Sprouted Wheat Bread

But first: It's hard thinking about a favorite children's book, isn't it, especially if you were lucky enough to have your childhood filled with books! I'd still enjoy hearing about favorites however, so as you think of them, feel free to add the titles to the comment list. :)

Now on to today's topic. I have a new way of making bread that is very delicious and oh, so healthful. First I sprout the wheat, which consists of an overnight soak for the wheat berries, then about 2-3 days of rinsing periodically each day. Then you end up with a jar of wheat that has......sprouted! Now it is much healthier because it is a "vegetable", too....if you're curious about the science and nutrition, try googling it. Here are my sprouts just about ready to use:

Next, they all go into my blender with a cup of water and get whirled around until they look like....a wheat batter. (Nope, you don't have to drink it.)


Then I pour this sprouted wheat batter into my mixer. (If I didn't have one, I'd just use a big mixing bowl and spoon to finish the bread dough.) I add 2-3 cups of flour, (depending on the consistency), a Tablespoon of yeast, a teaspoon of salt, a Tablespoon each of honey and molasses, and about three Tablespoons of ground flax seed. Oh, and 1/4 cup of oil. Then mix thoroughly and knead to a lovely bread dough consistency. Doing it by hand would require adding ingredients in a proper order, but with my machine I just toss everything in and turn it on. I love it! (I paid my dues..... I made bread by hand for over 30 years!) Here's the dough going round and round... are you dizzy yet?


When the dough is kneaded, put it into a lightly oiled bowl (I use a spray) and turn the dough over so there's an oil coating on the whole ball. Now here's my trick for a great rise: I toss a damp wash cloth into the microwave and "cook" it for two minutes on high. Then I quickly open the door and set the dough to rise on top of the wash cloth. This chamber is warm and steamy, which helps the bread to rise quickly and consistently. Because it is damp in there, I don't have to cover the dough to prevent it from drying out.


I let the dough rise once, then bring it out and punch it down. It gets shaped into loaves (or rolls) and placed in lightly oiled pans. If I'm making loaves then I can put it back into my warm microwave chamber for the final rise. (Rolls are on a big sheet and won't fit!) Here they are after the second rising, ready to go into the oven.

I bake them at 350 for about 45 minutes. Ahhhhh, the bread tastes wonderful! These loaves disappeared so fast that I didn't get a photo, but use your imagination: they look just like any other loaf of hot-from-the-oven homemade bread. Very comforting. :)