Spelt flour is what the Romans had to make do with for their bread. It doesn’t have a high gluten content and so can be tricky to get to rise but it does have a terrific and nutty flavour. This recipe is for a loaf that works …
… sadly, unless you constrain it in a loaf tin it makes a rather flat bread (probably authentically Roman) as the dough, lacking the high gluten of modern bread fliurs, prefers to flow sideways. Up to you what shape you go for. In this loaf I added some stronger flour to give a bit of rise and it works well.
- 2 cups of sourdough starter
- 2 cups of water-soaked grain – I used kibbled spelt grains, you use what you can get
- 4 cups of spelt flour
- 1 cup of wholemeal bread flour
- Salt
- Water to make the dough
Mix your dough in the usual way (see other posts here) but give it more neading than you would normally allow for. Put the dough into a loaf tim or a rising basket and let it at least double in size.
Bake at 400degF (425degF if you don’t have a fan assisted oven) for 25 to 30 minutes.
Brilliant with salads, hummus, cheeses.
** Why “sandal bread”? Because if you go for the flat bread shape then that’s rather what it looks litke.
