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Hi how you doing I’ve been trying to make a sourdough starter from scratch and I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Can you please help me I also watch your soap making but I’m so interested in learning how to start sourdough starter.
I found this recipe a few years ago and have been making it weekly ever since with continued success. I also make a white spelt version using about 15% less water and a bit more flour, about 2 %. This version rises a lttle more and has a lighter texture, as you might expect. I use a loaf pan for both versions, so I've had to decrease amounts slightly so it all fits in my 1 lb. loaf pans. Thank you for this perfect recipe!
Hello, can you confirm whether you used 2% or 20% more flour in your white spelt recipe? I just want to make sure you didn't enter a typo there. Thank you very much!
@@yeason2000 Yes, 2% is correct. I'll give the exact amounts I use. As I mentioned before, this is the amount to fit in a standard 1 pound loaf pan. 460 gr white spelt flour 260ml water 50 gr. For whole spelt I use 450 gr flour 300 ml water and 50 gr starter. If you have more questions, don't hesitate. 😊
I am still using most of your older videos as no one in my family or circle eats whole-grain bread. Recently, I began using Spelt in most of my bread but around 65% Spelt and the remaining rye. A wonderful mixture I recommend you pay around with.
Hi David, oh yes, that would be a wonderful combination! I have a huge bag of lovely organic rye grain. I'll be getting into some rye loaves soon. Rye and spelt would be a match made in heaven.
My daughter would love the end slices, as she says her favourite part of bread are the buttered holes 🧈😂. Thanks for sharing - I'm definitely going to try this.
You've simplified this and made it look so easy compared to any other videos I've come across. Nothing fancy. Straight forward. Love how you show an alternative to a Dutch oven also. I feel confident to make my spelt bread now. Thank you!
She doesn’t say a thing. Definitely not making things simpler for someone new to breadmaking. There needs to be verbal instructions not just cleaning around in a bowl. There’s not even the amounts and things being spoken of. So I guess… You’re here to bring kudos or kudos have not been earned. Anybody in the world should be able to come to this video and learn how to make sourdough bread from spelt flour. That’s exactly what I looked up. But that’s not what we’re getting in this video. We’re getting a lady in our kitchen making bread without teaching the viewer. What the heck she’s doing. So if you were a great bread maker already, but doesn’t even need a video to show you how to make those, then this video is perfect for you! But if you’re someone who knows nothing about making your own bread, then this video sucks!
I just found your channel and am so excited to see such simple recipes using fresh milled flour! I love your talking videos too, but there's something so peaceful about these quiet ones. ❤
@@ellyswholegrainsourdoughElly, I just have to tell you how much more approachable you make whole grain sourdough. I don't have my mill yet, but I have been using sprouted spelt flour and making amazing bread with your method! I didn't realize that you had an affiliate link until after I pre-ordered my Mockmill. I was so upset about it that I emailed the company to ask if they would retroactively credit you for the referral. After a bit of back and forth, they actually said yes!
After seeing so many very complicated spelt sourdough videos, your video being very straight to the point gives me the courage to start off. Gonna get my starter ready now. Thank you!
Wow...such a wonderful bread! It's really surprising to see such a rise in a 100% whole spelt. I will definitely try this recipe. Thank you for sharing.
❤you are incredible. I am a single blessed mom. I searched everywhere on the internet and here it is, the only place where I could find all clear steps for the sordough starter and sourdough bread with 100% whole spelt flour(I also bought a mockmill 200 because of you🤗). I am from Europe. Blessings to you and your family! Thank you for all your amazing work! Please write also a book on sourdough bread❤😊😊 I wish I could meet you some day to give you a big hug🤗🤗🤗🤗
Oh thank you! You’re very welcome. I actually have a book half written for 100% whole grain sourdough but will publish the soap one first. Thanks for your kind words and patience :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough really? so happy to hear that😊👑. I am from Europe. I hope I can buy(they will be available) your books from amazon or ebay. Blessings!🙏❤🤗
Oh!!! Lovely. What I would give for that crispy end piece! I always chew on it as I cut a few slices....My stainless steel bowl gets a major workout in the kitchen. Very tranquil video. Enjoyable, buy prefer to heat you lovely, calming voice. Thank you for posting.
Yes, sometimes, it DOES take a lot of energy to talk, especially to an audience! And listening to the sounds bread making and natural rhythm of kneading was pleasant. As you were preparing, it was like tending into a baby, making sure everything was perfect.....
Thank you Kathy. Yes I find it very difficult sometimes to get my face in front of the camera (challenges of being an accidental youtuber!). Talking off camera is easier, which is what I do mostly. I just really wanted to make the bread this time. I've got some good talkie videos coming up though :)
I made this bread , it's turned out very good , so soft for a wholegrain bread! I call it "no cravings bread" because l have really no cravings and keeps me going for a long time! Very recommendable!
Thanks so much Helena, yes this loaf is so healthy and satisfying - it's a meal in itself. I just love the flavour of all spelt too. I'm always surprised how tasty it is. Thanks for commenting!
Sold! Looks amazing. Fantastic amount of overn spring considering its 100% unsifted whole spelt. I also like the technique of getting all the flour off on the wooden tray before putting it into the baking hot tray, gives you time to work stress free.
I have four in the fridge as I type. Just waiting for the oven and my cast iron roaster to heat. I have read all the comments here and on the blog, and think it is best to try to bake in a heated vessel first than to free bake on a steel stone/sheet as it was in my opinion most trouble with the bake was with "pancaking" or flat/overproof issues and so we shall see how they all bake different or will there be uniformity across the board. I will leave my results on your blog. I used an organic Swedish spelt stone milled/ground sifted spelt which is what I had on hand, so here's to luck they don't pancake on me! Fantastic recipe. Thanks
My apologies for the late response, but wow, good for you! I hope your loaves turned out. Yes, pancaking is a common issue with 100% whole grain sourdough. Nothing wrong with baking in a tin - that's what I do most of the time :)
Looking forward to trying your recipe in a few days! I’m halfway through my first time making starter and it finally smells better, lol. I usually make an oatmeal spelt bread (two loaves with 1 cup oatmeal, 5 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 2 TB oil, 1 TB honey, 1 package yeast, and 2 cups boiling water, 1/2 cup warm water) that turns out really well. I love the simple ingredients in that recipe, and even more in yours. Thanks for sharing!
@@belinda5385 sure! First put oatmeal, salt, oil, honey (optional), and 1/2 cup flour in a bowl, mix, then pour boiling water over. Separately warm 1/2 cup water and put in the yeast. Wait until the mixture in the bowl has cooled to lukewarm, then pour in yeast mixture (it’ll have bubbled a bit by then). Add rest of flour, a bit at a time, 4-5 cups. Kneading by hand seems to make it turn out better than the mixer. Grease two loaf pans (oil or butter ok), bake at 350 for 30-40 mins I believe (this part I’m not too sure, so just watch until golden brown. I remember it’s about 40-50 mins in my slow countertop oven, but it was less when I had a real oven. Makes two loaves which I feel is a good bang for your buck with the amount of yeast and flour used. Brush loaves with butter after for softer crusts, or put in ziploc bags for softer bread. Wait until it’s completely cooled if you want it to slice better (I usually don’t, since it’s good warm!) makes a short loaf if using all spelt, it’ll rise better if you use part or all all purpose. But, it’s a decent all spelt loaf. The sourdough here was yum btw!!
Thank you, yes do try it! I haven't used much spelt in years past because it can be so expensive here, but I lashed out and purchased this grain, and wow, it's so good! I normally use a smaller portion in my loaves, but thought this video may be of interest :)
You are my go-to for whole grain sourdough! This was my first spelt loaf and it was so lovely to work with! I don’t know if it was just that it was lower hydration or if spelt is magical but the nonstickyness was lovely, and it rose amazingly during the proofs. I did have to let it fridge proof longer, like 24 hrs and when I flipped it out of the banneton it went flat 😩 it was so sad. But the taste is still lovely. I really really enjoy it. Do you think that it went flat because I had to let it proof for so long? I have not gotten a whole grain loaf boule to not end up flat, so I have been baking your sandwich loaf a lot which is great! Someday I will conquer a lovely risen non-flat whole grain boule!
Hi Tara, thank you! It's so nice to hear your great feedback and that you're enjoying your baking so much. Yes, your long ferment and extra long final proof would have definitely caused your loaf to go flat. Whole grain sourdough is really easy to overferment, so you have to watch it. Hitting the sweet spot of enough fermentation without it going too far is the most important thing to learn! Keep things shorter next time and see how that helps :)
This bread looks amazing and you make it look easy too. I am going to use this recipe for my first ever attempt at sourdough. I specifically want to make the boule too. I like it because most recipes out there have some amounts of white flour and I won’t compromise health for pretty white fluff! Thanks for your relaxing videos and healthy options.
What a lovely video! I really enjoyed watching it. The recipe is very straight forward and easy to follow! I will certainly be trying to make this bread very soon! Thanks again for sharing.
