Spelt bread
Spelt bread is made from spelt, an ancient variety of wheat with a sweet, nutty flavor and an aroma of toasted grain. Baked in a loaf pan, it has a soft, moist crumb and a thin, beautifully browned crust, perfect for slicing at breakfast with butter, honey or cheese.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Rising or chilling
- 2 hr
- Total time
- 3 hr 5 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Instructions
Step 1
Mix 500 g spelt flour with 6 g instant yeast and 10 g salt, then pour in 340 g warm water, 15 g honey and 15 g olive oil, adding 30 g sunflower seeds if you like. Honey feeds the yeast and gives the crust a lovely color. The mixture is ready when it forms a soft, fairly sticky dough.
Step 2
Knead the dough gently for about five minutes, using a dough scraper or wet hands since it's a bit sticky. Spelt gluten is more delicate than regular wheat gluten, and kneading too long makes the dough slack and runny. It's ready when it's smoother, less sticky and slightly elastic.
Step 3
Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and let it rise at room temperature for about an hour. Spelt dough ferments quickly, so don't let it rise too long. It's ready when it has grown to about one and a half to two times its size and the top is gently domed.
Step 4
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter, press it into a rectangle, roll it up tightly from the short side and pinch the seam closed, then place it in a greased 23 cm loaf pan. Rolling tightly helps the loaf rise evenly with no big holes inside. The loaf is ready when it sits snugly in the pan, seam side down.
Step 5
Cover the pan with a towel and let it rise for about 45 minutes more. This second rise lets the loaf puff up high enough before baking. It's ready when it has risen level with the rim of the pan and a fingertip dent springs back slowly.
Step 6
While the dough rises a second time, preheat the oven to 220°C and set a rack in the middle. A fully hot oven from the start helps the loaf spring up as much as possible in the first ten minutes. The oven is ready when an oven thermometer shows the right temperature.
Step 7
Score a line down the top of the loaf, mist it with a little water and bake at 220°C for about 35 to 40 minutes. The score gives the loaf room to expand without cracking randomly. The bread is done when the crust is evenly brown and the bottom sounds hollow when you take it out of the pan and tap it.
Step 8
Take the bread out of the pan right away and let it cool on a wire rack for about an hour. The steam inside needs to escape so the crumb can set and won't stick to the knife. It's ready when the bottom of the loaf is completely cool.
Equipment
- Oven
- Loaf pan
- Kitchen scale
- Mixing bowl
- Bench scraper
- Plastic wrap
- Wire cooling rack
Tips
- Whole grain spelt flour absorbs more water than white spelt flour, so if you use whole grain, add about one tablespoon more water.
- Don't let spelt dough rise too long, since its weak gluten tires easily and the loaf can collapse in the oven.
- Sprinkling oats or pumpkin seeds on top before baking makes the loaf look even more inviting.
Storage
Wrapped in a towel or paper bag, the bread keeps for three days at room temperature. You can slice and freeze it for up to a month, then toast the slices straight from the freezer as needed.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The loaf collapsed or baked up flat on top.
- The dough rose too long or was overkneaded. Shorten the rising time and knead only until the dough is just smooth.
- The center of the crumb is wet and gummy.
- The bread wasn't fully baked or was cut while still hot. Bake it five minutes longer and wait until it's completely cool before slicing.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
