Speltified

Bursting Blueberries

Yesterday I bought Spelt flour for the first time. Personally I find that regular flour bloats my tummy, so I am on the hunt for better alternatives. Many say rye is meant to be a good alternative but it was worse than normal bread - my flat mates and I looked pregnant for weeks after eating the stuff.  But back to spelt. I was excited to start baking with spelt this morning that I could not sleep. I had so many ideas running through my head this morning that I had to get up. I thought I'd keep things simple and start with easy concepts that I could later develop.

The first idea that came to me was pancakes. I have never actually made American style pancakes before I always used to make Crepes. But I thought today was the day this had to change. So I was flicking through recipes online to find ones with the least hassle. I came across one that seemed pretty simple and it was, but the actual taste that resulted was rather bland. So for next time I have conjured up some ideas that I will try (and I'll write down so you can try as well), as well as some last minute tweaks I made whilst eating that created a delightful treat.

Basic Ingredients:

- 1 cup of flour (any kind)
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup soy milk
- 2 tbsp oil (veg or olive)

Adaptations for next time:

- Instead of sugar you could try mashing a banana, I think this gives more sweetness than sugar and is healthier too!

- Another thing I added to one batch, and would like to experiment more, is orange zest. Though I'd add orange juice as well, and go ahead with spices such as cinnamon (can also use other citrus fruits like lemon or lime)  

- Go crazy with anything you like, such as; nuts, dried fruit, real fruit, chocolate, spices, juices and anything else you could fit in a pancake.              

Method:

1) Put the stove on medium heat with a pan on it

2) Combine the 4 dry ingredients in a bowl

3) Then add the milk and oil

4) Mix until smooth

5) Now take a spoonful of mix onto the pan (about one small ladles worth)

6) When bubbles (as shown in the pic on the left) start to form or the edges stiffen, flip the pancake
7) And plate up!

Now this method is for a simple pancake mix, but I would recommend experimenting with different flavours! Some I did today were blueberry, cinnamon and raisin and cinnamon, raisin and orange. I liked the sweetness of the blueberry ones but the ones with orange had the most potential I thought. In fact a recipe I would like to try is with banana, orange, raisin and chocolate chip.

Because the initial pancakes were bland I got bored. So I went to the cupboard, got the chocolate (milk and white, though dark is healthier!) out and placed it on the pancakes and whacked them in the microwave to melt. I then added raspberries on top and OMG it was an oozing, melting, electric sensation on my tastebuds. I went crazy, chocolate mad and ended up eating the entire pancake batch with as many chocolate combinations as I could think of.

However, this is not healthy and I do not recommend as part of a daily routine. So, if you do like your chocolate I recommend getting small chunks or chocolate chips adding them in the batter so they melt with the fruit and spices to make an amalgamation of phenomenality to tantalise your tastebuds.

I don't think I will be having pancakes for breakfast for a while now, but I will continue this experimentation very soon! Go crazy with flavours, the more the better!

Breakfast fit for a princess

 My second Spelt attempt was in bread making and this was very, very simple and worth doing no matter what. Its so easy that it only takes 3 mins to prep! All you need is;

- 500g Spelt flour
- 10g fast action yeast
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 150g mixed seeds (whatever you fancy)
- 500 ml warm water

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 200C

2) Combine all the ingredients, adding the water last

3) Mix well until a dough forms

4) Dump into a greased loaf tin (I used a square one for variation)

5) Bake for an hour

6) Before serving warm for another 10 mins out of the tin

PLEASE NOTE: a big mistake I made was using greaseproof paper. It stuck to the bread and I couldn't get it off. All you need to do is flour the sides of the tin, because the bread actually pulls away from the sides of the tin.

Otherwise, I was very happy with the outcome and don't see why this shouldn't be a weekly occurrence. Its so simple and easy to make and not much can go wrong!

Spelt is a wonderful nutty grain and well worth a try! And if you like experimenting there's lots to get cracking with :)