Breadmaking Guide
Reading bread recipes online can make you freak out and slam the laptop shut. They're usually just written poorly or overwrought in their technique. Bread really is not difficult to make. It's literally just yeast, flour, salt, and water. In my book Fuck Portion Control I talk about how the gluten in common wheat causes a myriad of metabolic health issues in humans. But heirloom grains are safe for us to consume, and bread is a necessary food for humans as we have long developed a somewhat symbiotic relationship with the yeast we use to make it, requiring the large amount of B vitamins and special form of niacin (called nicotinamide riboside) which they produce in order to be well, or to avoid feeling ravenously hungry all the time. In fact, the reason we crave bread is not for the carbs but for this special form of niacin which is not available from any other dietary sources (nor in commercial store-made bread which use chemicals instead of yeast). Unlike common wheat, spelt flour is easy to digest and when made into bread is supportive of restoring a healthy metabolism. And no, organic wheat is not the same as spelt. Organic wheat will still kill you. Slowly.
Normally, bread making occurs with yeast bought from the store, and you can do this—there's nothing wrong with that. I prefer wild yeast because it sounds cool to say I made a loaf from wild yeast, but also because wild yeast tastes better and has better texture than store-bought yeast which can sometimes impart off flavors into the bread, and wild yeast culture is necessary to make real sourdough with that thick, chewy, satisfying crust on the exterior because this also picks up bacteria which also help ferment the bread. I also suspect wild yeast of making more vitamins than what the store yeast makes, and it definitely makes the grain more digestible. Einkorn flour can also be substituted for this recipe, but it behaves slightly different with water and might take some adjustments with a little less water.
There are two parts here—one is acquiring the yeast and the other is making the bread. Acquiring the yeast is really easy—you can buy a starter online. But yeast is all around us and on the flour itself. Getting wild yeast is only a matter of cultivating the yeast spores that are already there. But go ahead and do yourself a favor and get one online—skip this step of making your own and you’ll save several days and get to making bread sooner. There are lots of great starters available from amazing home bakers.
Typically it is best to cook this kind of bread in a dutch oven. There are many varieties, but they serve the purpose of stabilizing the heat and steam around all sides of the bread. You can cook bread without one but it probably won't be as awesomely crusty as dutch oven bread. If you have a dutch oven or can get one, I recommend it, but it is not necessary. Again, most bread recipes and instructions sound as if you must do it the way they say, but usually that is the method they have learned and bread can take as little or as much effort as you want to put into it. You can also use bread pans for an easier experience, or even just a cookie sheet and still get great tasting bread. I prefer to make bread with organic white spelt but whole grain spelt is great as well. Breadmaking results in the production of most B vitamins, but the one it does not produce is vitamin B12, which is one of the most important (which we normally get from animal products). My B12 Bread recipe does get B12 production into bread, and it can be an even better source of B12 than animal products and help even more than normal bread in restoring health, but first learn how to make bread here before trying that recipe. If your breadmaking adventures become misadventures, don’t despair, turn that dough into pancake batter by adding an egg and milk. Bread disasters can still be eaten.
This is one of my favorite simple guides on how to make bread which can help you understand how to begin https://youtu.be/5mehXzl7yHA
YEAST STARTER INGREDIENTS
1 cup organic spelt flour
1 cup spring water (no chlorinated water!)
1 tsp sugar
Empty jar (a canning jar works just fine).
(or just buy a starter online)
YEAST DIRECTIONS
Put the water, sugar, and flour in the jar and mix well, then set in a warm place with the lid on but not tight and let it sit for 12 hours. That's it. Wild yeast is everywhere and the yeast on the flour will begin to grow and you will start to see bubbles all over the paste within 12 hours if you place it in a warm spot. If you use tap water or even filtered water the chlorine will kill the yeast, so don’t do that. The bubbles are the active yeast feeding and producing CO2 as a byproduct. When the mix does start producing bubbles you must continue to feed your starter. Do this by adding another 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water twice a day. As soon as there are big, robust bubbles forming it's ready to use, but you want to continue feed your starter until the bubble activity is consistent and vigorous and can be seen as large air pockets through the side of the jar. Sometimes proteolytic bacteria can contaminate cultures, and these actually feed on yeast and inhibit a robust starter or dough. Sugar kills them, and is one of the reasons why bakers have found sugar to assist in bread making, so if your starter seems lifeless you can add a little bit of sugar to it and this should promote yeast growth.