Thank you. To be honest, I'm not the best dough shaper! I seem to change my method with every video 🙄 I did make this shaping compilation video a few years back though (an old one, on my soap channel) th-cam.com/video/p9QaXKbD0Q0/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for yet another great video and simplified recipe! The bread looks amazing! I am going to give this recipe a try but using only sprouted spelt flour. I keep my fingers crossed that this recipe will yield a good result despite sprouted flour only having little gluten. I shall report back! 💪
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you, Elly! 😄 I do have another question: what brand is your 'roaster'? I really liked the looks of it. Do you provide a link to it somewhere, perchance?😚
Loved the video. Couple questions, did you just spray counter with water for counter work and what kind of flour did you sprinkle on tea towel? Thanks 🙏
Hi, yes I use water on the counter, much easier to clean up. And generally I use rice flour for my cloths/bannetons, but other flours work too. Gluten free flours are more effective than wheat flour (less sticky!) I like millet, rice, sorghum, whatever I feel like.
Hi. Just finished my sourdough with your recipe. I’m so happy and proud that result is really really great. Thank you so much. Rosalinda from the Philippines 🙏🏽💖👏
I've made spelt loaves before. I do love the taste of pure spelt bread. It's very tasty and very different from regular wheat. Your loaf looks so perfect in shape and rise and crumb! I'm envious and I wish I could get the oven spring you got on your loaf. I am going to mimic your process exactly today and see what I can achieve! Thank you for the great video!
Good luck David! I'm going to share another version of this bread soon if I can. There are lots of ways to make it. Don't be afraid to put your dough into a tin if that helps! Whole grain sourdough can be tricky, but it's well worth pursuing.
I baked my bread last night and let it cool overnight. This morning I examined the result. So sad. It's hard as a stone, very flat (hardly any oven spring or rise), and dense inside. Although this was not my best effort or rather not my best result, I will keep trying. Someday, I will figure it out, the part I lack.
Oh dear! I'm very sorry to hear that. I wonder if it was overproofed/overfermented and sank? Feel free to email me via my website if you want any more in depth troubleshooting.
I've only used spelt from the store and absolutely love it. Planning to buy some grain soon now that I see that you can make such beautiful bread with it.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough How do you know if you should stick a dough into the fridge right after shaping or to let it rise a bit more in the banneton? Finally obtained some spelt :). Thank you!
Thank you for the video Elly. I'm new to grinding your own mill and spelt. I have a wonderful starter. But my bread has a lot to be said. The taste is amazing. Just not getting the raise I need. I am going to try your recipe today. I pray it turns out for me
I wish you well! You might like to check out this video (can also listen as an audio) th-cam.com/video/ifvegcKDEkk/w-d-xo.html and page on my website www.ellyseveryday.com/ellys-everyday-blog/top-five-tips-for-whole-grain-sourdough Once you know the tricks of whole grains, it becomes a lot easier :)
Love the way the bread turned out, Elly. Also loved the 'ASMR' for this vid 😉 Did you spritz your bread and/or baker with water before baking to get extra steam?
Thanks for this recipe. I made it recently and it worked out very well. It did pancake a bit in spite of being a firm dough so next time I’ll probably use a clay baker rather than free form. I’m in the U.S. so took your suggestion to go with 70% hydration. The crumb is lovely and the flavor is great. I’m looking forward to your next whole grain bread!
Thanks Arlo! I'm filming my next recipe video today. All going well will be ready for the weekend. Glad to hear the spelt loaf was a success! There is so much variance between flours and environmental factors, I'd be surprised if we got exactly the same results.
This looks so good! If I normally make my starter with white flour, if I wanted to make a spelt loaf, would I need to make a separate spelt starter? Or would my white flour starter work?
Thank you so very much for this recipe! 🥰 So.. preparing the food for 2 days, then eating the food within 2 hours... something tells me that if I ever to prepare this bread, I would make minimum 4 loaves at a time, leave out for consuming 2 loaves at a time (to eat the 2 loaves within a few days) and freeze the other 2 loaves for an a other time... 🥰
Now that is an impressive outcome. Using 60+% hyadration and the dough came out so "dry" is unexpected to me. Using the flour I have, the dough would have been much wetter. There even more things which fascinate me. If I could just experience the taste! Thanks for the video
What a yummy looking loaf. Made me hungry. I’m definitely going to try 100% spelt. Although I don’t have a wheat grinder, I do have a good bulk food store handy. I liked the silent video. I’m sure it gives you a break and let’s you focus on the task. Thanks again for another great recipe!
Thank you. I have used Spelt for the 1st time today, it's not gone well. The Spelt is Organic and quite grainy, so not a fine milling. At first I blamed me thinking I'd been to soon with the starter. Having watched a few videos I think I need to change my recipe. My dough was too sticky to manage. I have a dense loaf cooling. I am sure it'll taste good but will be a bit tight.
Hey Elly! Thank you so much for sharing! I’m curious if your starter is regular made from whole wheat or did you use spelt flour for your starter?! I have a whole wheat starter but I think my husband is wheat intolerant & I’m wondering if I can make a new starter using Spelt!? Thank you!
I also miss your calming voice during the film. I hope you’re feeling up to talking us through the next one. I’ve tried this and it’s super yummy. It will also become a regular recipe in my house. Thanks again x
Thanks so much, yes I'm back in action! The next video I'm uploading on Sunday morning is a really nice talkie one! I thoroughly enjoyed it. I appreciate everyone's understanding. I just bought a new microphone as well which will make life a lot easier!
Because spelt flour has a weaker gluten structure and makes really extensible, smooth and glossy dough with or without an autolyse. You can do an autolyse with spelt, but I don't think it's necessary. Autolyse is really great for hard wheat flours that need time and soaking for the gluten bonds to form (as in approachable loaf recipe).
Always great video. could you tell about the long roaster. Cast iron is very heavy and I would like to find a roaster like you have. Which materiel is it ? also the silicone you put on your recipient for air- tight when the dough is proofing. Is it suction silicone lid ? it seems to work very well. I love so much to make my bread and I would like to have the right tools. Thank you Elly for your videos.
Hi Francoise, I've listed the details for this roaster on my website, the link to the seller in Australia is in the information: www.ellyseveryday.com/bread-making-equipment Also the silicone lid is great, yes, but it's one I found for a few dollars in a charity shop. I have seen them in kitchenware shops but they are expensive! I was lucky to find mine. Before I found this I just used a plate. A plate that fits your bowl neatly will work just as well :)
Hi, yes it's quite normal for this kind of dough to be sticky. Sourdough generally becomes more sticky the more it is fermented, so you have to watch out for going too far!
Hello Elly I am new to sourdough baking and I am striving for a REALLY sour loaf so I wanted to ask; do you recommend using unfed starter? Or fed and peaked starter? I’ve heard conflicting things on blogs 😅Thanks in advance 😊❤
Ah yes, there are many opinions on this! For the sourest loaf, I personally would use unfed starter (but not too old - maybe 2 days in the fridge), use a larger portion of it in the bread, and keep the dough temperature a little more on the warm side for the fermentation and final proof. You have to watch for rapid overfermentation though!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you so much! I Really appreciate your help! Last time I tried to wing it and I started with warm proofing for like I don't know 4 hours? Then I put it in the fridge for the final proof, so it didn't rise very much 😬 it was sour though I'll give it that 😅
I've just been given some organic spelt flour to make a sourdough loaf for some friends. I now feel confident after watching your method and the final product! I'm was a little tentative trying a different flour. I have been baking sourdough for nearly 4 yrs now and have used a ryemeal starter all that time, would it be ok to use with this spelt recipe? Cheers
I have found that if I roll my bread in my rice flour in a bowl it keeps it from sticking much better then putting the flour on the cloth and then putting the bread onto the cloth. It keeps just the perfect amount of flour on the bread and you never have to scrape off extra.
G'day Elly, I'm surprised no one else has asked this question. When I being a Sourdough convert, after making yeast-based no-knead bread for years, I was introduced to slap/fold, stretch/fold and coil/fold. Your other Sourdough videos utilise one of these methods, yet this one reverted to the traditional knead method. With this 100% spelt sourdough would strengthening the dough with coil folds or stretch and folds be as effective as kneading?
Hi Mike, good question. I kneaded this dough only very lightly, more to ensure that it was mixed properly than to develop the gluten, though it would have had that effect to some degree. I make my doughs using all kinds of methods, and often just do what feels right for the particular dough on the day. I've made glorious 100% spelt loaves with a bit more water than this one, and used stretch and folds. The crumb is nice and open that way, more than this one. I lowered the water for this one on purpose (people in the US were reporting my previous recipe was too wet for their flour), but ideally for my flour it's better with a bit more water, which makes it easier to stretch and fold. Stiffer doughs are easier to knead a bit as I showed here. All are just as effective, but you do get a more open crumb with stretch and folds or coil folds.
Made the bread yesterday and I found the dough to be to wet and hard to handle. I did not get a good rise and no ear on the top. Because I could not make a thigh ball. Should I use less water ?
I tried the rye bread recipe and it turned out perfect. I will try spelt bread next. Thanks for all you do!! Maybe someday would you share Einkorn bread?
