Normally when I bake bread I have always done a regular yeast bread with one or two proofs or beer breads which don’t require any proofing. With all the hype that I’ve been hearing about these ‘no knead’ breads and how amazing they turn out from using a dutch oven, I figured I needed to try it. Since I’m a total lover of spelt flour and seeds I needed to come up with something that was crusty and soft at the same time, and be ready for a slathering of butter.
The seeds that I used for this recipe were sunflower, pumpkin, flax, and sesame. You can easily swap these out for seeds of your choice or even add in some golden quinoa since the dough will be fermenting overnight as long as the total quantity of seeds equals up to two thirds of a cup.
One thing I have always done is put the dough on a parchment paper instead of pouring it directly into the dutch oven. I do need to try this and update the post on how easily the bread comes out if I don’t use the parchment paper. If any of you have tried it without the parchment paper do let me know in the comments section as I’d love to hear your feedback.
Dutch Bread
- 4 cups spelt flour
- 1 teaspoon yeast (active dry)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup seeds of choice (sunflower, pumpkin, flax, sesame)
- 2¼ cup water
Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir until blended.
Combine both flour and water mixtures.
Mix with a wooden spoon until combined but try not to over-mix it.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 8 to 15 hours.
Place your dutch oven (aka cast iron pot) and lid in your oven and preheat oven, pot, and lid to 450ºF (230C).
Using a large piece of parchment paper dusted with flour, place the wet dough on it and add additional flour to it to roughly make it into a ball shape (it will be a very sloppy ball).
Remove the dutch oven with lid from the oven and lift the parchment paper with dough on it directly into the pot. Close the lid on the pot and place it back in the oven.
Bake the bread for 30 minutes with the lid on and then remove the lid and bake for another 20 minutes until the bread is golden brown.
Remove the pot from the oven and lift the bread out using the parchment paper. Let cool slightly before slathering with butter. Best served warm.
