the dough has risen to the top of the pans. (Again, I find that it seems to take less time than listed here.).
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Uncover the risen loaves. Place the pans on a heavy baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until the tops are light brown and crusty. Remove from the oven and tap out of the pan into the baking sheet. Turn the oven off and return the breads to the oven to crisp for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

EINKORN AND AMARANTH SOURDOUGH BREAD REVISITED

Steps:

• Mixing, Gluten Development & Bulk Fermentation
• Mix all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl until they're well incorporated. Cover and let the dough rest 30-60 minutes.
• Laminate the dough 1-2 times. This can be done in quick succession or with a rest in between. Return the dough to the bowl, cover and let it rest about 30 minutes.
• Perform 3-4 rounds of coil folding/stretching and folding at 20-40 minute intervals.
• End the bulk fermentation when the dough is puffy and bubbly. In my oven with the light on (mid-80s), this dough fermented about 4 1/2 hours.
• Pre-shaping, Bench Rest, Shaping
• Scrape the dough out of your bowl and onto a lightly floured countertop. Preshape the dough into a ball, cover it with your bowl, and let it rest 20-60 minutes. Aim for the shorter side of that range if the dough is webby and very fermented, and longer if it seems less fermented.
• Flour the rested dough and your proofing basket. Flip the dough and shape it into an oval, round or oblong loaf. Flour the shaped dough and place in your proofing basket seam-side up.
• Final Proof
• For the final proof, aim for an expanded dough that doesn't rebound when gently poked. In the case of this dough, I left it at room temperature for about 70 minutes and then popped it into the freezer for 20 minutes. Overnight refrigeration works, too, as does room temperature only, and many combinations of warm and cold.
• Preheating & Baking
• Before the final proof is over, preheat your oven and baking vessel to 500F for 30 minutes.
• Flip your dough directly into the base of your baking vessel, or flip it onto parchment paper and then transfer the dough and parchment to the base of your vessel.
• Score the top of the dough.
• If your baking vessel is made of clay, you can paint the dough with water if you want to remove excess flour and add more steam to the process. If your baking vessel is made of cast iron, you can add an ice cube under the parchment paper.
• Cover and return the vessel to the oven.
• Bake:
• 15 minutes at 500F with the lid on. If your baking vessel is made of cast iron, add a baking sheet under your baking vessel after this stage.
• 10 minutes at 450F with the lid on.
• 5-10 minutes at 450F with the lid off.
• The internal temperature of your bread should be at least 205F when you remove it from the oven. Let the dough cool for several hours before cutting.