I love to bake, and fresh baked bread is my family’s favorite. I use the dough cycle on my bread machine for most breads, then bake the loaves in the oven. I usually bake bread twice a week and use a variety of different recipes. Recently I have been reading about the benefits of soaking whole grains, but I have not been able to find a soaked grain recipe for my bread machine.
To read more about the benefits of soaked grains read the following article:
http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/2008/04/whole-grains-grinding-soaking.html
Using a favorite spelt bread recipe and components of an excellent recipe from Passionate Homemaking, I developed my own soaked bread recipe for my bread machine. I have a one pound bread machine, but this recipe could easily be doubled for a two pound machine.
Ingredients
¾ cup warm water
½ cup plain yogurt or cultured buttermilk
3 Tbls melted butter
2 cups whole grain spelt flour (whole wheat flour will work fine too!)
½ cup whole oats
2 Tbls flax seeds
2 Tbls water
½ tsp raw organic cane sugar
2 tsp yeast
1 tsp salt
2 Tbls vital gluten
pinch ginger
¼ cup sunflower seeds
¾ cup white bread flour
Directions
Add yogurt, water, butter, spelt flour, oats and flax seeds to pan of bread machine. Turn the bread machine on (any cycle) let run 4-5 minutes or until mixture is fully incorporated.
Unplug bread machine and close lid. Let sit 12 – 24 hours. 24 hours is ideal for soaking oats, but if you can’t wait that long do what you can. Don’t forget to put a sticky note on your bread machine so you remember when to get started again.
In a small bowl mix water, sugar, and yeast, let sit 5 min.
Open lid of bread machine and start dough cycle. Add yeast mixture, salt, vital gluten, ginger,sunflower seeds, and flour. Let the machine run for about 10 minutes then check your dough (it should have formed a nice ball).
If your dough is still sticking to the side of the pan add more flour a little at a time until dough pulls away from the sides of the pan. If your flour is not fully incorporated into the dough, give the dough a good stir with a spatula and start the cycle over from the beginning. Close lid and let dough cycle run (about 2 hours).
Remove bread pan from bread machine. Heat oven to 170 degrees. Place dough in a greased loaf pan and place in heated oven.
Turn of oven and set timer for 30 min. When timer goes off turn the oven on to 350 degrees and bake for 30-45 min. Remove from oven and turn out onto a rack to cool. Let sit ten minutes before slicing. Enjoy!
Cottonwood Cottage Farm 
Looks likes it takes quite a bit of time, but if you use your machine that cuts out some of the work, I’ll try anything that will help me stay off the white processed flour and tastes yummy, Thank Cis.
This looks good. What is vital gluten?
Vital gluten flour is a dough conditioner that helps keep wheat and grain breads from becoming too dense. Generally one Tbls of vital gluten can be added to a recipe for each cup of whole wheat or whole grain flour that it contains. I buy mine at Winco in the bulk foods section. Bob’s Red Mill also makes a small bag that most grocery stores carry.
Looks really great! It looks like there are whole flax seeds in it though, you have to grind up flax seeds before you use them or your body wont absorb any of the benefits. My doctor told me it’s because they are too small to be crushed by our teeth.
Pingback: 2010 in review | Cottonwood Cottage Farm