When the volume begins to grow discard half the starter before each feeding (or use it right away in breads or pancakes). This will increase the yeast to bacteria ratio. After you’ve used your starter to make bread, you should feed it and place it in the fridge, and feed it once a week to keep it alive. To use again you must take the starter out, feed it, and let it warm up in order for it to be effective in bread making. If you use it without warming it up first the loaf will not rise and will be consumed by the bacteria in the culture alone. If a dark layer of water ever appears on top of the starter (this is called hooch) it is alcohol and occurs the yeast is stressed, such as when it runs out of food. Pour off the dark layer first before feeding. The key to keeping a starter alive, even if not fed frequently, is to add a little bit of sugar in the starter every time you feed it. Yeast, like us, use sugar to protect themselves against bacteria, and this also helps prevent mold growth as well. A starter should always smell fresh and yeasty. If for some reason you don’t have access to non-chlorinated water, you can leave tap water out for a day or boil it for a few minutes, uncovered, both of which cause the chlorine to evaporate. Allow to cool before using. Below the directions is an alternative method for those using dry active yeast which requires less work.
*If you’re having trouble with your rise or your starter, you can do a fun little trick that is totally acceptable and add some store bought dry active yeast to the sourdough starter. It will still retain its sourdough quality, which is provided by the bacteria in the culture producing acetic acid, and the stronger store bought yeast will make raising the bread a lot easier and more reliable. You can also just buy a starter from many great resources online. I typically make the alternative sandwich bread discussed further below using dry active yeast rather than a starter, because it’s so much easier, using half milk and half water to make the dough softer.
BREAD INGREDIENTS + EQUIPMENT
4 cups + extra organic white spelt flour
1 1/2 cup spring water
1/2 cup yeast starter (if using dry active yeast increase water to 2 cups)
1/2 tsp salt
Oil for pan
Parchment paper or banneton (optional)
Dutch oven (or bread pans or cookie sheet)
Plain razor blade (optional, for slashing the dough—a knife will not work).
BREAD DIRECTIONS
In advance of making bread, remove your starter from the fridge if you already have one, feed it and allow it to warm up, which takes a good 5-8 hours. A cold starter will result in failure when making bread, because the yeasts are not yet active.
After the starter is awake, in a not-cold kitchen mix the water and starter in a large bowl, then add the flour and mix well. This first step is called the autolyse, where the water soaks into the gluten proteins and begins to make the flour break down. This is very important because this is the step which results in those long ropes of stringy, crunchy bread on the interior of good sourdough. At this stage it may look pretty dry, but spelt doesn’t handle water the same way that normal wheat does and it does not need to be completely mixed. Cover and let rise.
After a few hours have passed and the dough looks alive and rising, sprinkle the salt all over the dough, then very lightly dampen your right hand (left if left handed) and, bracing the bowl with your dry hand, use the damp one to grab one side of the dough, lift it up, stretching the dough out like you’re playing with play-dough, then fold that stretched dough on top of the ball and press down (this is the video I used to learn to learn this technique ). Repeat this a few times to fully incorporate the salt and combine any poorly mixed dough, but don’t overwork. Allow to sit for about two more hours.
When another two hours have passed remove cover and repeat the folding action, grabbing one side, stretching it out, then folding the dough back into itself. Cover, let rest again, and repeat this step one more time. This process of lamination builds up a structure within the bread to help prevent spreading outward during baking. The dough should be rising by now—if not, let it sit until it looks like it’s rising before continuing. Placing in a warmer spot will help. If your dough doesn’t seem to be rising your yeast may be dead and you need new yeast (you can dump in some dry active yeast to save failed dough instead of throwing it out).
After you have folded the dough several times it should be rising vigorously by now and growing quickly in volume during each rest. Lightly flour your countertop and turn out the dough. Using a similar motion as the previous, grab one side of the dough and stretch it out far enough that you can wrap it fully over and around the other side of the dough, tucking it under with the other hand. The floured surface will now make the dough drier and more prepared for the final rise. Repeat this fold two or three more times until the ball starts to feel like a tight parcel, then push the ball around the counter in little circles using both hands cupped lightly around and your fingers to seal the folds underneath (see the video above). Let the parcel rest for ten or fifteen minutes, then turn it upside down into a banneton (optional) which is a basket made especially for letting bread rise. If you don’t have a banneton just move the dough onto or into whatever pan you will be baking it in/on like a floured cookie sheet (or lined with parchment paper) or bread pans. A banneton supports the bread in a roundish shape so it rises up instead of out. Using flour to coat whatever the bread is rising in/on is what prevents sticking, and all “non-stick” things will still stick to rising bread dough, except flour. For instance if you bake bread on an un-floured cookie sheet it will never come off the sheet.
