We love making this whole-grain bread. It is very easy to prepare yet highly nutritious. It tastes much better than store-bought bread or even bread from a bakery. Whole-grain bread available for purchase is often either too hard and dry or not truly 100% whole grain, and it usually contains ingredients I don’t particularly like. Of course, we still buy bread occasionally, especially on warm days when I prefer not to use the oven. But great thing about homemade bread is that you can bake a large batch and freeze it. Then, when we’re craving warm, fresh, and soft whole-grain bread, we just pop it in the microwave to defrost it. It’s (almost) as good as freshly baked.
This simple bread is perfect for everyday use, as it pairs well with any spread, soup, or salad. It’s packed with minerals and vitamins such as iron, zinc, and B-vitamins because whole-grain flour contains significantly more nutrients and fiber than semi-white or white flour. Spelt flour is even more nutritious than wheat flour. For example, 100g of spelt wholemeal flour contains about 9mg of iron, compared to 3.5mg in the same amount of wheat flour. However, it does contain gluten, so unfortunately, it’s not suitable for people with a gluten allergy (celiac disease) or gluten sensitivity.
You’ll notice in the pictures that the dough is really runny and sticky. I believe this is the key to keeping the bread soft. The only challenge with runny dough is that it’s difficult to shape a nice loaf. That’s where bread loaf pans come to the rescue. Plus, they save you some work, which is always a bonus.
I do have more bread recipes coming up, including ones where I make bread without loaf pans, so stay tuned and have fun baking! Oh, and the walnuts on top are optional, but they definitely transform this bread from plain and simple to decadent and luxurious. 😊
