2019 has been the year of einkorn. i am nothing short of obsessed.
this is how serious it is: i haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since trying a 100% einkorn sample loaf from bread alone at last year’s growNYC home baker’s meetup in march 2018. i even splurged on a 2 lb bag of nice, local flour milled from farmer ground flour. $7 is not chump change when it comes to a small bag of flour.
einkorn is an “ancient grain”, in the same family as emmer and spelt. it’s known as the oldest variety of wheat, and also for its friendliness to folks with gluten sensitivities. i love it for its nutty taste (which comes through very strongly in higher percentages), and the softness it gives my bread.
speaking of which, this bread is SO soft — and i would really recommend eating it at least once un-toasted.
i love eating a slice of this with an egg for breakfast, dipped in a butternut squash soup, or honestly just with a pat of butter. it eats well plain, but also holds up well to toppings. i bet it would be amazing with some hummus and vegetables.
i have also cut this bread into cubes, let it dry out over a couple days, and made a savory kale, mushroom, parmesan bread pudding.
this recipe assumes you’re familiar with some basic processes already, and already have your own starter. i plan to write about both of these things in future posts, but haven’t gotten there quite yet. thanks for your patience!
bakers percentage & recommended schedule
the percentages for water and flour only account for the final dough build, and do not include the levain formula build.
a note on seasonal adjustments: tweak levain and bulk times for when your kitchen is colder or warmer. for example, in the winter, i increase levain to 29%, bulk to 8/8.5 hrs, and in the summer, i decrease levain back to 25% and bulk for shorter — maybe 7 hrs. this will totally change depending on how your kitchen carries heat.
| ingredient | baker’s percentage |
| bread flour | 60% |
| einkorn flour | 30% |
| all purpose flour | 10% |
| water | 80% |
| salt | 2.5% |
| levain | 28% |
| step | time |
| levain build | 8 hours |
| bulk rise | 8 hours |
| folds | 4 |
| cold proof | 11 – 12 hours |
| bake | 45 minutes |
30% einkorn sourdough
formula
- 20 g levain
- 20 g king arthur whole wheat flour
- 80 g king arthur all purpose or bread flour
- 80 g water @ 85-90°F
- 132 g farmer ground flour einkorn flour
- 264 g king arthur bread flour
- 44 g king arthur all purpose flour
- 345 g water @ 90-95 degrees F
- 11 g fine sea salt
- 126 g levain (less in summertime, this is for winter)
method
- refresh your starter using levain build formula, and stiff starter method: reserve 20 g of levain, discard the rest, and add in water. mix thoroughly with spoon, or hands. then add the flours, mixing thoroughly again until all flour is absorbed.
- in a separate large bowl, mix all flours together. slowly add water, mixing with a rubber spatula, making sure to incorporate the water into the flour well, stopping when all the flour is hydrated. let sit, covered, for 30 minutes.
- sprinkle salt evenly over autolysed dough. incorporate gently by folding dough over a 2-3 times.
- then, measure out ripe starter, and add to bowl.
- mix using the pincer method, for about 6-7 minutes. target final temperature should be 78 degrees.
- his dough bulks for about 8-8.5 hrs during winter months when my kitchen tends to be cool, 7.5 hrs during spring/fall, and even shorter if your kitchen runs warm. this dough needs 3-4 stretch and folds, about every 45 minutes if possible. alternatively, you may also perform coil folds, at about the same cadence.
- slowly transfer dough from bowl on to lightly floured surface, so it lays out in a rectangular shape. at this point, feel free to use your favorite shaping method. lately, i've been using a simple one: gently grab two horizontal ends and tug. fold the sides onto itself, so it looks like a taquito. then, grab the top and roll it in the other direction, like a burrito.
- optional: coat with sesame seeds. the nuttiness from the sesame seeds and einkorn pair so perfectly together.
- lightly flour a lined bannetone/proofing basket or generously flour an unlined one. gently transfer the dough seam side up to the bannetone. cover with a plastic bag, and put in fridge for 11-12 hrs.
- preheat oven to 495°F and place a 5-6 qt lidded dutch oven inside.
- dough is proofed when it passes the finger dent test. remove bannetone from fridge. optional: sprinkle coarse corn meal on the bottom. then, flip out onto a cut sheet of parchment paper. using a lame, score length wise, about 1/8" deep, and 1/2" away from both edges. i like to add a leaf design on this loaf as well.
- slowly and carefully lift the parchment paper with the dough into the hot dutch oven. decrease temperature to 475°F. bake for 30 minutes with the lid on.
- take the lid off, and bake for another 15 minutes, or whenever the crust turns the color you like it. i go for a deep brown for this loaf.
- cut into loaf and enjoy! i like to wait at least 1.5 hours before slicing
Made this because I had some Einkorn laying around. Kneaded with machine ~6m and did a 3h bulk ferment. 12h cold proof. Baked at 450F for 50m. Came out very nice, thanks for the recipe!