About 30 minutes into the last rise, preheat the oven to 450˚ F (232˚ C) and, if using a dutch oven, place it into the oven to also preheat (the preheated dutch oven will sear the dough and prevent sticking, so don’t flour the hot dutch oven, and you MUST exercise great caution when using a hot dutch oven else you can easily burn the shit out of yourself). If you are not using a dutch oven it is very useful to have steaming water in the oven, so fill an oven-safe pan with water, bring it to a boil on the stove, then CAREFULLY transfer to the heated oven. Be careful also when using this method as opening the oven will vent very, very hot steam out the oven door and may burn you, so keep clear of the door when opening.
Once the dough is finally risen (about double in size, 40-60 minutes later) and the oven is hot, it’s ready and you can pop your loaves in the oven. To place the dough into the dutch oven turn over gently, trying not to let the dough just fall into it, which can push out the air. If you're using bread pans or a normal pan they can just go right in (make sure to oil those though, otherwise it will absolutely stick). Use a razor blade to slice some scoring marks on the bread. This will allow it to rise better. After the dough is turned out into the pan, use the razor blade to slash one long gash into the top of the bread dough, then make another one exactly perpendicular to the first. This is not necessary at all and you can skip it if you don't want to do it. This just cuts the drier outer layer apart so that the inside can rise a little more and gives the loaf those nice crispy ears that are a hallmark of sourdough. The trick is to slice fairly quickly and with strength, or as Julia Child would say, "with the courage of your convictions." The bread will still turn out great if you don't have a razor blade or can't slice it right. Even the sharpest knife will catch on the dough— it can only be done with a razor blade so if you don't have one, don't worry about cutting it.
You can also bake the bread on a cookie sheet over a piece of parchment paper, but when using this method the oven will be too dry, and so it’s helpful to add steam to the oven during cooking. The biggest factor in getting really great, chewy, crusty bread during cooking is the oven humidity (which the dutch oven accomplishes in the smaller space). So if baking on a cookie sheet, when you preheat the oven also add a lot of water to a large, oven-safe sauté pan (some handles are not oven safe), bring it to a light steam on the stove first, then carefully add the steaming pan to the oven. This will create plenty of steam inside for the bread to rise higher and be chewy and fantastic. Be extremely careful not to spill this boiling hot water on you or any family members.
Now pop the bread into the oven, replacing the lid if there is one. If you are using a dutch oven or cookie sheet it cooks in there for about 35-45 minutes until it’s a nice deep golden brown (smaller loaves need less time and using only yeast instead of sourdough also takes less cooking time). If using bread pans bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top turns golden brown. Once this has been achieved and your home filled with the scent of fresh baked bread, remove from oven and place on a cooling rack or a dry, clean part of the kitchen.
As tempting as it is, DO NOT slice open for at least 15-20 FULL MINUTES. If you do open the bread before that time the steam will rapidly condense onto the interior and turn it soggy. But afterward you can open up that baby and slather it with grass fed butter and chow down to your heart's content. If you prefer a more sour-tasting sourdough, put the dough in the fridge overnight (8 hours) for the final proofing (the state before preheating the oven) and bake the next morning instead. If you prefer a less sour dough you can skip the two-hour resting phase in the beginning, getting the bread in the oven sooner.
ALTERNATIVE METHOD — EASY DRY ACTIVE YEAST
The night before baking bread, mix 1 cup of warm water, 1 cup of flour, and 1 tsp dry active yeast in a large bowl. Mix, cover, and let sit overnight on the counter. This will create what is called a “poolish” or pre-ferment. This grows an abundance of fresh yeast which will better rise the dough the next day, rather than just using high amounts of dry yeast without a poolish which can sometimes result in off flavors (this also makes your store bought yeast last much longer).
The next morning add another cup of water, 1/2 tsp good salt, and about 4-5 more cups of flour and mix well—the dough should be hydrated but not runny. Too dry and it won’t rise, too wet and it will spread out flat like a sad pancake. It might take some practice before you learn to get this right. Cover and let rest.
After about 3 hours uncover the dough, wet one hand (so it doesn’t stick) and fold the dough onto itself repeatedly, grabbing one side, pulling out, then folding around on top of itself and repeating that motion all round the dough (as shown in the youtube video above). This packages the dough together, using the gluten strands to hold its shape. Cover again and let stand again for another 3-4 hours.