Thanks Kristie, that's so great to hear! I wish I could try Einkorn, but it's hardly grown here so just about impossible for me to get. I think things are changing though and more growers are having a go. Our local market for whole grains for bread making is tiny. We export most of what we grow, sadly. Thanks for the suggestion though, I'll be sure to give it a go if I can ever get my hands on some!!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdoughInteresting! I wish I can send you some. I store organic sprouted grains in a mason jars. Thanks for trying and sharing. I can't hardly wait for the video.
This is going to be my next bake since I have some whole grain spelt lying around that needs to be used. I do have a timing question though. I'm considering making this tomorrow since I may have more time to work on it then I will later in the week, but I will be out for about 4 hours tomorrow. Temperature wise here in Southern California it's hovering around 70 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity fluctuates between 50%-70%. If I were to mix and knead the dough before I left, do you think I might run the risk of over fermenting in these conditions?
Hi Sean, that sounds like a nice plan. No I don't think your dough would overferment in 4 hours at that temp. I converted it to celcius and that's only 21 degrees, which I think is quite cool and perfect temp for sourdough. It does depend on your starter though, some move faster than others. If you think yours is pretty average I'm sure it will be fine. Good luck!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough I actually wound up letting it rise overnight since I got called for another gig tonight (I'm a musician and teacher). It actually worked out plenty fine. I developed the dough less though, just doing two sets of stretch and folds. Next time I would use less starter as when I got up, the dough was almost at point of no return. But it shaped up beautifully and is resting well in the fridge, waiting to be baked later tonight! I was also able to use the full amount of water you recommended. I don’t home mill my flour, but I get most of my flour from a local mill that specializes in heritage grains and it felt like it could take more water. So when fall comes, I’ll try with a higher hydration!
Excellent! Sounds like you handled it perfectly. Yes, a small amount of starter is a really good idea for long ferments. I love the Respectus Panis method, must do a video on that someday... Happy to hear of your success!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough So I wound baking it yesterday morning (so it sat in the fridge for a day) and it turned out amazing! The flavor is almost like cocoa to me. And the crumb is more open than some of the more white flour loafs I've made. Next time I think I'll also aim for a 12-18 fridge proof as I've found that to be best for me.
Wow that sounds amazing. Nicely done! I love the long fridge proof too but I'm often so keen to make the bread so I bake them on the same day. Must try some more of these again soon.
Hello, I'm new to making bread. I love your simple recipe. I have a couple of questions. I have a dutch oven, do I still leave it 30 mins covered? Also, could you please tell me where can I find your proofing basket?
Hi Elsie, thank you, glad you're enjoying my channel :) You can uncover your DO closer to the end of the bake if you like, but with my roaster I've been getting great results leaving it covered for the whole bake. It really depends on the pot to be honest. DO's can burn the bottom of the loaves a bit if you're not careful, so I do tend to take the lid off and brown the top of the loaf in the final 10-15 minutes when I use my DO. The black roaster I used in this video is cast aluminium - a different material than a regular DO. I bought my proofing basket from this place here in Australia basicingredients.com.au/shop/birnbaum-plastic-proofing-basket/
Hi, I'm only cooking with 100% wholemeal breads, so it is so nice to see you videos. For some reason I'm still only getting small bubbles in my crumb but its a work in progress. I also went SOS Free 3 years ago, so I don't cook with or add salt to anything. It would be interesting to hear your views on how wholemeal bread tastes to you without salt. That said, it may take you a while to get over the salt taste. When I have salted bread, the salt taste jumps out at me. I have to echo those before me. You don't have to go all Hollywood but having your voice explaining what you are doing, even as an overlay, makes the videos so much better/ more welcoming. Keep up the great work and thanks for the videos.
Thanks so much Peter, I appreciate your comment very much! Yes I will be back with commentry on my videos very soon. Every now and then I just can't bring myself to talk one more word (I talk a lot in other areas of my life, and get overwhelmed by all the communication sometimes. I have another, much larger youtube channel with over 130K subscribers, so it becomes a bit much at times). Thanks for letting me know though, it's good for me to know how these videos come across. I want to make them as enjoyable and helpful as possible. Regarding the salt, you're right, breads without salt do taste bland to me, but only because I'm used to them being salted. I have low BP issues so I find the salt in my diet is helpful, along with good hydration. I have made sourdough without salt though for a friend and it's still enjoyable! Thanks for your encouragement, I appreciate it very much.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Hi Elly, Sorry I did not mean to put any pressure on you. Your videos are great and I like your plant based orientation as I am also WFPB. It's interesting about blood pressure. Before I changed my diet it was around 138 (or more) over 75 the last time I had it tested, about a year ago, it was 96/65. Yes that is below range but ranges were sent based on people with bad habits. I don't know anything about your health or diet but being a little under range is not a bad thing as long as its consistent. Simply think of yourself as healthier than others in your age group. I think of myself as having the blood pressure I would have had when I was 5 or 10 years old. A good development, I'd say! It's sort of like turning the clock backwards on my health which I am very happy about. Keep up the great work and more importantly thanks for all your time and effort in putting together your videos.
Thanks so much Peter, no worries at all :) Occasionally my BP does get too low (only in summer with exercise) but I'm in excellent health otherwise, and as you said, I would much rather have low BP than high!
Your hydration is only 71.4%, which is not only low for whoemeal but in particular for spelt. Spelt has a tendency to dry out faster. In German speaking countries where spelt is most common, there even is a terminology for this phenomenon, it is called "trockenbacken", literally drybaking or drybaked. In these regions where spelt bread is a staple food, it has been customary for centuries to take a small portion of the flour and pre-gelatinise it in order to bring extra water into the dough without losing shape. To pre-gelatinise flour, take a small fraction of the flour, say 4 or 5%, and mix it with 2.5-3 times its own weight of boiling water, stirr with a whisk and once it starts setting, knead with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula to prevent clumps. Then let the resulting gel cool down and add this into your dough. With this technique you can bring an extra 10-15% of water into the dough without losing consistency. An alternative method is to make a fleawort gel. For this, take a small amount of fleawort, 0.5% of the weight of the flour, and mix that with 20 times its own weight of cold water, then stirr for a minute to prevent clumps. Let it settle for 2-3 minutes, then add the resulting gel to the dough. With this technique you can bring an extra 10% of water into the dough without losing consistency. The two techniques can also be used in combination. Wholemeal can absorb far more water anyway because of the high fiber content. The finer the bran particles are milled, the more water is absorbed. The fibers in the bran can soak up 20-50 times their own weight. At a particle size of 150 microns (using a sieve of mesh size 100) a wholemeal flour can absorb its own weight in water. This process is very slow though, it takes 10-12 hours. With spelt wholemeal, using the pre-gelatinisation and/or fleawort gel techniques, you can safely go up to about 100% hydration as long as you let the dough rest for 10-12 hours to absorb all the water. You can either add your sourdough starter after the dough rest, or you can reduce the amount of starter to a sufficiently small amount so that it takes long enough to have those 10-12 hours dough rest built into your fermentation, about 1-3% of starter should be sufficient for a total fermentation time of 24 hours at room temperature, 1% in summer, 2% in spring and autumn, and 3% in winter. Don't judge the consistency of the dough right after mixing as it will seem almost like pancake batter. It only matters what the consistency will be after the fibres have soaked up all the water 10-12 hours later. The dough will still be very wet and soft but with several intervals of stretching and folding it will have enough strength to give you very pronounced oven spring as long as you score the loaf with a deep long half circle cut around the loaf and bake it at high temperature with steam. The resulting bread will have a very open fluffy and juicy crumb, no different from what you would get in a bread made with white flour.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough If your spelt bread doesn't exhibit the spelt typical fast dry out at the low hydration you are using then there is a good chance that your flour is not from true spelt. True spelt or Urdinkel, literally primordial spelt was grown in Europe until around the 1850s. Census data from Southern Germany show that 95% of all cereal grown in what is now Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria was Urdinkel, and only 5% other crops including (unhulled) wheat. With the advent of automation in agriculture, more and more wheat was grown at the expense of spelt. The reason for this was primarily that back in the day dehulling of spelt proved very challenging for the automation technology of the day. But also, wheat has a higher yield. This is mostly due to the hulls, since the yield in hulled grain per ha is about the same as the yield in unhulled grain of wheat. And the hulls account for 20-30% of the total weight, which reduces the net yield. Further, spelt grows much higher than modern wheat and this increases its susceptibility to wind damage as the plant may topple over, a phenomenon called lodging. If this happens in the weeks before harvest, the plants won't be able to right themselves up again and a large part of the grains will rot as a result, causing losses for the farmers. When spelt was "rediscovered" in the 20th century, and interest in spelt growing increased, there was a desire by farmers and cereal breeders to bring desirable traits of modern wheat into spelt. Nowadays, most modern spelt cultivars are crossbreeds of modern wheat and spelt. This way they gained some traits from wheat and some from spelt, but also lost some traits from spelt. It is the short stalks of wheat for resilience against lodging and the baking properties of modern wheat that are most wanted and thus they are the most commonly bred in traits in modern spelt varieties. These spelt varieties are most likely to also have lost the dry baking trait of true spelt.
