Whole Wheat Sourdough Rolls

I haven't made bread for quite some time. It's easy to get out of the habit, especially when things like surgeries and recovery get in the way. So, it's back to the bread board, so to speak, even though I just knead it on the counter.

I have a new sourdough cookbook that I haven't used before. It is written in a very straight forward, sensible language that is easy to understand and follow. There are also some great stories and good humor. I appreciate an author that doesn't make any bones about the fact that flops will happen when you make bread. They even have recommendations for brick bread, you know, when it doesn't rise and is ultra heavy. They make bread crumbs or crackers from this very heavy bread which I think is a great idea!

I chose a recipe with 100% whole wheat flour and no sweetener. Frank and I are changing our eating habits and trying to limit the carbohydrates we eat. Some of the sites I have researched explain that the process of fermenting, or proofing your dough allows the lactobacilli in the sourdough starter to predigest the carbohydrates in the wheat, thus lowering the production of insulin when we digest the bread. Another benefit of using whole wheat is the fiber and nutrients it includes. This cookbook also has some very good information and explanations about using whole wheat for a variety of bread recipes.

I took my starter out of the refrigerator a few days ago and starting feeding it twice a day, morning and evening, to sweeten it up a bit since I hadn't used it in quite some time. I explained how to recondition a sourdough starter here. I guess sweeten it up can be misleading. I didn't add any sweetener at all, but by feeding it flour and water, and discarding all but about a cup and a half of the starter after a couple of days, it decreased the acidity or sourness of the starter, allowing for a milder flavor and odor. This is a personal preference. Your starter can be as sour, or acidic, as you like.

The Art of Baking with Natural Yeast recommends you proof your dough for a minimum of six hours to allow for the dough to autolyze, or predigest, which "neutralizes harmful enzymes, breaks down the negative aspects of gluten, and frees up vitamins and minerals for human digestion" (page 43). I ground my wheat and fed my starter last night so I would be ready to make bread this morning. 

This simple recipe includes:
1/2 cup starter
2 1/2 cups warm water
2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. coconut oil (I used olive oil)
5-6 cups whole wheat flour

One of the recommendations I found in this book was to let your dough rest for 30 minutes after mixing. This allows the fiber in the whole wheat flour to absorb moisture and make kneading easier and more effective. There are many tips throughout the book that I found very useful. As you can tell, I would recommend this book, especially for beginners with sourdough, like me.

I let this dough proof for seven hours before I made up the rolls. Then I let the rolls rise for another two hours before baking.

The recipe I used makes two loaves of bread. We chose to make rolls this time. This dough does not look like regular whole wheat yeast rolls. It doesn't brown or fluff up as much, and took a little longer to bake. But you know what? We like it. One of the reasons we do is because we know how much better it is for us. It is another step toward trying to improve our health.

Until next time - Fern

Making Graham Crackers & Pie

After I figured out how to make Chevre - soft goat cheese - I made a cheesecake out of it. I knew that Frank likes a graham cracker crust, and we don't buy graham crackers or pre-made pie crusts. So, I made some.

How do you make graham crackers so you can crush them up and make pie crust? I didn't find any recipes in any of my cookbooks, so off to the internet I went. Isn't it wonderful to have so much information right at your finger tips? I found a recipe that had ingredients that I was willing to use and had on hand. There are many recipes that I just won't use because I don't buy special items that aren't part of my staples. If I can't make it with some pretty basic ingredients, it either doesn't get made or gets revamped to fit my tastes.

The crackers are pretty simple to make. Mix:
1 cup white flour
1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
5 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
(I used 2 tbsp. sugar)

Cut in: 3 tbsp. butter and 1/4 cup shortening until it is fine and crumbly.
Mix in: 2 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. molasses
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. vanilla
(We have great local honey that is very dark and strong, so I used 3 tbsp. of it and no molasses.)
Form dough into a ball, cover and chill for 2 to 3 hours.

 

Take the dough out of the frig, divide it in half and let it sit for 15 minutes. Well, about this time, I had to do a few other things so the dough sat out longer than this. I think in the long run, it would have worked better if I had stuck to the 15 minute time frame.

 

Coat wax paper with flour to prevent sticking. Roll out the dough to a 7 by 15 rectangle. This dough is fairly moist. A good coating of flour is needed to keep it from sticking to the waxed paper. The first few kind of wrinkled up instead of letting me slide the spatula underneath them. I ended up turning the spatula over to release each cracker instead of sliding them off of it. Next time, I will add a little more flour so the dough won't be so sticky.

