After making the hazelnut and grain loaves recently, I was left with a large quantity of cooked grains in the fridge…
I was loathe to waste these, so I made up two more recipes from Dan Lepard’s The Handmade Loaf.
The first was a variation of his Ale Bread with Wheat Grains – an attractive loaf, although the soaked grains in both cases made the dough very wet. I was concerned it would stick like glue to the banneton, hence the crazy amount of rye flour on the loaf above.
The finished loaf had a soft crumb and pleasant taste, although I think my decision to replace the ale in the recipe with apple cider might have been a bit rash…
. . . . .
The second recipe was an adaptation of Dan’s Alsace Loaf with Rye.
Despite the finished loaves looking like kindling (according to Pete), the bread had a deliciously sweet flavour, a tender but elastic crumb, and a lovely crunchy crust. It was so good in fact that we struggled to put anything on it – and settled for simply eating it plain.
Here’s my take on Dan’s recipe:
- 300g soaked mixed grains, well drained (see instructions here)
- 550g bakers/bread flour
- 320g water
- ¾ teaspoon dried yeast
- 25g honey
- 150g sourdough starter at 80% hydration (ie. fed at a ratio of 100g flour to 80g water)
- 1¼ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 25g grapeseed oil
Cooking and soaking grains before adding them to a dough is an old-fashioned breadbaking technique, and one that’s rarely employed by modern day bakeries.
If you’re baking at home though, do give this a go – the grains soften up, and the resultant loaves are delicious, keep well, and don’t destroy your fillings when you bite into them!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 