My spelt is definitely true spelt. I mill it from the whole grain and have walked the fields on the farm where it grows. I don't get dry bread when I ferment it properly.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough So you have taken a sample and done your DNA analysis in your bio-chemistry lab to verify that no hybridisation with common wheat has occurred? How tall are the plants at harvest?
@@trijezdci4588 , sorry I don't agree with you. I come from Holland and we use 100% whole grain spelt from our own land that is milled at our backery . We do this for almost 25 years now....This recipe is spot on and idiot proof. Between 70 - 75 % is perfect for beginners . Sure you can go higher . Even lower at 65% is what a lot of people use because it's easier to handle for them and it's still not dry. It's all about a good grain, fermentation and having a good active starter. Nothing else matters.
No, it's a wheat starter. But a rye one would work great too :) This is how I make my starter, from any type of flour th-cam.com/video/d36SVZj7TuI/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the link. I wonder why you use only 10% of the starter. I did several bread courses and they told me to use at least 30%. I guess your starter must be super active. Thanks again.
Some whole grain sourdough bakers only use 1-2% starter! There are many ways. I like to use less because my starter is a bit older/from the fridge, and old starters tend to be a bit on the sour side (which I don't care for - but it's easy).
Made this loaf but it turned into a pancake. I used prepared spelt from the store. I think that must make a difference. Possibly my starter wasn’t active enough. However, it tastes yummy.
Oh dear! Sorry to hear that Ethel. The flours do vary a lot around the world, or perhaps it was overfermented/overproofed? This video might give you some ideas to correct it th-cam.com/video/ifvegcKDEkk/w-d-xo.html
It's just a whole wheat starter. You can feed your starter with spelt though if you like. I just use a basic starter from the fridge method, explained here th-cam.com/video/MifPNIYe4dU/w-d-xo.html
Hi Elli im Efi from Cyprus... i really love your recipes.... i tried the oats bread...oh it is beawtiful...i want to ask you about this recipe...can i use some honey...and some seeds? And can i leave it out the fridge for the last process? Thank you so much😘😗
Hi, lovely to hear from you in Cyprus! Yes, feel free to add what you like, but it may change the texture a bit. Honey will speed up the ferment too, so watch that. Yes you can leave it out for the final proof :)
Thank you so much you answerd so soon....i made as you showed it was fantastic...i will try with honey and seeds....and i will tell you the resaults....have a wonderfull and peacefull evening
Hi Nancy, that's exciting! Hope it worked out for you. I have an electric Smeg oven and I always use the 'supercook' mode which is fan forced with top and bottom elements running as well. It preheats the fastest and seems most efficient to me. I've never used the convection setting, always fan forced of some kind.
Nice video Elly, clear and concise. Can you tell me what your mother is made from, is it from spelt? I use a rye mother so would be interested if there is any difference?
I just feed my starter/mother with wheat flour usually, but sometimes rye or spelt. Mine is diverse! I just feed it what I like, it works with any type of whole grain food.
Is autolyse not important for this recipe? I saw on other recipes you did so just curious. Thanks for all the videos. You are making my sourdough journey much easier.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough I have your no knead wholegrain bread proofing on the bench but wanted a smaller loaf so had to work out bakers percentages. Does 350g flour 280g water sound right to make it smaller? Used 50g starter. Though I have it in a tin. I just wanted to see what the crumb would be like with no stretch and folds.
Hi Johannes, I put all the details for this recipe on my website here www.ellyseveryday.com/ellys-everyday-blog/whole-spelt-sourdough-bread-using-a-simple-process but I think it was a fairly cool day for us. Probably around 20°C.
I think trying one in a pan (like this th-cam.com/video/cYZjsEBjOUo/w-d-xo.html) would be easier for a beginner, but if you think you can handle it, go for this one! I mill the grain with my Mockmill 200 www.ellyseveryday.com/home-milling-mockmill
Why does proofing have to happen in the fridge? What did you sprinkle on the bread and cloth? What kind of cloth is best for proofing? Sorry about all those questions, newbie here. Thanks!
No worries Angelica! You don't have to proof in the fridge, but it does help this bread to have a really great crumb structure and oven spring. That was brown rice flour I sprinkled on the cloth. Yes, any cloth will do as long as it's not furry :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you so much! I am so passionate about good bread now, it's just confusing at first 😆 your content is fabulous! Thanks again ❤
Join me in the Elly’s Everyday member community! (it’s lots of fun) www.buymeacoffee.com/ellyseveryday/membership
Mockmill information including discounts in some locations available here: www.ellyseveryday.com/mockmill
Thanks for watching, please see the video description for more information and links!
Hi how you doing I’ve been trying to make a sourdough starter from scratch and I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Can you please help me I also watch your soap making but I’m so interested in learning how to start sourdough starter.
Dear Elly, if I want to add 1 tablespoon of honey to this bread when can I add it? with all the other ingredients? Thank you❤! Bleddings🤗🙏
I have another question🙈, can I bake this bread in cast iron? t h a n k y o u!❤
I found this recipe a few years ago and have been making it weekly ever since with continued success. I also make a white spelt version using about 15% less water and a bit more flour, about 2 %. This version rises a lttle more and has a lighter texture, as you might expect. I use a loaf pan for both versions, so I've had to decrease amounts slightly so it all fits in my 1 lb. loaf pans. Thank you for this perfect recipe!
Oh thank you so much! That's wonderful to hear.
Hello, can you confirm whether you used 2% or 20% more flour in your white spelt recipe? I just want to make sure you didn't enter a typo there. Thank you very much!
@@yeason2000 Yes, 2% is correct. I'll give the exact amounts I use. As I mentioned before, this is the amount to fit in a standard 1 pound loaf pan. 460 gr white spelt flour 260ml water 50 gr. For whole spelt I use 450 gr flour 300 ml water and 50 gr starter. If you have more questions, don't hesitate. 😊
@@yeason2000 oh, forgot the salt, 10gr
Is yours also quite light with holes or more dense texture? I did it today and it turned out nice but quite dense
I am still using most of your older videos as no one in my family or circle eats whole-grain bread. Recently, I began using Spelt in most of my bread but around 65% Spelt and the remaining rye. A wonderful mixture I recommend you pay around with.
Hi David, oh yes, that would be a wonderful combination! I have a huge bag of lovely organic rye grain. I'll be getting into some rye loaves soon. Rye and spelt would be a match made in heaven.
@@IslandKate I use both. The pan is easier and perhaps quicker but the folding for an artisan loaf is more fun.
:O They. . . have NO IDEA what they're missing out on!
My daughter would love the end slices, as she says her favourite part of bread are the buttered holes 🧈😂. Thanks for sharing - I'm definitely going to try this.
Oh, that is adorable! I'm sure you and your daughter will enjoy it. ❤
You've simplified this and made it look so easy compared to any other videos I've come across. Nothing fancy. Straight forward. Love how you show an alternative to a Dutch oven also. I feel confident to make my spelt bread now. Thank you!
Thank you Umarah, you're very welcome. Happy baking :)
She doesn’t say a thing. Definitely not making things simpler for someone new to breadmaking. There needs to be verbal instructions not just cleaning around in a bowl. There’s not even the amounts and things being spoken of. So I guess… You’re here to bring kudos or kudos have not been earned. Anybody in the world should be able to come to this video and learn how to make sourdough bread from spelt flour. That’s exactly what I looked up. But that’s not what we’re getting in this video. We’re getting a lady in our kitchen making bread without teaching the viewer. What the heck she’s doing. So if you were a great bread maker already, but doesn’t even need a video to show you how to make those, then this video is perfect for you! But if you’re someone who knows nothing about making your own bread, then this video sucks!
Better:
th-cam.com/video/AxtmolSmYeE/w-d-xo.htmlsi=903kfKIAQlDGlv4v
@@RoseBtrfly 😂
I just found your channel and am so excited to see such simple recipes using fresh milled flour! I love your talking videos too, but there's something so peaceful about these quiet ones. ❤
Thanks so much! 😊
@@ellyswholegrainsourdoughElly, I just have to tell you how much more approachable you make whole grain sourdough. I don't have my mill yet, but I have been using sprouted spelt flour and making amazing bread with your method!
I didn't realize that you had an affiliate link until after I pre-ordered my Mockmill. I was so upset about it that I emailed the company to ask if they would retroactively credit you for the referral. After a bit of back and forth, they actually said yes!
That is so wonderful Brooke, thank you!
After seeing so many very complicated spelt sourdough videos, your video being very straight to the point gives me the courage to start off.
Gonna get my starter ready now.
Thank you!
Awesome!!! Thanks for the feedback, I wish you well!
❤today I am making my first whole spelt sordough bread ever🙏😁😁. I never made any sourdough bread before. So happy for our bread. THANK YOU!
That's so exciting! Have fun.
Thank you, Elly. You have changed my breadlife.
