I grew up on homemade bread. My mom still has not given me her recipe, but I am waiting patiently for it. However, I have a favorite of my own-- a go-to bread recipe-- that I concocted from the honey-wheat version. Okay, in reality it is a mix of organic spelt and organic bread flour, but I call it agave-spelt because the spelt flour does affect the pH of the wheat bread flour. It lowers the acidity; and therefore, I think the spelt has earned the right to be used in the title.
First a note on the flour and then I'll get into the agave. If you do not buy both flours in bulk, you'll be spending an arm and a leg in order to purchase them. In truth, I was at Whole Foods the other day and I saw them filling the organic oat canister from the bulk bag of the same company I buy my organic spelt flour, Great River Organic Milling. Now, a 25 lb bag of organic spelt flour will cost almost $45 on Amazon, but may be more expensive on other sites. If you are like me and buy multiple things bulk to save money, then you may want to make sure you have somewhere dry, dark, and cool to store these things in order to preserve them. I have a few armoiries, a freezer, and an extra refrigerator. I store my flour in the armoire, while I store my nuts (all kinds) in the freezer so they will not go rancid. So, if you do not have a place to store these things, perhaps buying in bulk is not for you. Currently, I buy flour and nuts in bulk online. I also buy my raw agave online. They are the most expensive of the things I buy.
Now, the agave (and for me, it must be organic raw agave) is a bit tricky. If you do your research, not all agave is created the same. You might as well be using high-fructose corn syrup if you purchase some agave products. The slowly metabolized agave, which has the low glycemic index, is the raw agave. Usually folks like the light agave, which has often been heated to remove the strong agave flavor from the syrup and thereby also removing the nutritional value. However, the darker agave is often called "raw" agave, which means it hasn't been heated to the extent of removing the nutritional content. I have found lighter agave, which has not been processed, but it is not going to be inexpensive. Prepare to pay good money (as much as as $84 for a gallon). However, I have found a cheaper "lighter" raw agave on Amazon for less, but after purchasing a few times, the lightness is subjective. Right now, I only buy the dark, organic, raw kind and I find it works for me. They store well in a dry, cool, and dark place.
I used to only buy my baking yeast in bulk. I store this tightly secured, surrounded by plastic, and then in an air tight container in the freezer. It keeps about a year. I make bread often. Before, I was paying about $7-$8 dollars a month for yeast. Now, I pay $9 a year. I am much happier now. The yeast is not labeled organic, but I don't think it matters. If it matters to you, then buy organic. I'm good with mostly organic ingredients in my bread. I now buy rapid rise or instant as well if I know I'm short on time.
Two ingredients that may make you wonder is my potato water, which makes the bread rise well and adds a softness that I like. The ground ginger also helps the rise. You may exclude it if using potato water (no need for overkill). This is the basic recipe, but you may add bran, psyllium husk powder, wheat germ, and other ingredients as you see fit. I truly love this recipe and so does my family.
Growing up, we never ate the bread on the first day it was baked. I have met folks who do this, but my mom always said that it was important for the yeast to settle in the bread before we ate it and this is what we do. We let the bread sit after it is baked for at least 24 hours before we eat it. If I make multiple loaves, then I let it sit for as much as 48 hours before I freeze them or make croutons. This just works better.
Now, I make my multiple loaves by hand. I find I can stretch my flour better for some reason when I do this. This never works out when I use the bread machine. I don't know why either. I make about three loaves each time I make it by hand. If I use the bread machine, I make two small loaves. I prefer not to BAKE using the bread machine. The loaves are just too big for my liking. So, if I do use the bread machine, I use the dough cycle...unless the bread is specifically for croutons and I know that in advanced, then and only then will I bake it in the bread machine. Once the dough cycle finishes, I place the dough in bread pans and let it rise in warm enclosed space, such as a warmed oven, or if it's summer right in the kitchen covered by a damp clean kitchen towel. I may heat the oven up ahead of time and turn it off (see the below tip), but usually my ritual is to boil water in a small pot and put it in the oven underneath my rising bread. I find this works VERY well.
AGAVE-SPELT BREAD
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup warm potato water (or warm water around 80 degrees)
- ½ cup organic raw agave nectar
- 2 tablespoons of avocado oil (or any non-hydrogenated oil of your choice)
- 1/8 teaspoon ginger, grounded (optional)
- 4 ¼ cup flour (I use 2¼ cups of organic spelt flour sifted with 2 cups of organic bread flour, but for softer bread, you may use 1 1/4 cup of organic spelt flour and 3 cups of organic bread four)
- 2 teaspoons salt (sea salt or Himalayan pink)
- 2 teaspoons active yeast (This is a measurement for loose yeast. I also use instant yeast or rapid rise and if using a packet of yeast, I put the whole pack.)
