Spelt and Wholemeal Rolls

These had a lovely nutty flavour with an excellent soft crumb interior. Good for sweet as well as savoury items.

Ingredients:

• 500g bread flour (I used 300 Spelt flour & 200 Wholemeal bread flour, but the ratio can be changed)
• 5g salt
• 7g instant yeast
• 2 tbsp treacle
• 20 – 30ml vegetable oil
• 330ml water
• 50g mixed seeds (or seeds of your choice)

Method:

1. Mix together the dry ingredients except the seeds (make sure the salt and yeast are mixed on opposite sides of the bowl and do not come into contact.)
2. Add the wet ingredients then the seeds.
3. Mix together well, either in an electric stand mixer or by hand
4. Knead well. Either by hand on a lightly floured surface for about 12 – 15 minutes or in a stand mixer with a dough hook for 7 – 10 minutes on slow speed. (N.B. These are longish times as it’s a sticky dough. If it comes together earlier that’s fine.)
5. Place in a large, lightly oiled bowl. Cover and leave in a draft free area. The dough will take anything from 2 – 3 hours to rise and double in size.
6. When the dough is sufficiently risen, tip it out onto a lightly floured surface and punch it down to get rid of any air.
7. Divide the dough into as many rolls as you require. (This can be done by guesswork or by weighing. If you want to be accurate then weigh the dough, divide the weight by the number of rolls required and weigh each one.)
8. On a lightly floured surface roll the pieces into the desired shape, making sure you pull the outer surface of each roll down and under firmly to stretch the outer surface, creating tension.
9. Place rolls well apart on one or two lined baking trays, dust with flour the pop each tray inside a large plastic bag. (A white swing bin liner is ideal.)
10. Inflate the bag then wrap the loose ends underneath so the rolls sit inside without touching the sides. Leave for about an hour.
11. Half an hour before they are ready to be baked, turn the oven on to 230°C or fan 210°.
12. With a very sharp knife or razor blade boldly cut one or more slashes on each roll.
13. As soon as the rolls are in the oven, turn it down to 220°C or fan 200°.
14. Bake for 11 – 14 minutes.