Thanks Mary, happy to help :)
Elly you are SO talented! Thank you for teaching us and sharing your recipes! ❤️ much love from the USA!
Thank you! You're very kind :)
Wow...such a wonderful bread! It's really surprising to see such a rise in a 100% whole spelt. I will definitely try this recipe. Thank you for sharing.
❤you are incredible. I am a single blessed mom. I searched everywhere on the internet and here it is, the only place where I could find all clear steps for the sordough starter and sourdough bread with 100% whole spelt flour(I also bought a mockmill 200 because of you🤗). I am from Europe. Blessings to you and your family! Thank you for all your amazing work! Please write also a book on sourdough bread❤😊😊 I wish I could meet you some day to give you a big hug🤗🤗🤗🤗
Oh thank you! You’re very welcome. I actually have a book half written for 100% whole grain sourdough but will publish the soap one first. Thanks for your kind words and patience :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough really? so happy to hear that😊👑. I am from Europe. I hope I can buy(they will be available) your books from amazon or ebay. Blessings!🙏❤🤗
Cant wait to try this ! More spelt flour recipes please!
That's great! Thanks Brenda. I'm loving the spelt too!
No sound really encompasses the simplicity and helps me focus - Great - Thank You!
Thank you, I appreciate that very much.
Thank You again 🙂@@ellyswholegrainsourdough
Oh!!! Lovely. What I would give for that crispy end piece! I always chew on it as I cut a few slices....My stainless steel bowl gets a major workout in the kitchen. Very tranquil video. Enjoyable, buy prefer to heat you lovely, calming voice. Thank you for posting.
Thanks Kathy, just taking a break from talking for this one :)
Yes, sometimes, it DOES take a lot of energy to talk, especially to an audience! And listening to the sounds bread making and natural rhythm of kneading was pleasant. As you were preparing, it was like tending into a baby, making sure everything was perfect.....
Thank you Kathy. Yes I find it very difficult sometimes to get my face in front of the camera (challenges of being an accidental youtuber!). Talking off camera is easier, which is what I do mostly. I just really wanted to make the bread this time. I've got some good talkie videos coming up though :)
I made this bread , it's turned out very good , so soft for a wholegrain bread! I call it "no cravings bread" because l have really no cravings and keeps me going for a long time! Very recommendable!
Thanks so much Helena, yes this loaf is so healthy and satisfying - it's a meal in itself. I just love the flavour of all spelt too. I'm always surprised how tasty it is. Thanks for commenting!
Sold!
Looks amazing. Fantastic amount of overn spring considering its 100% unsifted whole spelt. I also like the technique of getting all the flour off on the wooden tray before putting it into the baking hot tray, gives you time to work stress free.
Thanks!
I have four in the fridge as I type. Just waiting for the oven and my cast iron roaster to heat. I have read all the comments here and on the blog, and think it is best to try to bake in a heated vessel first than to free bake on a steel stone/sheet as it was in my opinion most trouble with the bake was with "pancaking" or flat/overproof issues and so we shall see how they all bake different or will there be uniformity across the board. I will leave my results on your blog. I used an organic Swedish spelt stone milled/ground sifted spelt which is what I had on hand, so here's to luck they don't pancake on me! Fantastic recipe. Thanks
My apologies for the late response, but wow, good for you! I hope your loaves turned out. Yes, pancaking is a common issue with 100% whole grain sourdough. Nothing wrong with baking in a tin - that's what I do most of the time :)
Looking forward to trying your recipe in a few days! I’m halfway through my first time making starter and it finally smells better, lol. I usually make an oatmeal spelt bread (two loaves with 1 cup oatmeal, 5 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 2 TB oil, 1 TB honey, 1 package yeast, and 2 cups boiling water, 1/2 cup warm water) that turns out really well. I love the simple ingredients in that recipe, and even more in yours. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, you're welcome! Your oatmeal bread sounds tasty :)
I would love to have your recipe if you don't mind
@@belinda5385 sure! First put oatmeal, salt, oil, honey (optional), and 1/2 cup flour in a bowl, mix, then pour boiling water over. Separately warm 1/2 cup water and put in the yeast. Wait until the mixture in the bowl has cooled to lukewarm, then pour in yeast mixture (it’ll have bubbled a bit by then). Add rest of flour, a bit at a time, 4-5 cups. Kneading by hand seems to make it turn out better than the mixer. Grease two loaf pans (oil or butter ok), bake at 350 for 30-40 mins I believe (this part I’m not too sure, so just watch until golden brown. I remember it’s about 40-50 mins in my slow countertop oven, but it was less when I had a real oven. Makes two loaves which I feel is a good bang for your buck with the amount of yeast and flour used.
Brush loaves with butter after for softer crusts, or put in ziploc bags for softer bread. Wait until it’s completely cooled if you want it to slice better (I usually don’t, since it’s good warm!) makes a short loaf if using all spelt, it’ll rise better if you use part or all all purpose. But, it’s a decent all spelt loaf.
The sourdough here was yum btw!!
@@melissajulia07 Thank you so much
Would you be able to give me that recipe in what method you make it please thank you
Oh lord, you have no idea how much i needed this video!
I'm happy to help Robby! Glad you found it useful.
❤❤❤you are amazing! so blessed to have found your videos. Thank you and blessings!!!
Thank you so much!
That's a lovely loaf, Elly. I usually add some spelt to my loaves but have not done a 100% spelt. I'm inspired to try one now. Thanks for the video!
Thank you, yes do try it! I haven't used much spelt in years past because it can be so expensive here, but I lashed out and purchased this grain, and wow, it's so good! I normally use a smaller portion in my loaves, but thought this video may be of interest :)
You are my go-to for whole grain sourdough! This was my first spelt loaf and it was so lovely to work with! I don’t know if it was just that it was lower hydration or if spelt is magical but the nonstickyness was lovely, and it rose amazingly during the proofs. I did have to let it fridge proof longer, like 24 hrs and when I flipped it out of the banneton it went flat 😩 it was so sad. But the taste is still lovely. I really really enjoy it. Do you think that it went flat because I had to let it proof for so long? I have not gotten a whole grain loaf boule to not end up flat, so I have been baking your sandwich loaf a lot which is great! Someday I will conquer a lovely risen non-flat whole grain boule!
Hi Tara, thank you! It's so nice to hear your great feedback and that you're enjoying your baking so much. Yes, your long ferment and extra long final proof would have definitely caused your loaf to go flat. Whole grain sourdough is really easy to overferment, so you have to watch it. Hitting the sweet spot of enough fermentation without it going too far is the most important thing to learn! Keep things shorter next time and see how that helps :)
This bread looks amazing and you make it look easy too. I am going to use this recipe for my first ever attempt at sourdough. I specifically want to make the boule too. I like it because most recipes out there have some amounts of white flour and I won’t compromise health for pretty white fluff! Thanks for your relaxing videos and healthy options.
You're welcome Karuna, thank you so much. Have fun!
What a lovely video! I really enjoyed watching it. The recipe is very straight forward and easy to follow! I will certainly be trying to make this bread very soon! Thanks again for sharing.
Thanks Roxanna :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough 🌻🌻🌻☺
Oh thank you,l looked so long for a fuss free wholegrain spelt sourdough! I also missed hearing your voice!💛
Thanks Helena :)
Great video thanks Elly! I’d love a video on shaping so we can make sure we get the holes throughout the loaf
Thank you. To be honest, I'm not the best dough shaper! I seem to change my method with every video 🙄 I did make this shaping compilation video a few years back though (an old one, on my soap channel) th-cam.com/video/p9QaXKbD0Q0/w-d-xo.html
Great thanks will check it out
Thanks for yet another great video and simplified recipe! The bread looks amazing! I am going to give this recipe a try but using only sprouted spelt flour. I keep my fingers crossed that this recipe will yield a good result despite sprouted flour only having little gluten. I shall report back! 💪
It really depends on the individual flour, they can vary so much! May take a bit of experimenting with water amount, but I"m sure it can be done!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you, Elly! 😄 I do have another question: what brand is your 'roaster'? I really liked the looks of it. Do you provide a link to it somewhere, perchance?😚
Thank you for this easy-to-follow video. So many people make it seem so intimidating and complicated. This actually looks doable!
Thank you, it is doable! A lot of the so called 'rules' are intimidating. It's easy once you get past that initial learning curve.
Omgoodness! Looks amazing! Thanks for sharing
You are so welcome!
Love the video, you made it look easy! What do you spray on the counter from the spray bottle so the dough does not stick?
Thank you. It's just water :)
Perfect recipe! Thank you. Our loaves are wonderful every time.
That's excellent! I'm so pleased, thanks for sharing :)
Loved the video. Couple questions, did you just spray counter with water for counter work and what kind of flour did you sprinkle on tea towel? Thanks 🙏
Hi, yes I use water on the counter, much easier to clean up. And generally I use rice flour for my cloths/bannetons, but other flours work too. Gluten free flours are more effective than wheat flour (less sticky!) I like millet, rice, sorghum, whatever I feel like.
