Chicken Creek Journal: Accidental Bread Recipe

Creation of a new recipe requires experimentation. This bread, first created by accident out of necessity, has been through several permutations involving different combinations of flour, unbleached, whole wheat, and whole spelt. I’ve also used canola oil or flax oil in varying amounts. The flax oil worked fine and had the advantage of its high omega-3 content. When canola served as the oil, I’ve added some ground flax seed for its fiber and omega-3. Mainly I’ve focused on using a significant amount of whole spelt flour for its superior protein and vitamin content.

Not one of these experiments has been a failure. Each one has raised well, tasted good, and made great toast.

As promised, here is the recipe for accidental bread. Don’t hesitate to vary the flour combinations according to your personal taste.

Accidental Bread

For the sponge:

2 cups lukewarm water

2 teaspoons granular yeast

1 cup unbleached flour

2 cups whole wheat bread flour

2 teaspoons salt

To finish the dough:

1 cup lukewarm water

¼ cup oil, scant

2 tablespoons honey

4 to 5 cups whole spelt flour

Making the sponge:

Pour the lukewarm water into a mixer bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Don’t stir. Let this sit until the yeast expands and rises to the top in what I think of as the bloom. This will take several minutes, time enough to wash the breakfast dishes.

Now add the salt and beat in the flour one cup at a time. Continue beating until the mixture forms ribbons as it is stirred. Cover the bowl with plastic and/or a towel. Go away and do something else for about an hour. Check the sponge for activity; it should be bubbling and doubled in size.

Making the dough:

Stir down the sponge and mix in the water, oil, and honey. Now add the spelt flour a cup at a time, reserving one cup for kneading.

When the flour is incorporated, turn the dough out onto a kneading cloth sprinkled with flour. Knead, adding more flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking. Bread made with spelt flour requires less kneading than whole wheat. The dough will be soft, but knead only until it is no longer sticky on the outside.

Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn it over so there is a coat of oil on the top. Cover and let rise until doubled.

Divide the dough in two parts. Shape into a loaves and place them in buttered 9” bread pans. Cover with a cloth and let rise until the dough mounds up above the pans. Bake at 350º for 45 minutes.

Turn the loaves out of the pans and let them cool on a rack.

If you want to use ground flax seed, add three tablespoons in place of three tablespoons of flour in the dough.

Happy baking.