- Oil spray to coat bread pan(s), I use cold-pressed avocado oil
BY HAND:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Measure out all
ingredients but the oil. In a large bowl, start the process by mixing the warm potato water/warm
water (about 80 degrees) with one tablespoon of the agave nectar and the
yeast. Let sit for about 10 minutes. until yeast proofs. Once the
yeast proofs, add the rest of the agave nectar, 1.5 tablespoons of the oil, and
salt to this and stir. Mix in about two cups of flour, just until the
mixture thickens, but is not dough or runny. Once the flour is mixed, put
in a warm place* for thirty minutes until it rises and is spongy and sticky.
Once 30 minutes has passed, add one (1) more cup of flour and
stir until you cannot stir it any more. Add more until you cannot stir
any longer. Put a bit of the remaining flour on the counter. Set the timer to
8-10 minutes and be sure to knead bread for that long. Pour out mixture
onto the counter and knead while adding more and more flour as needed. If
you run out of the measured flour, continue to add more spelt flour until
the bread is fully kneaded. Once the dough is well-kneaded (and a bit
sticky), then put the 1/2 tablespoon of oil in a large bowl and coat the dough
with the oil. Put the the bowl in a warm place (see tip below) and let
the dough rise another 50 minutes until the dough doubles in size.
Punch down the dough aggressively and form into one big loaf, or
cut into two smaller loaves. Spray the bread pan(s)
with oil spray and place the dough inside loaf pan(s). Put pan(s) into warm place (again, see tip below) and let rise for about 30-50 minutes or
until the dough is about an inch or more above the rim. (If you are not using
an included warm space, then cover loaf using either recommendation in the tip
below and let rise about 1-1.5 hours.)
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, depending upon size of
loaf. (I use glass bread pans and so I'm able to check the sides of the pan to
see if my bread is truly done. If it's not done, which means the sides are too
light or looks like they are doughy or soggy, I'll add 2 extra minutes and
check again.) Once done, take it out of oven, coat the top lightly with oil or agave water to shine, and let sit in the pan for an additional 10 minutes, then remove from pans and place on the cooling rack for about 1-2 hours before bagging.
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TIP: To get that warm place, I
heat the oven to 175 and then TURN IT OFF. I take a small saute pan and
boil a bit of water in it and place on the bottom rack of the stove. This
creates a warm moist environment for the bread to optimally rise. Put bread
UNCOVERED on top rack in the oven. I never cover it since it’s in an
enclosed space. However, if you are NOT going to use your oven as the warm
place, then you need to cover it with cellophane wrap or a towel (if you use a
cloth towel, your bread may stick to the towel if the towel is not slightly
wet) and double the minutes it takes for it to rise. I find the oven
the best way for the bread to rise.
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BY BREAD MACHINE: This recipe also works well in a
bread machine. If you are using a machine, follow these instructions: In the order shown, add
ingredients. Select your desired crust. (Wet ingredients must be added
first!)
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DOUBLE THE RECIPE: You may also double the
recipe to make three medium loaves of bread, but DO NOT TRY THIS IN THE BREAD
MACHINE! Only do this if you are making bread by hand. For those novices,
I urge you to start with only one loaf! :)
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| A loaf of my Agave-Spelt Bread in all of its glory! |
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HOMEMADE CROUTONS
Making my delicious croutons is a breeze and the easiest if you have the time.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Onion Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Oregano, dried
- Basil, dried
- Agave-Spelt Bread, cubed
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Tear a piece of parchment paper to cover a cookie sheet, and then spread out the bread cubes on it to form one layer of cubes. This will allow them to evenly bake.
Bake for 15 minutes. Then remove from the oven, if they feel a bit soft, move them about on the sheet, and place in the oven for additional 2 minutes.
Let sit for about 10 minutes and jar. Enjoy!!!
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TIP: Though I rarely do this, I do use the bread machine to bake if I am pressed (I mean really pressed) for time and I am out of croutons. If I know that my bread will be used for croutons ahead of time, I would simply make the bread in the bread machine. My bread machine produces big square shapes. It's easy to cube these for me when compared to the oven loaves. Also, I get two big canisters of croutons from one big bread machine loaf. Don't forget to let the bread sit for 48 hours before making the croutons.
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| My two canisters of croutons. Yum! |
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Well, today is Preparation Day for the Sabbath; so I have a bit of cooking to do. I am happy I got to share the bread I love so much with you today. If you have any questions or comments regarding the bread or the croutons, feel free to ask.
Enjoy your weekend!!!
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