This bread is ready start to finish in about three hours with no kneading! Seriously this is the most simple and quick yeast bread I have ever made!! With my wheat gluten sensitivities I am always trying new variations of bread recipes that do not use wheat flour to get that classic bread that is crusty on the outside and soft and spongy in the middle!! Like a French bread. This one hits all the notes straight out of the oven and next day leftovers are easy to slice thin or thick for sandwiches and toast! You can’t beat it!
Spelt flour has been a game changer for me. I get zero hives or other uncomfortable reactions that I normally get with wheat flour. The gluten in spelt is water soluble unlike wheat gluten and it’s much less and easier to digest. You can substitute spelt flour cup for cup with any wheat flour recipe. Which means if you have found this recipe you can use wheat instead of spelt if you like.
Ingredients:
4 3/4 cups spelt flour (Measure loosely do not pack tight)
2 teaspoons Himalayan salt or sea salt
1 tablespoon coconut sugar or (1/2 tablespoon of cane sugar)
2 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
2 cups very warm water (120°F)
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons olive oil or avocado oil
Directions:
In a large bowl mix together your dry ingredients including the yeast. Make sure your yeast is fresh and not expired. Old yeast will not rise well. If you have a meat thermometer or candy thermometer you want to test your water for temperature. It should be almost hot. If it’s too hot it will kill the yeast if it’s too cold it won’t rise fast enough. You should be able to put it on your wrist without it burning but it should feel very warm. I hate mine on the stove for just a little. But the thermometer makes all the difference. The thermometer will also help when you take the bread out of the oven and will tell you when it is exactly done on the inside without guessing.
Now add all of your wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir them together. You do not have to add the yeast to the hot water first like regular bread recipes. The yeast is added to the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients added last. It will look shaggy which is normal. It will not look like regular bread dough. Don’t overmix just get it mixed until thoroughly incorporated about 1 minute.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Place in a warm area and let rise for two hours. The dough should double in size if you are yeast is fresh.
When your two hour timer goes off set your oven to 420°F. Lightly sprinkle more flour over the top of dough a wooden spatula to mix it in it will be very shaggy add a little more flour and mix again. Repeat this 4 to 5 times total with a light sprinkle of flour. Should take no more than a minute total to add all of the extra flour dusting and mixing. Then place your dough in bread pan it will double in bread pan so you want to leave it about an inch below the top. The leftover dough can be made into rolls or you can half the dough into two bread pans. You can also freeze leftover dough to use later. You could also shape the entire dough on a baking sheet into a very large round loaf. I like using a regular loaf pan and having the extra to make hamburger buns or pizza crust.
Cover the bread pan with the same plastic wrap that you used to cover your bowl. Let rise for about 20 minutes until your oven is preheated and place on middle rack making sure if any racks are above it they are placed high enough that the dough will not rise and touch the rack.
For a regular size loaf pan the bread will need to cook 35 to 45 minutes. It should be lightly browned on top. If you have a thermometer your internal temperature from the middle of the bread loaf should be between 208° and 211°. I like mine at 208° to be a little bit extra soft and spongy. If you like your door well done you’ll want it to be 210 or 211°. Another method if you don’t have a thermometer is to take the bread out of the pan and knock on the bottom it should sound hollow. I was never good at this method so I bought a thermometer lol. For smaller roles about the size of a hamburger bun you will want to bake them for 20 to 25 minutes.
Health Coaching & Healthy Recipes 