Hi. Just finished my sourdough with your recipe. I’m so happy and proud that result is really really great. Thank you so much. Rosalinda from the Philippines 🙏🏽💖👏
That's wonderful to hear Rosalinda! Thanks for sharing your feedback :)
wow that rolling/ and kneading technique! I must get that down!
Thanks! I'm a bit dodgy with my shaping, but seems to work fairly well!
Amazing! It looks perfect. Can’t wait to try it.
Hope you like it!
I've made spelt loaves before. I do love the taste of pure spelt bread. It's very tasty and very different from regular wheat. Your loaf looks so perfect in shape and rise and crumb! I'm envious and I wish I could get the oven spring you got on your loaf. I am going to mimic your process exactly today and see what I can achieve! Thank you for the great video!
Good luck David! I'm going to share another version of this bread soon if I can. There are lots of ways to make it. Don't be afraid to put your dough into a tin if that helps! Whole grain sourdough can be tricky, but it's well worth pursuing.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough
I baked my bread last night and let it cool overnight. This morning I examined the result. So sad. It's hard as a stone, very flat (hardly any oven spring or rise), and dense inside. Although this was not my best effort or rather not my best result, I will keep trying. Someday, I will figure it out, the part I lack.
Oh dear! I'm very sorry to hear that. I wonder if it was overproofed/overfermented and sank? Feel free to email me via my website if you want any more in depth troubleshooting.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough
I've only used spelt from the store and absolutely love it. Planning to buy some grain soon now that I see that you can make such beautiful bread with it.
That's wonderful! Freshly milled flour is really amazing. You'll love it.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough How do you know if you should stick a dough into the fridge right after shaping or to let it rise a bit more in the banneton? Finally obtained some spelt :). Thank you!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Also what type of roaster do you have?
Looks great! Definitely one to make. Thank you ❤
Thank you so much for sharing! Cannot wait to try this myself en make my own starter!
Brilliant! Thanks Deanne, I wish you well!
Looks so good
Beautiful bread!
Thank you! :)
Looks wonderful
When I saw the result I decided to watch again!
Thank you for the video Elly. I'm new to grinding your own mill and spelt. I have a wonderful starter. But my bread has a lot to be said. The taste is amazing. Just not getting the raise I need. I am going to try your recipe today. I pray it turns out for me
I wish you well! You might like to check out this video (can also listen as an audio) th-cam.com/video/ifvegcKDEkk/w-d-xo.html and page on my website www.ellyseveryday.com/ellys-everyday-blog/top-five-tips-for-whole-grain-sourdough Once you know the tricks of whole grains, it becomes a lot easier :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you so much. I will check them out.
Love the way the bread turned out, Elly. Also loved the 'ASMR' for this vid 😉 Did you spritz your bread and/or baker with water before baking to get extra steam?
Thanks Tray, yes I felt like making a non-talkie videos. No, I totally forgot to spritz, just the steam from the dough.
Thanks for this recipe. I made it recently and it worked out very well. It did pancake a bit in spite of being a firm dough so next time I’ll probably use a clay baker rather than free form. I’m in the U.S. so took your suggestion to go with 70% hydration. The crumb is lovely and the flavor is great. I’m looking forward to your next whole grain bread!
Thanks Arlo! I'm filming my next recipe video today. All going well will be ready for the weekend. Glad to hear the spelt loaf was a success! There is so much variance between flours and environmental factors, I'd be surprised if we got exactly the same results.
Beautiful loaf and great oven-spring! The crumb looks great. I love long, cold fermentations. Nice vid!
Thanks! Yes, it's so good for these kinds of loaves. I should do it more often :)
This looks so good! If I normally make my starter with white flour, if I wanted to make a spelt loaf, would I need to make a separate spelt starter? Or would my white flour starter work?
The purists will tell you you need a spelt starter, I think any will do :)
Thank you so very much for this recipe! 🥰 So.. preparing the food for 2 days, then eating the food within 2 hours... something tells me that if I ever to prepare this bread, I would make minimum 4 loaves at a time, leave out for consuming 2 loaves at a time (to eat the 2 loaves within a few days) and freeze the other 2 loaves for an a other time... 🥰
Now that is an impressive outcome. Using 60+% hyadration and the dough came out so "dry" is unexpected to me. Using the flour I have, the dough would have been much wetter. There even more things which fascinate me. If I could just experience the taste! Thanks for the video
Thank you, yes whole grain sourdough generally needs a lot more water than refined flour doughs. Most of my breads are close to 100% hydration!
Brilliant video very easy to understand all that your doing, i will make this loaf today. Thanks for sharing :)
Thanks Sean, appreciate the feedback!
What a yummy looking loaf. Made me hungry. I’m definitely going to try 100% spelt. Although I don’t have a wheat grinder, I do have a good bulk food store handy. I liked the silent video. I’m sure it gives you a break and let’s you focus on the task. Thanks again for another great recipe!
Thank you! Yes, any good whole flour will do :)
Thank you. I have used Spelt for the 1st time today, it's not gone well. The Spelt is Organic and quite grainy, so not a fine milling. At first I blamed me thinking I'd been to soon with the starter. Having watched a few videos I think I need to change my recipe. My dough was too sticky to manage. I have a dense loaf cooling. I am sure it'll taste good but will be a bit tight.
Yes the flours all vary so much, good to adjust with less water or more flour if it's looking too loose.
Hey Elly! Thank you so much for sharing! I’m curious if your starter is regular made from whole wheat or did you use spelt flour for your starter?!
I have a whole wheat starter but I think my husband is wheat intolerant & I’m wondering if I can make a new starter using Spelt!?
Thank you!
Hi, you can use any whole grain flour you like! Check out these examples th-cam.com/video/d36SVZj7TuI/w-d-xo.html
My starter is half rye half spelt for my spelt bread is really good
Yum, I bet it's delicious. Spelt and rye are a wonderful combination for a starter.
I gave this method a try today. Worked out great! Thank you!
Oh wonderful, thanks Heidi!
Very nicely done, excellent looking bread.
I also miss your calming voice during the film. I hope you’re feeling up to talking us through the next one. I’ve tried this and it’s super yummy. It will also become a regular recipe in my house. Thanks again x
Thanks so much, yes I'm back in action! The next video I'm uploading on Sunday morning is a really nice talkie one! I thoroughly enjoyed it. I appreciate everyone's understanding. I just bought a new microphone as well which will make life a lot easier!
Can’t wait to try this one!! Why was it ok to add the salt straight away to this one as apposed to the “approachable loaf” during the autolyse?
Because spelt flour has a weaker gluten structure and makes really extensible, smooth and glossy dough with or without an autolyse. You can do an autolyse with spelt, but I don't think it's necessary. Autolyse is really great for hard wheat flours that need time and soaking for the gluten bonds to form (as in approachable loaf recipe).
So interesting! Thank you so much for the reply. ❤
No talking...love it!
😆
Always great video. could you tell about the long roaster. Cast iron is very heavy and I would like to find a roaster like you have. Which materiel is it ? also the silicone you put on your recipient for air- tight when the dough is proofing. Is it suction silicone lid ? it seems to work very well. I love so much to make my bread and I would like to have the right tools. Thank you Elly for your videos.
Hi Francoise, I've listed the details for this roaster on my website, the link to the seller in Australia is in the information: www.ellyseveryday.com/bread-making-equipment
Also the silicone lid is great, yes, but it's one I found for a few dollars in a charity shop. I have seen them in kitchenware shops but they are expensive! I was lucky to find mine. Before I found this I just used a plate. A plate that fits your bowl neatly will work just as well :)
Thank you for the detailed video! Can’t wait to try this!!!!
You're welcome Debby, thanks!
so peaceful to watch you work -- thanks -- got a batch resting : )
thank you
Great recipe and a video! I really enjoyed it! May I ask a question: I made it last night and my dough was really sticky… is that okay?
Hi, yes it's quite normal for this kind of dough to be sticky. Sourdough generally becomes more sticky the more it is fermented, so you have to watch out for going too far!
Beautiful result!
Thank you!
Looks great, you can really see the texture of it after you let it set for an hour. Bet it taste delicious! 👍
Thanks George, yes it's a good technique! The taste of this bread is so good, hard to believe actually.
Hello Elly I am new to sourdough baking and I am striving for a REALLY sour loaf so I wanted to ask; do you recommend using unfed starter? Or fed and peaked starter? I’ve heard conflicting things on blogs 😅Thanks in advance 😊❤
Ah yes, there are many opinions on this! For the sourest loaf, I personally would use unfed starter (but not too old - maybe 2 days in the fridge), use a larger portion of it in the bread, and keep the dough temperature a little more on the warm side for the fermentation and final proof. You have to watch for rapid overfermentation though!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you so much! I Really appreciate your help! Last time I tried to wing it and I started with warm proofing for like I don't know 4 hours? Then I put it in the fridge for the final proof, so it didn't rise very much 😬 it was sour though I'll give it that 😅
I've just been given some organic spelt flour to make a sourdough loaf for some friends. I now feel confident after watching your method and the final product! I'm was a little tentative trying a different flour. I have been baking sourdough for nearly 4 yrs now and have used a ryemeal starter all that time, would it be ok to use with this spelt recipe? Cheers
Hi Mike, yes a rye starter would be great! Have fun with it, hope it works out well with your flour.