 






Poke holes with a fork in 1/2 to 1 inch intervals, then cut into 2 1/2 inch squares. The directions say it doesn't matter if the cracker edges are touching because the edges will brown up first anyway. Use a spatula to move the crackers to an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly browned on the edges. That's it. They are very simple.

 





 


Just as I was rolling out the second half of the dough, Frank had an idea. You see, I made these crackers just so I could make a graham cracker crust for a Winter Squash Pie, per Frank's request. To fill that request I needed to make graham crackers and cook our small harvest of Cushaw winter squash for the filling. But, instead of cutting up the second half of the dough and making crackers, we just used it as a pie crust. Since there is more liquid/moisture in the cracker dough than a standard pie crust, I baked the crust for 10 minutes before I put in the filling. Since the cracker recipe has baking powder, it did puff up a bit while it was baking, but for the most part, it did fine.

 

 
While the crust was baking, I started peeling, seeding and cutting up the squash. Frank got out our small stock pot, I added water and started adding squash. After I peeled most of one squash, I had another idea. Since I had the oven going, I thought I could bake the squash and spoon it out of the shell, instead of peeling, cutting and boiling. So, I changed the process in mid stream, and was glad I did. Baking the squash and scooping out the meat with a spoon is much easier than peeling it beforehand. The thing I would do different next year, is cover the squash with foil while it bakes. It dried out a little more than I liked this time. After I had enough squash baked and scooped, I mixed up the pie and got it in the oven.

 

I realized when the pie was just about done that the crackers take 15 minutes to bake and the pie takes 60 minutes. The crust around the edge of the pie plate was a little browner than I would like for it to be, so I could have covered with a little strip of foil. I just didn't think of it during the baking time.

I ended up with enough squash for four pies this year, so we will have to ration them out over the year until the next crop is producing. I saved the seeds out of the largest squash, it will be interesting to see if they are viable.

 

 

The crust turned out fine, it tasted good, but it really wasn't very noticeable since the flavors of the pie and crust were very similar. It didn't have the contrasting flavors a cheesecake and graham cracker crust do. Good, but not noteworthy. So, next time, I'll go back to a standard pie crust for this pie.

 
One of the reasons I really like cooking from scratch is that I can control the content of our food so much more than if I let someone else make it for us. Don't get me wrong, there are so many conveniences that I truly enjoy and would hate to be without. Take air conditioning for instance. It is not unusual in the summer for Frank to hear, "I really love air conditioning!" when we come in from a chore that leaves us hot and soaked with sweat. But knowing how to find information, about anything you are trying to do for yourself, is such an important skill. If you have the gumption to try, and the ability to find the information you need and put it to use, you can do just about anything. And if at first you don't succeed.......(what is the old saying?).......try, try again. Just ask Frank how many loaves of heavy, flat bread he had to endure before I finally started making some pretty good bread. Well, on the other hand, maybe you shouldn't ask him.......

Until next time, Fern

100% Fresh Whole Wheat Bread

A miracle has occurred! Frank actually liked this bread. In the past, he lovingly named it Brick Bread, because it is heavier than typical homemade bread that has at least a portion of regular white flour. Hmmm.....I wonder what I can get him to eat next??

A while back, when I first posted about making bread, my friend Grace asked what the difference was in bread that had about 50% fresh ground whole wheat flour (which was what I was making then), compared to bread with 100% whole wheat flour. Well, I finally got around to making some 100% whole wheat bread. I haven't made this type of bread in a number of years because Frank has never really cared for it. It has a heartier flavor that some people just don't care for very much. And besides that, if I don't treat it right, it won't rise very much resulting in a very heavy bread, hence the name Brick Bread.

I didn't warn Frank I was making this type of bread beforehand. After I had worked the dough and formed the rolls and loaves, he eyed it on the stove as it was rising and said, "This bread looks pretty dark." "Yes, it is Brick Bread." I don't remember what he said or even if he spoke. It may have been more of just a grunt like - oh, that again.

The only difference in this bread and the bread I have made in the past is that I have set my wheat grinder to the pastry, or the finest setting instead of coarse, which is where I always had it before. It does make for a finer flour, even though it is not anywhere as fine as store bought. I think one of the main differences in the flavor is that my fresh ground flour still has all of the bran and germ still intact, with no chemical means of separating the parts of the wheat grain. I really like this robust flavor, but again, it is not for everyone. 

