The bread that I baked today is made from spelt flour, a sweet, nutty-tasting whole grain. Spelt is a distant cousin to our modern day wheat, but it is a non-hybrid form of grain. Not only is spelt easier to digest than wheat, it is also higher in protein and B complex vitamins. I also used Chia Seed Gel in this recipe for some extra nutritional boost.
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Spelt Bread with Chia Seeds
2 cups water (approximately 115 degrees F)
1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
2 tablespoons honey or agave nectar
about 5 cups whole spelt flour, divided
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Chia Seed Gel, optional
Place the water in a microwave safe container and heat until the temperature reaches 115 degrees F. Mix the yeast and honey into the warm water; let stand a few minutes until it bubbles and looks creamy. Pour the yeast mixture into a large bowl and add 2 1/2 cups of the flour; stir until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes. Stir the mixture down, cover and let rise again for 30 minutes. Add the olive oil, salt, and chia seed gel; mix well, then gradually stir in remaining 2 1/2 cups flour. Dough should become stiff and ready to knead. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead several times until the dough is elastic. Place the dough in a large oiled bowl, turning to coat the top of the dough. Let rise until doubled in size, about one hour. Form the dough into loaves and place into two oiled 4 x 8-inch loaf pans. Let the dough rise again until doubled in size, about one hour. Bake in a preheated 400 degree F oven for about 25 minutes. Cool bread in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove from pan to a cooling rack.
Spelt flour costs a little more than ordinary wheat flour because it is more difficult to process. It is a very tasty flour, and I believe worth the extra cost for some delicious bread.
I badly want to pop a couple slices of this into the toaster for breakfast…just love the sound of it! Chia seed gel? I must find some! Thanks so much for adding your beautiful loaves to the BYOB September bread basket, Anita! =)
Anita,
Your loaves came out beautiful and I love the addition of chia seeds! I've also recently started adding chia to a variety of foods and am convinced that I am feeling more energetic and stronger.
You know, Anita, I have never used spelt flour. I think I've told you that I bake our bread. I usually add ground flax seed and old-fashioned oats to add some nutritional benefits, but I'm thinking I need to buy some spelt flour.
This bread looks amazing. I will definitely be baking bread tomorrow. Thank you so much for bringing this to Weekend Potluck. Pinning. 🙂
Anita,
I can almost taste this awesome bread, there is nothing like a great slice of hot bread just out of the oven. Hope you are having a great week and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
those loafs look fantastic! I made a semolina bread the other day and it was so delicious! Too bad I do not have spelt flour at this moment I would try this recipe right away, as today is a bread baking day!
Those loaves are gorgeous! I'll have to try that some time. You know I love homemade bread…I just make my same old no-knead but I love it! Maybe this Winter when I have more time and the outside chores are "frozen".