I have found that if I roll my bread in my rice flour in a bowl it keeps it from sticking much better then putting the flour on the cloth and then putting the bread onto the cloth. It keeps just the perfect amount of flour on the bread and you never have to scrape off extra.
That's a great tip Kathy, I forgot that one! Thank you.
G'day Elly, I'm surprised no one else has asked this question. When I being a Sourdough convert, after making yeast-based no-knead bread for years, I was introduced to slap/fold, stretch/fold and coil/fold.
Your other Sourdough videos utilise one of these methods, yet this one reverted to the traditional knead method.
With this 100% spelt sourdough would strengthening the dough with coil folds or stretch and folds be as effective as kneading?
Hi Mike, good question. I kneaded this dough only very lightly, more to ensure that it was mixed properly than to develop the gluten, though it would have had that effect to some degree. I make my doughs using all kinds of methods, and often just do what feels right for the particular dough on the day. I've made glorious 100% spelt loaves with a bit more water than this one, and used stretch and folds. The crumb is nice and open that way, more than this one. I lowered the water for this one on purpose (people in the US were reporting my previous recipe was too wet for their flour), but ideally for my flour it's better with a bit more water, which makes it easier to stretch and fold. Stiffer doughs are easier to knead a bit as I showed here. All are just as effective, but you do get a more open crumb with stretch and folds or coil folds.
Made the bread yesterday and I found the dough to be to wet and hard to handle. I did not get a good rise and no ear on the top. Because I could not make a thigh ball. Should I use less water ?
Yes, definitely! All flours differ, especially whole grains! Good to make your own adjustments.
I tried the rye bread recipe and it turned out perfect. I will try spelt bread next. Thanks for all you do!! Maybe someday would you share Einkorn bread?
Thanks Kristie, that's so great to hear! I wish I could try Einkorn, but it's hardly grown here so just about impossible for me to get. I think things are changing though and more growers are having a go. Our local market for whole grains for bread making is tiny. We export most of what we grow, sadly. Thanks for the suggestion though, I'll be sure to give it a go if I can ever get my hands on some!!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdoughInteresting!
I wish I can send you some. I store organic sprouted grains in a mason jars. Thanks for trying and sharing. I can't hardly wait for the video.
This is going to be my next bake since I have some whole grain spelt lying around that needs to be used. I do have a timing question though. I'm considering making this tomorrow since I may have more time to work on it then I will later in the week, but I will be out for about 4 hours tomorrow. Temperature wise here in Southern California it's hovering around 70 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity fluctuates between 50%-70%. If I were to mix and knead the dough before I left, do you think I might run the risk of over fermenting in these conditions?
Hi Sean, that sounds like a nice plan. No I don't think your dough would overferment in 4 hours at that temp. I converted it to celcius and that's only 21 degrees, which I think is quite cool and perfect temp for sourdough. It does depend on your starter though, some move faster than others. If you think yours is pretty average I'm sure it will be fine. Good luck!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough I actually wound up letting it rise overnight since I got called for another gig tonight (I'm a musician and teacher). It actually worked out plenty fine. I developed the dough less though, just doing two sets of stretch and folds. Next time I would use less starter as when I got up, the dough was almost at point of no return. But it shaped up beautifully and is resting well in the fridge, waiting to be baked later tonight! I was also able to use the full amount of water you recommended. I don’t home mill my flour, but I get most of my flour from a local mill that specializes in heritage grains and it felt like it could take more water. So when fall comes, I’ll try with a higher hydration!
Excellent! Sounds like you handled it perfectly. Yes, a small amount of starter is a really good idea for long ferments. I love the Respectus Panis method, must do a video on that someday... Happy to hear of your success!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough So I wound baking it yesterday morning (so it sat in the fridge for a day) and it turned out amazing! The flavor is almost like cocoa to me. And the crumb is more open than some of the more white flour loafs I've made. Next time I think I'll also aim for a 12-18 fridge proof as I've found that to be best for me.
Wow that sounds amazing. Nicely done! I love the long fridge proof too but I'm often so keen to make the bread so I bake them on the same day. Must try some more of these again soon.
Can you please share with me where you purchased your proofing baskets?
Yes, I got them here, years ago now basicingredients.com.au/category/tools/baskets-boards-mats/
Hello, I'm new to making bread. I love your simple recipe. I have a couple of questions. I have a dutch oven, do I still leave it 30 mins covered? Also, could you please tell me where can I find your proofing basket?
Hi Elsie, thank you, glad you're enjoying my channel :) You can uncover your DO closer to the end of the bake if you like, but with my roaster I've been getting great results leaving it covered for the whole bake. It really depends on the pot to be honest. DO's can burn the bottom of the loaves a bit if you're not careful, so I do tend to take the lid off and brown the top of the loaf in the final 10-15 minutes when I use my DO. The black roaster I used in this video is cast aluminium - a different material than a regular DO. I bought my proofing basket from this place here in Australia basicingredients.com.au/shop/birnbaum-plastic-proofing-basket/
What flour did you use to dust it with, also spelt (if not, would that work okay)?
I think I used brown rice flour, but spelt flour would be fine too. I like brown rice because it has such great non-stick qualities!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough thanks!
Hi, I'm only cooking with 100% wholemeal breads, so it is so nice to see you videos. For some reason I'm still only getting small bubbles in my crumb but its a work in progress.
I also went SOS Free 3 years ago, so I don't cook with or add salt to anything. It would be interesting to hear your views on how wholemeal bread tastes to you without salt. That said, it may take you a while to get over the salt taste. When I have salted bread, the salt taste jumps out at me.
I have to echo those before me. You don't have to go all Hollywood but having your voice explaining what you are doing, even as an overlay, makes the videos so much better/ more welcoming.
Keep up the great work and thanks for the videos.
Thanks so much Peter, I appreciate your comment very much! Yes I will be back with commentry on my videos very soon. Every now and then I just can't bring myself to talk one more word (I talk a lot in other areas of my life, and get overwhelmed by all the communication sometimes. I have another, much larger youtube channel with over 130K subscribers, so it becomes a bit much at times). Thanks for letting me know though, it's good for me to know how these videos come across. I want to make them as enjoyable and helpful as possible.
Regarding the salt, you're right, breads without salt do taste bland to me, but only because I'm used to them being salted. I have low BP issues so I find the salt in my diet is helpful, along with good hydration. I have made sourdough without salt though for a friend and it's still enjoyable! Thanks for your encouragement, I appreciate it very much.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Hi Elly, Sorry I did not mean to put any pressure on you. Your videos are great and I like your plant based orientation as I am also WFPB.
It's interesting about blood pressure. Before I changed my diet it was around 138 (or more) over 75 the last time I had it tested, about a year ago, it was 96/65. Yes that is below range but ranges were sent based on people with bad habits. I don't know anything about your health or diet but being a little under range is not a bad thing as long as its consistent. Simply think of yourself as healthier than others in your age group. I think of myself as having the blood pressure I would have had when I was 5 or 10 years old. A good development, I'd say! It's sort of like turning the clock backwards on my health which I am very happy about.
Keep up the great work and more importantly thanks for all your time and effort in putting together your videos.
Thanks so much Peter, no worries at all :)
Occasionally my BP does get too low (only in summer with exercise) but I'm in excellent health otherwise, and as you said, I would much rather have low BP than high!
Your hydration is only 71.4%, which is not only low for whoemeal but in particular for spelt. Spelt has a tendency to dry out faster. In German speaking countries where spelt is most common, there even is a terminology for this phenomenon, it is called "trockenbacken", literally drybaking or drybaked. In these regions where spelt bread is a staple food, it has been customary for centuries to take a small portion of the flour and pre-gelatinise it in order to bring extra water into the dough without losing shape.
To pre-gelatinise flour, take a small fraction of the flour, say 4 or 5%, and mix it with 2.5-3 times its own weight of boiling water, stirr with a whisk and once it starts setting, knead with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula to prevent clumps. Then let the resulting gel cool down and add this into your dough. With this technique you can bring an extra 10-15% of water into the dough without losing consistency.
An alternative method is to make a fleawort gel. For this, take a small amount of fleawort, 0.5% of the weight of the flour, and mix that with 20 times its own weight of cold water, then stirr for a minute to prevent clumps. Let it settle for 2-3 minutes, then add the resulting gel to the dough. With this technique you can bring an extra 10% of water into the dough without losing consistency.
The two techniques can also be used in combination.
Wholemeal can absorb far more water anyway because of the high fiber content. The finer the bran particles are milled, the more water is absorbed. The fibers in the bran can soak up 20-50 times their own weight. At a particle size of 150 microns (using a sieve of mesh size 100) a wholemeal flour can absorb its own weight in water. This process is very slow though, it takes 10-12 hours.
