Our Daily Bread: From Grain To Loaf…Part 4

Sprouted Whole Wheat Bread

So, since my oven died and I am trying to lose weight by going “grain free” (and sugar free and low carb) I have been experimenting with new ways of making bread and I think I finally found it!  The easiest, most nutritious bread EVER!

This bread is SO EASY, I don’t think I will ever make bread any other way again…honestly, if you have electricity and the convenience of modern appliances you really have no excuse for NOT making this bread.  The robots do all the work, all you need do is sprout the wheat 😀

Let’s talk about wheat sprouts.

When a seed sprouts it is no longer a seed (or grain) but now a plant.  The germination process destroys phytic acid (the seed’s protective barrier that is injurious to health when over-consumed) and increases it’s nutritional profile.  Some people recommend using “hard red winter wheat” for bread-making and I have tried that but I feel the best loaf is attained with “hard red spring wheat”, it has a higher protein percentage.  I do not at all recommend “soft winter wheat” for yeasted breads, it is best used for making things like crackers, pancakes, biscuits and other “quick breads”…especially cookies because this wheat is very sweet once sprouted.

Sprouting wheat is REALLY EASY.  All you do is this, get out a BIG bowl, dump 3 cups of wheat into it (you can usually order this from any natural food store and it is CHEAP…my last 50 pound bag of organic “hard red spring wheat” that I bought was $27.80…it had come down from the $36.00 it was when I bought it before last!) and fill with non-chlorinated water until the wheat is covered.  Put the bowl in a warm place, I use my broken oven with just the oven light on, it stays about 80F in there, and let soak for 24 hours.  Then put the soaked and now germinated wheat in a big colander and drain well, then put the colander over a bowl to catch any stray drips and put back in the warm place.  “Water” the now germinated wheat every 4-6 hours or so by running water over it while in the colander and letting it drain off and then put back in it’s warm place.  After another 24 hours you will have tiny wheat sprouts beginning…it is now ready to make bread!

Here is a sprout guide:

Tiny, just barely sprouted sprouts = a light fluffy airy bread

Sprouts the same length as the grain = a denser, cakey, very sweet loaf

Sprouts twice the length of the grain = dry them out and grind into flour to make “sprouted wheat flour” also called diastatic malt, like malted barley flour which is sometimes added to all purpose white flour, it’s good food for your yeast to help better rise your bread…it works especially well for sourdough bread

Sprouts any longer than twice the length of the grain = eat them, love them, just as they are…my kiddos especially love wheat sprouts!  I will also sprout them in 5 gallon buckets and give them to the chickens and goats as a treat, especially in the middle of winter when there is little green stuff to eat

Moving on…

Now that your wheat is ready, drain it really well and put it into a food processor.  My food processor is pretty small so I have to do it in two batches…alternatively you can also grind the wheat into a dough in a hand grinder, it works well but takes longer.  To the wheat add 1 tsp. moist grey sea salt and 1 tsp. yeast…and that’s it!  Grind the wheat in the food processor until it comes together as a dough, this may take 2-3 minutes.

Once it comes together as a dough, scrape it out of the bowl and into the breadmaker.  I use the “rapid whole wheat bread” cycle which takes 3 hours and 9 minutes.  The bread machine will further knead the bread for you and then bake it.  The moment it is done, remove the loaf and store in a paper bag to “sweat it”….doing this will help to soften the crust.  Keep stored in the paper bag until fully cooled and then slice and use just like any other bread…it’s good for sandwiches and makes an AWESOME french toast!

Alternatively, you can also form the dough into 2 small loaves and “bake” in the dehydrator at 145F until they are dry enough to be sliced….

I swear this is the easiest, most nutritious bread ever and I will never make it any other way again 😀