Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

UPDATE Nov. 2017: Are you gluten-intolerant or do you have IBS?  There is research showing that you may be able to tolerate grains with gluten if they are sprouted or risen with natural fermentation, such as sourdough. (PS: Using sourdough starter in this bread recipe would require some experimentation because so little liquid is used in this dough.)
Sprouted wheat flour can be used in place of ordinary wheat flour in this recipe and the bread would still be inexpensive, since so little is used. You could even make your own sprouted wheat flour, if you are so inclined, directions here: http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2011/01/making-sprouted-flour.html

RECIPE UPDATED ON JAN. 23, 2015-- I added some photos and a few extra notes and corrected the size of the bread pans I use and the amount of water used in the recipe.  Sorry about that-- should not write recipes when I'm sick!

I'm sorry it's taken so long to get this post (or any post!) up-- I've been sick with the flu.  But, at last I'm finishing this post on how to make a delicious sprouted wheat bread (with minimal flour) that is not heavy, flat and/or overly moist, that has the texture and appearance of a good whole wheat loaf.

I started this journey because I was interested in making a bread with a lower glycemic index rating. I discovered that: "Since particle size influences the glycemic index (the smaller the size the higher the glycemic index), bread made from grain kernels have been shown to be lower GI. Not yet tested but probable, bread made from sprouted grains can be expected to have a similar effect." From http://tinyurl.com/ywve7 (And evidently, sourdough breads are lower on the glycemic index, too.) Eating lower on the glycemic index may have a positive influence on my husband's triglyceride levels, so we (both being bread bakers) thought it was worth some experimentation.

Many bakers are experimenting with sprouted wheat flour, but I prefer not to buy it-- it's very expensive, and it's time-consuming to make (you must sprout the grain, then dry it thoroughly, and then grind it-- which is why it is expensive to buy).  We grind our whole wheat flour, so we have lots of wheat kernels in the house at all times. So, the most practical solution seemed to be to experiment with the sprouted wheat itself. But I was aiming for a lighter loaf than most the sprouted wheat breads I'd seen, one with minimal flour, and one which did not need the addition of vital wheat gluten powder in order to rise (not that I object to it-- I use it to make seitan-- but I think it makes breads too chewy.)

My first experiment, using an adapted version of a recipe from "The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book: A Guide to Whole Grain Breadmaking" was a success-- the dough was easy to handle and rose beautifully, baked up nice and crusty. I used my husband's signature baking method-- 5 minutes at 485°F. and 25 more at 375°F-- and the bread tasted great, smelled heavenly (kind of nutty), and the crumb is lovely. It made delicious toast!

Nutrition (per slice [16 per loaf]): 117.5 calories; 10% calories from fat; 1.4g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 138.6mg sodium; 117.2mg potassium; 23.2g carbohydrates; 3.8g fiber; 1.6g sugar; 19.4g net carbs; 4.7g protein.

Happy Baking!

This was our lunch the other day and you could hardly hope for a more delicious, inexpensive and healthful, even though it was made from simple ingredients and leftovers.  The soup is my rendition of an Italian soup and, in true Italian style, the flavor belies the simplicity of the few ingredients.  My husband raved over it and wants me to make it regularly. The sandwich was made with thin slices of my second batch of homemade sprouted wheat bread made with minimal flour.  (Read about my first trial here.)  I didn't have much to make a sandwich out of, so I spread both sides the last of my homemade Okara/Cashew Ricotta (2 other vegan ricotta recipes here) and sprinkled one side with grated carrots and the other side with thinly-sliced red bell pepper.  Doesn't sound very exciting, does it?  But, surprisingly, the combination of the smooth ricotta, the crunchy fresh veggies, and the nutty sprout bread was scrumptious! The first batch of my sprouted wheat bread included about 1 cup flour per loaf-- the rest was the ground sprouted wheat, kneaded together with the yeast, salt, etc. (no oil).  The loaves rose beautifully, cut well, had a lovely crumb and flavor, and looked like a "normal" loaf of homemade sandwich bread:  1st batch of homemade sprouted with bread with minimal flour (Here's the final recipe.) My second batch was made the same way (but I oiled everything the dough touched to avoid having a sticky mess like the first time!), except that I used only 1 cup whole wheat flour for 3 loaves.  As you can see by the photos below, it didn't rise as nicely, but it was easy to slice and smelled and tasted divine. 2nd batch of homemade sprouted wheat bread with minimal flour (but less than the 1st batch) I want to test the sprouted wheat bread at least one more time, or until I get it to our satisfaction (so close!), before I post the recipe on this blog, but I doubt I'll get it done until January-- too many other things to do  right now! (UPDATE: Here's the recipe!) But we love it so much that we don't mind consuming the experiments!  Happy Holidays, everyone. (I will post again before Christmas.) So here's that soup recipe: Printable Recipe BRYANNA'S SIMPLE-BUT-DELICIOUS LEEK AND GIGANTE BEAN (OR WHITE BEAN) SOUP  Serves 4