With spelt wholemeal, using the pre-gelatinisation and/or fleawort gel techniques, you can safely go up to about 100% hydration as long as you let the dough rest for 10-12 hours to absorb all the water. You can either add your sourdough starter after the dough rest, or you can reduce the amount of starter to a sufficiently small amount so that it takes long enough to have those 10-12 hours dough rest built into your fermentation, about 1-3% of starter should be sufficient for a total fermentation time of 24 hours at room temperature, 1% in summer, 2% in spring and autumn, and 3% in winter.
Don't judge the consistency of the dough right after mixing as it will seem almost like pancake batter. It only matters what the consistency will be after the fibres have soaked up all the water 10-12 hours later. The dough will still be very wet and soft but with several intervals of stretching and folding it will have enough strength to give you very pronounced oven spring as long as you score the loaf with a deep long half circle cut around the loaf and bake it at high temperature with steam. The resulting bread will have a very open fluffy and juicy crumb, no different from what you would get in a bread made with white flour.
Thanks for your input. I like this simple method though, and this bread is excellent - not dry at all.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough If your spelt bread doesn't exhibit the spelt typical fast dry out at the low hydration you are using then there is a good chance that your flour is not from true spelt.
True spelt or Urdinkel, literally primordial spelt was grown in Europe until around the 1850s. Census data from Southern Germany show that 95% of all cereal grown in what is now Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria was Urdinkel, and only 5% other crops including (unhulled) wheat. With the advent of automation in agriculture, more and more wheat was grown at the expense of spelt.
The reason for this was primarily that back in the day dehulling of spelt proved very challenging for the automation technology of the day. But also, wheat has a higher yield. This is mostly due to the hulls, since the yield in hulled grain per ha is about the same as the yield in unhulled grain of wheat. And the hulls account for 20-30% of the total weight, which reduces the net yield.
Further, spelt grows much higher than modern wheat and this increases its susceptibility to wind damage as the plant may topple over, a phenomenon called lodging. If this happens in the weeks before harvest, the plants won't be able to right themselves up again and a large part of the grains will rot as a result, causing losses for the farmers.
When spelt was "rediscovered" in the 20th century, and interest in spelt growing increased, there was a desire by farmers and cereal breeders to bring desirable traits of modern wheat into spelt. Nowadays, most modern spelt cultivars are crossbreeds of modern wheat and spelt.
This way they gained some traits from wheat and some from spelt, but also lost some traits from spelt.
It is the short stalks of wheat for resilience against lodging and the baking properties of modern wheat that are most wanted and thus they are the most commonly bred in traits in modern spelt varieties. These spelt varieties are most likely to also have lost the dry baking trait of true spelt.
My spelt is definitely true spelt. I mill it from the whole grain and have walked the fields on the farm where it grows. I don't get dry bread when I ferment it properly.
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough So you have taken a sample and done your DNA analysis in your bio-chemistry lab to verify that no hybridisation with common wheat has occurred? How tall are the plants at harvest?
@@trijezdci4588 , sorry I don't agree with you. I come from Holland and we use 100% whole grain spelt from our own land that is milled at our backery . We do this for almost 25 years now....This recipe is spot on and idiot proof. Between 70 - 75 % is perfect for beginners . Sure you can go higher . Even lower at 65% is what a lot of people use because it's easier to handle for them and it's still not dry. It's all about a good grain, fermentation and having a good active starter. Nothing else matters.
Excellent video. Thankyou
If I want to add any herbs or cheese or anything like that, would I do that after the initial ferment but before the fridge ferment? Thank you!
I would fold those in after the first ferment, yes :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you!
Hi, is your starter made with rye? Thanks
No, it's a wheat starter. But a rye one would work great too :) This is how I make my starter, from any type of flour th-cam.com/video/d36SVZj7TuI/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the link. I wonder why you use only 10% of the starter. I did several bread courses and they told me to use at least 30%. I guess your starter must be super active. Thanks again.
Some whole grain sourdough bakers only use 1-2% starter! There are many ways. I like to use less because my starter is a bit older/from the fridge, and old starters tend to be a bit on the sour side (which I don't care for - but it's easy).
Made this loaf but it turned into a pancake. I used prepared spelt from the store. I think that must make a difference. Possibly my starter wasn’t active enough. However, it tastes yummy.
Oh dear! Sorry to hear that Ethel. The flours do vary a lot around the world, or perhaps it was overfermented/overproofed? This video might give you some ideas to correct it th-cam.com/video/ifvegcKDEkk/w-d-xo.html
This looks fantastic? But I have a question that is probably obvious to everyone but me. Where would I get the starter from? Can I make it myself?
Yes! They are very easy to make. Here's the instructions th-cam.com/video/d36SVZj7TuI/w-d-xo.html
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough thank you so much for this. I appreciate it and will try it.
Nice video! I'm wondering what is your starter made up of? Is it a spelt starter as well?
It's just a whole wheat starter. You can feed your starter with spelt though if you like. I just use a basic starter from the fridge method, explained here th-cam.com/video/MifPNIYe4dU/w-d-xo.html
@@ellyswholegrainsourdoughthanks!
You're welcome!
Hi Elli im Efi from Cyprus... i really love your recipes.... i tried the oats bread...oh it is beawtiful...i want to ask you about this recipe...can i use some honey...and some seeds? And can i leave it out the fridge for the last process? Thank you so much😘😗
Hi, lovely to hear from you in Cyprus! Yes, feel free to add what you like, but it may change the texture a bit. Honey will speed up the ferment too, so watch that. Yes you can leave it out for the final proof :)
Thank you so much you answerd so soon....i made as you showed it was fantastic...i will try with honey and seeds....and i will tell you the resaults....have a wonderfull and peacefull evening
Could you show your spelt grain milling process? What did you sprinkle on blue cloth?
Hi, you can see the milling in many of my other videos :) It's brown rice flour on the cloth.
Do you always use convection when you bake bread - I’ve never noticed with your other SD loaves?
Trying spelt for first time today 🤞🏻
Hi Nancy, that's exciting! Hope it worked out for you. I have an electric Smeg oven and I always use the 'supercook' mode which is fan forced with top and bottom elements running as well. It preheats the fastest and seems most efficient to me. I've never used the convection setting, always fan forced of some kind.
Will this work using regular dry yeast?
Yes, if you just use a tiny amount. Will taste vastly different though.
Nice video Elly, clear and concise. Can you tell me what your mother is made from, is it from spelt? I use a rye mother so would be interested if there is any difference?
I just feed my starter/mother with wheat flour usually, but sometimes rye or spelt. Mine is diverse! I just feed it what I like, it works with any type of whole grain food.
Could you cook smaller amounts in the air fryer ?
Yes, I'm sure you could!
yum. great video. Is that an enamel roaster?
Thanks Rob, no it's a cast aluminium roaster. Baccarat brand (Australian brand).
Can I use a machine to knead the dough ?
Sure can. This one is a machine version with Emmer flour th-cam.com/video/gP_YoRn5cjk/w-d-xo.html
Is autolyse not important for this recipe? I saw on other recipes you did so just curious. Thanks for all the videos. You are making my sourdough journey much easier.
It's not as essential for spelt in my experience. Definitely autolyse with hard wheats though!
Never made sourdough anything, but aspire to do so. Is your sourdough starter also made with spelt flour, or with wheat flour?
I feed my starter with whatever flour I have ready milled, but generally it's some kind of wheat (they aren't that fussy).
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough thank you :)
Does spelt need less hydration? I know you usually like wetter doughs?
Yes, it usually does!
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough I have your no knead wholegrain bread proofing on the bench but wanted a smaller loaf so had to work out bakers percentages. Does 350g flour 280g water sound right to make it smaller? Used 50g starter. Though I have it in a tin. I just wanted to see what the crumb would be like with no stretch and folds.
Hi there, I was wondering about timing and temperature, roughly what temperature was the dough bulk fermented at?
Hi Johannes, I put all the details for this recipe on my website here www.ellyseveryday.com/ellys-everyday-blog/whole-spelt-sourdough-bread-using-a-simple-process but I think it was a fairly cool day for us. Probably around 20°C.
Is this a pretty simple bread for a beginner to try out? Also, how do you mill the fresh spelt berries to flour?
I think trying one in a pan (like this th-cam.com/video/cYZjsEBjOUo/w-d-xo.html) would be easier for a beginner, but if you think you can handle it, go for this one! I mill the grain with my Mockmill 200 www.ellyseveryday.com/home-milling-mockmill
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Oh okay great I will try the pan one out first. Thanks for the reply.
Awesome, thanks for great vid!
Why does proofing have to happen in the fridge?
What did you sprinkle on the bread and cloth?
What kind of cloth is best for proofing?
Sorry about all those questions, newbie here. Thanks!
No worries Angelica! You don't have to proof in the fridge, but it does help this bread to have a really great crumb structure and oven spring. That was brown rice flour I sprinkled on the cloth. Yes, any cloth will do as long as it's not furry :)
@@ellyswholegrainsourdough Thank you so much! I am so passionate about good bread now, it's just confusing at first 😆 your content is fabulous! Thanks again ❤
Thanks Angelica! There's a lot to learn, and experience is the best teacher, but it's worth it :)