Barley/Wheat Bread, revisited

The last time I made this bread, I said I'd definitely make it again.  That was two years ago.  Two years!  At least I got back to it faster than MacArthur got back to the Phillipines.

Based on the prior experience, which was completely experimental, I made a couple of adjustments.  The first was in the grain bill.  I dropped the malt entirely and I swapped out 50g of the barley flour for 50g of rye flour.  The second adjustment was to bake the bread in 9x5 pans instead of 8x4 pans, which was a better fit for the dough quantity.

The revised formula is:

350g Whole barley flour

50g Whole rye flour

400g Whole wheat flour

400g Bread flour

900g Water

60g Honey

10g Active dry yeast

The process was unchanged.  Autolyse the flours, water, and honey (about 45 minutes this time around).  Mix in the salt.  Mix in the yeast.  Do three sets of stretch and folds at 20-30 minute intervals.  When the dough has doubled from its original volume, divide into two pieces.  Shape the loaves and place them in prepared 9x5 bread pans.  Ferment the loaves until they have nearly doubled, then bake in a preheated oven at 375F for 50-60 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 195F. Depan and cool on a rack, covered with a towel.

I like the addition of rye flour for this version of the bread.  It intensifies the whole-grain flavors without standing out as RYE!  The barley moderates the grassiness/bitterness of the red whole wheat and lends a certain fullness to the rest of the flavors. 

The crumb, while firm, is moist and fairly open for a bread with 66% whole grain, half of which are gluten-free or nearly so. 

Definitely a keeper and I think that I don't need to do any further adjusting with the flours.

Paul