The bread on the left is the standard 50/50 white to whole wheat flour ratio and the bread on the right is the 100% whole wheat. The 50/50 is a little lighter in color as well as texture. 

If you have wheat stored and you plan on using it in the case of a long-term disaster or down turn I highly recommend you learn how to use it now. If you try to eat foods that your body is not accustomed to when times are difficult and stressful there is a good chance it will make you sick when you can least afford to be. Think through your stores very carefully and make sure you can process, cook and eat them without the usual conveniences we take for granted everyday.

Until next time - Fern 

Making Whole Wheat Bread

I love to make bread! It smells good. It tastes good. Wheat - the staff of life.

The recipe I use now is a variation of the one my mom used when she taught me to make bread when I was in high school many years ago. She still makes some at Christmas time. It brings back good memories.

I keep my favorite recipes on index cards in a little file box. I guess you can tell I have used this one for a while. It looks a little worse for the wear. I have listed the ingredients for a single batch that makes two nice loaves and a few rolls, as well as a double batch when I want more.

A friend asked me what the difference was in the flavor of bread that is made with 100% fresh ground whole wheat flour and my usual recipe of 50% fresh whole wheat and 50% unbleached white flour. I told her the 100% whole wheat is a much heavier bread. This time I am going to make the 50/50. Later on I will make the 100% whole wheat and show the difference.

First we grind the wheat. I use a Wonder Mix set on pastry or the finest setting. It has a whining jet engine kind of sound, so you have to be ready for some noise. 

I like to grind the wheat when I make bread. Fresh ground wheat flour has a higher nutrient content than the flour at the store. As soon as wheat is ground, it starts losing nutritional value and I think fresh ground tastes better.

I start off heating half of the milk with the shortening in it so it will melt. I used the microwave. I have also heated it in a pan on the stove many times.

While that is heating, I measure out the honey and pour it in the mixing bowl.

Then, using the little bit of honey that is left in the measuring cup, I add the warm water and the yeast. This lets the yeast soften and start to bubble up.

Next add the eggs, salt and whole wheat flour to the mixing bowl. After the yeast is bubbling up, add it into the bowl.

  
I buy the yeast at a warehouse market by the pound and keep it in the freezer. After I open it, I keep it in this small canister in the frig.

When everything is mixed well, add the white flour .

When it gets to this point, I turn it out onto the counter and start to knead. I used to knead it only until it was nice and smooth.

I found out from a friend recently that if you knead the bread for about 10 minutes it will be less crumbly - a complaint we had about my bread for years. It is so nice to learn new, useful things!

When you finish kneading, the dough should be just a little sticky, but not enough to come away on your finger when you poke it. Coat the mixing bowl with shortening, put the dough in, then turn it over to coat it with shortening.

Put it in a warm place or on top of the refrigerator covered with a warm, damp towel to rise.

It will take about an hour or two to double in size depending on the temperature in the room.



 

Isn't it beautiful? Silly question, huh? I like the smell of bread rising.

When it is ready, turn it out onto the cabinet and let it rest while you grease the pans.

We bought this cast iron pan thinking we would bake biscuits in it, but we prefer the cookie sheet method. However, it makes wonderful rolls when I make bread.

When I learned how to make loaves, I always rolled them out, like it shows in the Betty Crocker cookbook. Now I just kind of roll them up by hand and skip the rolling pin. They turn out just as well.

For this recipe I make two loaves and a few rolls. I really like cast iron and these pans cook the bread up nicely.

Yum! Can you smell it? Fresh, hot bread. What a treat!

The rolls bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

The loaves bake at 350 degrees. When the bread is rising, the rolls are ready first. By the time the rolls finish baking, the loaves are usually ready to go.
The loaves need to bake for 40-45 minutes. After the first 20 minutes, I take them out and cover them with foil so they won't get too brown before the 40 minutes is up. I keep this foil and reuse it only for this purpose. I used to throw it away each time, but it seemed like such a waste.

There is not much that can beat the smell of baking or freshly baked bread. You will notice there are only three rolls now. The rest didn't survive the baking of the loaves.

It is a very satisfying skill - to be able to make bread for your family.

 
I save produce bags and twist ties. They work well for storing the bread.

There is nothing like fresh, hot bread with homemade butter. Add to that some deviled eggs and cheese, and you have a great lunch!

It is hard to describe the pleasure and satisfaction we get from producing our own food - or as much of it as we can. It is time consuming and hard work and a tremendous learning experience. But most of all, it is very gratifying. We are humbly grateful.

Until next time - Fern