After the dough has risen and is puffy (a long rise like this achieves best flavor and texture) flour the counter and turn the dough out, then repeat the folding motion, wrapping the dough around itself again to make a nice, tight parcel. Transfer to floured banneton or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, and throw a dry dishcloth lightly over it. Let it rise another hour or so.
When the dough has expanded about 50% larger, preheat the oven to 450˚ F (230˚ C) and fill a large, oven-safe sauté pan with about 1.5 inches of water. Bring this water to a light simmer on the stove then very, very, very carefully move it into the oven. Add the bread, and bake for 35-40 minutes until the bread is a nice caramel brown. Remove from oven and allow to stand for at least 10 minutes before slicing. This same dough can be cooked in a dutch oven as described above, which will not require adding water to the oven.
ALTERNATIVE YEAST DIRECTIONS
An easy way to make a reliable starter is to use dry active yeast, but save some of the wet dough in a jar with extra water, sugar, and flour to let it grow as a starter. Keep it in the fridge, and it will naturally collect bacteria as well to become a sourdough starter, but with yeast that is easier to cultivate. It will be less sour than a wild yeast starter, but it also makes it so you keep growing your own yeast rather than always having to buy it. This must be fed once weekly at least to say alive.
ALTERNATIVE METHOD — SOFT SANDWICH BREAD
Adding things like milk, eggs, or butter to bread can make the dough softer. This can be useful especially if you have children who don’t like crusty, country style bread as what the above recipes accomplish. Even just using milk instead of water or half milk, half water will soften the dough quite a bit due to the calcium content of the milk. Cooking dough in a bread pan can make it very easy to bake bread and when using bread pans you can also brush the top of the bread with a little bit of melted butter which will help the top be shiny when it comes out of the oven.
ALTERNATIVE METHOD — BRIOCHE BREAD, BUNS, ETC.
Brioche dough makes the best sandwich bread, rolls, or hamburger buns. It is the exact same process as these other methods but with added butter for fat content, egg to promote even more fluffiness and cohesion, and milk from which the calcium softens the dough. When you get really good at breadmaking you can change up all these ingredients to get the texture and flavors you want—if you want a richer dough but prefer a crunchy, crusty crust then add butter but don’t use milk. If you want the softest brioche bread in the world use an egg, butter, and milk.
To make a basic brioche dough follow the alternative method above but in the first step but replace the water with milk, and add 1 stick of butter (1/2 cup), and about 1/2 cup more flour. Making different variations such as rolls, sandwich bread, or hamburger buns simply requires shaping the final proof appropriately for your intended use and you can watch youtube videos for more specific instruction on making brioche while just swapping spelt, einkorn, kamut, or emmer wheat in the recipe. Brioche often does well with a thin egg wash on top if making a smooth-topped bread like rolls or buns. If making buns it can be difficult to prevent them from drying out since covering them can cause the dough to stick—using a basting brush, brush rolls with some olive or coconut oil to keep them from drying out, then apply the egg wash right before they go in the oven.
TROUBLESHOOTING
Bread doesn’t rise very high in the oven
Bread needs a moist environment to rise well. Cooking in a dutch oven solves this problem because the smaller space contains the moisture released by the dough. If not using a dutch oven, pre-heat water in an oven-safe sauté pan on the stove then very carefully add to the pre-heating oven. This works especially well because of the high surface area of the water such as occurs in a sauté pan which allows for voluminous steam. Failing to rise can occur if your bread is too dry in the first place, so try to hit the kind of hydration where your dough is still pretty moist but doesn’t spread out like a pancake.
Dough doesn’t rise at all
Yeast are pretty tough but will still die off if it’s old or subjected to high stress such as excessive salt. If your yeast doesn’t seem to be working and you bought it a long time ago, buy some new yeast. Waking up yeast before using it in dough also makes it more effective and is the primary function of practices like using a poolish or starters. If dough does fail you can always just make a little poolish (equal parts water and flour with about 1 tsp yeast, and even add a little sugar) and remix the dough and start over—no need to throw anything out.
Dough spreads/bread is flat
The dough is either too wet or not shaped correctly. Dough needs to be wet enough for yeast to grow well but not so wet as to melt sideways as it rises or bakes. Shaping the dough brings the proteins into bands that help hold the dough together and you can watch youtube videos about how to shape bread if that’s not going well. You can also add one egg to the dough if you like, that will help hold the structure together (but should not be necessary).