August 31, 2016 - 6:00am
First time using spelt flour
I'm a total novice to bread making (it's beena bout 2 weeks since I made my first loaf) and I've been trying out some very basic loaves - mostly just adding seeds, honey, that kind of thing - with one recipe.
I saw Spelt Flour in the shop the other day and although it was a bit more expensive I thought I might give it a go.
The packet said that it would rise a lot faster than a normal flour (I seriously did not find that to be true at all) so I am wondering if I'm doing something wrong here?
The bread itself is quite dense with a strong flavour - the crumb is very nice but I found the crust a little bitter.
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It looks very nice to me!
Thank you! It tastes just fine with some honey drizzled over it ;)
but it also depends on how much you use in the dough as well as the room temperature. A couple of time, I found myself baking in the middle of the night because it was rising like a runaway train. My fridge temp was also too warm so that didn't help either!
Perhaps I didn't spend long enough kneading it - it was still fairly stiff - and I've seen that Spelt may need a lil more water than normal flour... it was a little dry.
Next time I'll know better though!
Keep going, looks good.
Thank you so much! I'm only new to making bread but I've really loved it!
proofing one time. - the only one ever to do that..... but I'm not sure i was blameless either:-) Some people find whole grains a bit more bitter than white flour - I do too and why I think people put honey or some kind of sugar in their whole grain breads. I think your bread looks like it would be great for any sandwich one would make.
Well done and Happy baking
It is a great loaf for sandwiches (but a little dry) and I've just been eating it with honey and maple syrup.
I used 100% wholemeal and I think I will 50/50 it with strong white the next time - I've got enough for another loaf (or two 50/50's) so I'm going to have a little experiment!
Let's just hope it doesn't explode!
at 100% hydration and it was just waiting to explode in the fridge while I was sleeping - to teach me a lesson :-)
I make spelt loaves 3 times a week and yes, it's prone to overfermenting if you let it. Looks like you've used wholemeal spelt which might be a bit more forgiving - I tend to make mine with a 30/70 mix of wholemeal to white. It can get quite slack and flow when trying to free-form it - I use bannetons - keep using a tin would be my initial advice!
I add honey to spelt to lift a little of that earthyness - about 10-15g per small loaf.
-Gordon
I'm going to use the rest in a 50/50 loaf I think, and I'll be adding honey too - I think it might offset the little bit of bitter on the crust.
I don't think I'm brave enough to make it without a tin - I see the wonderful round loaves on here (super posh looking breads, omg, I'm hungry just thinking about them!) that are formed freehand and I'm thinking.... A little too advanced!
I still haven't tried to make rolls yet!
Won't be buying more Spelt till I've got a better hang of the basics.
I'm a whole spelt fan, also whole rye and whole wheat. I don't use sweeteners in my whole grain loaves, just ample amounts of butter or olive oil! :)