I utilize the leek greens (which are often discarded) as well as the white part. Despite its simple ingredients, this soup is absolutely delicious and soul-satisfying! 1 lb.  leeks, cleaned 4 cups  tasty vegan broth (I like Better than Bouillon No-Chicken Vegan Broth Base) 1/2 teaspoon  dried sage (rubbed, not powdered) 1 tablespoon  olive oil 2 cups  cooked or canned Gigante beans (giant lima beans or butter beans) OR white beans (Great Northern, cannellini, etc.) salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste Trim the roots off the leek tops and discard any tough outer leaves. Cut the leeks in half across the middle and then cut them in half lengthwise. Wash well to get any of the dirt that might be stuck between leaves, etc..  Pat dry and slice thinly (across, not lengthwise), keeping the green parts separate from the white parts. Place the sliced leek greens in a pot with the broth. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. While that simmers, sauté the white leek tops and the sage in the olive oil over moderate heat until they are softened. (OR, microwave the leeks, sage and olive oil in a covered microwave-safe dish or casserole at high power for about 4 minutes.) Rinse and drain the beans. Add the beans and sautéed leek tops mixture to the pot. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes more. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot.  Nutrition Facts Nutrition (per serving): 207.2 calories; 17% calories from fat; 4.1g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 714.7mg sodium; 681.9mg potassium; 36.7g carbohydrates; 8.6g fiber; 8.1g sugar; 28.1g net carbs; 10.0g protein; 5.3 points. Enjoy!

UPDATE: Here is the final, successful recipe!

This is going to be a short post with no recipe (YET!).  I promise to post a great soup recipe in the next two days to make up for this!  But I just had to post the photos of an experiment I did today (started several days ago).

I prefer not to buy sprouted wheat flour-- it's very expensive.  And, in any case, we grind our whole wheat flour, so we have lots of wheat kernels in the house at all times.  So, because I am interested in bread with a lower glycemic index rating (low-glycemic diets may have a positive influence on my husband's triglyceride levels AND definitely improve blood sugar levels for pre-diabetics and Type 2 diabetics), I did some research on making yeasted sprouted wheat breads with no flour or minimal flour. ("Since particle size influences the glycemic index (the smaller the size the higher the glycemic index), bread made from grain kernels have been shown to be lower GI. Not yet tested but probable, bread made from sprouted grains can be expected to have a similar effect." From http://tinyurl.com/ywve7)  After some rather intensive research as to how to make a sprouted grain bread that looked like the type of bread we are used to-- nicely risen, not flat and brick-like-- I was ready to give it a try.

So, I placed 6 cups of hard wheat kernels in a bowl of warm water to soak and eventually sprout. The sprout is supposed to be tiny.  Unfortunately, our weather is quite cold right now, so it took about 3 days for them to sprout at all-- some didn't.  But I have to go to work tomorrow, so today was now or never.

I took the advice of the blogger in the link above and ground the kernels in my food processor (but I did it in 3 batches). I don't think I drained the kernels sufficiently, though, because the "dough" seemed very wet.  I ended up adding 3 cups of whole wheat flour while kneading in my Bosch mixer for 10 minutes.  It also felt like a lot more dough than two loaves worth, so I added another 1/2 tablespoon salt.  I used 1/3 cup brown sugar. Instead of the 2 loaves mentioned in the recipe, I ended up with dough for 3 loaves, 1 lb., 12 oz. each, plus 9 ounces more, which I used to make 3 flatbreads in a cast iron frying pan on the stovetop. ** Next time I'll drain the kernels for an hour or so before grinding and I hope that will preclude the need for any flour.  And it will probably mean that I won't have 9 oz. extra to deal with (I hope!).**

As you can see by the photos above and below, the recipe was a success-- dough was easy to handle and rose beautifully, baked up nice and crusty (I used my husband's baking method-- 5 minutes at 485 degrees F and 25 more at 375), tastes great, smells heavenly (kind of nutty) and the crumb is lovely. It makes delicious toast!


THE PROBLEM:
But the thing that was NOT so positive was that when I removed the initial ground sprout mixture from the food processor and the kneaded dough from the mixer bowl, I was left with a thin coating of sticky dough that stuck like glue, particularly to the blade (inside and out) of the processor.  After soaking everything in warm water, it took me about 20 minutes of scrubbing to clean everything, and the sponge had to go into the garbage can.

I let the dough rise in an oiled bowl and that bowl was easy to clean (thank goodness!).  When I cut and rolled the dough and shaped the loaves, I oiled my hands and had no problem with sticking. When I rolled out the flatbreads I oiled the counter a little and they rolled out just fine-- no flour needed.

So, contrary to what I was thinking while washing those sticky appliance parts this morning, I WILL try this once again, but I plan to oil everything the dough touches!  I am hoping that this will make cleaning much easier.  So, I will post again when I do the second trial!  Stay tuned!



'Til next time!