Sprouted Whole Wheat Bread

 

Whole Wheat Bread-THM Style

2 loaves

I have been in the kitchen since I was able to stand on a chair next to my mother. She was my 4-H leader from age 9, and I learned all of my kitchen skills from her.  She was an excellent baker, canning aficionado and superb chef.  Both of my parents felt, as I do, that homemade is best—homegrown even better.

We raised chickens, turkeys, beef cattle, rabbits and a large garden of produce to feed my brothers and sisters.  We all had certain tasks during one of our “putting up” sessions.  Mother was always telling me to be refined, and stop acting like the boys. LOL I had four brothers and two sisters, I think the masculine influence always outnumbered the feminine.

We were a large family and we would buy large quantities of whole grains to turn into flour with the grain mill in the basement.  It stood on three legs with a heavy bag underneath to catch the warm flour as it came through the mill.  It smelled so good!  

My mother taught me to count four pints of wheat berries out into the hopper and plug the mill into the wall. A poof of flour would become airborne as the grinder started up.  I would watch carefully for the last of the grain to go through the chute so that I could unplug the mill from the wall and carefully carry the warm, heavy bag upstairs to my bread-making mother.  She would have the yeast, honey and water proofing in her mixer ready for the freshly milled flour. She added shortening, powdered milk, salt and flour to make a perfectly soft, smooth dough.  

Her hands flew over the dough as she quickly divided, rolled and formed them into loaves, setting the four loaves aside in their pans, tucked under a clean white dish towel. 

I made her whole wheat bread for years and then recently tweaked it into a Trim Healthy version of the same recipe.  I’m sharing the two-loaf version here:   

 

2 loaves

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine:

2 ½ cups warm water, (bathwater temp)

1 ½ T yeast

3 T honey

·  Proof these ingredients for 15 minutes to activate the yeast. If it is not bubbly after 15 minutes use newer yeast or test your water temperature.

 

Add these to the stand mixer:

3 T coconut oil

½ c unflavored whey protein

1 T salt

2 T vital wheat gluten or sunflower lecithin* See Notes.

4-9 cups of sprouted whole wheat flour

·  Mix enough flour in to make a soft, sticky dough, don’t add too much flour!**

·  Knead the dough using your stand mixer or by hand for 9-15 minutes or until you can use a small blob and stretch out to perform the windowpane test.†

·  Weigh out or divide evenly into two loaves. 

·  Roll out (no flour or oil) into a rectangle about 9” x 12” and roll up tightly, pinching closed on the ends and side.

·  Place seam side down in a greased loaf pan and lightly spray the top with coconut or olive oil spray to prevent drying out and splitting during baking.

·  Let rise until about 1” above the edge of the pan. 

·  Bake in a 425 oven for 15 minutes, then turn down to 300 for 30 minutes.  Turn out onto wire rack, and brush tops with butter. ††

·  Finally, bag your read while it is barely warm.  The humidity it provides also adds to the softness of your loaf.

·  Store leftover slices or loaves in the freezer.  This bread freezes beautifully.

This isn't the most perfect looking loaf, I got a bubble in the middle as sometimes happens. It still tastes delicious though!

 

NOTES:

* Vital wheat gluten is what gives your bread a light, spongy texture which is suitable for sandwich bread.  If you don’t have it, your bread will still be terrific, it may just have more of crumbly texture. Strong flour or bread flour is best, but if you can’t find it, that’s ok, that’s why we add the gluten or lecithin.

 

** You want a dough that is slightly sticky. It will become less sticky as the gluten develops.  You can always add more flour, but you can’t take it out.

 

† Windowpane test: Take a small piece of dough and stretch it gently to see how thin it will become.  If you can see through it like a windowpane, you have achieved proper gluten activation.

 

†† The butter on top adds a barely significant amount of fat, but it keeps the tops soft like a sandwich bread and it is an important step. Don’t leave this out.

 

© Marvelous Mary Malone