Grain and Flour - Organic Spelt
(A Gourmet Grain)
Spelt is the forerunner of modern wheat with a
unique nutty wheaty flavour. Think of the taste difference between a bland
Golden Delicious Apple and a tasty Russet Apple. Then imagine an equivalent
difference in flour and you will want to sample the intense wheaty flavour of
Spelt.
Reference to Spelt can be traced back over many
centuries even though it is not a familiar food to modern cooks. Try using it in
any recipe calling for wholemeal flour and enjoy the great flavour of this
ancient wheat variety.
Spelt contains more protein, fat and fibre than
wheat. It also contains special carbohydrates called mucopolysaccharides, which
play a decisive role in stimulating the body’s immune system, helping to
increase its resistance to infection. Due to Spelt’s high water solubility the
grain’s vital substances can, like liquid nutrients, be absorbed quickly by
the body.
Many have commented that foods made from spelt
have a superior ability to satisfy hunger.
Spelt and Special Diets
There is much interest in the suitability of
Spelt in various allergy diets. From the ancient medicinal healing texts of St.
Hildegard to modern American studies, the special nutritional properties of
Spelt have been considered beneficial. This is because the easy digestability of
Spelt means that its natural nutritional elements vital to body maintenance are
quickly released.
It is high in gluten but can be tolerated by some
gluten intolerant individuals. However it is recommended that you seek guidance from your doctor or dietician.
A Grain From The Past
There is documentary evidence that spelt was
cultivated by several ancient civilizations both in Europe and Asia, following
its early origins in the fertile Middle East. This means that the unique
characteristics and special qualities of spelt were highly valued and traders
carried the sought after spelt grain to communities far and wide. Preserved
grains have been found throughout Europe, including Britain, in many stone age
excavations.
Spelt is mentioned in the book of Ezekiel in the
old Testament. It was a major cereal crop for the Roman Empire and several
recipes referring to spelt were written by the Roman epicurian, Apicius. In the
12th century the abbess Hildegard of Bingen wrote about the restorative
qualities of spelt in her Causa Medica and Gerards Herbal, written in 1597, also
refers to Spelt.
The exact history and origins of the grain itself
are complex and confused. As there are no records of spelt being found naturally
in the wild, its origins lie in early agricultural practices involving the
intentional cross pollination of grasses by the earliest farmers. The parentage
of spelt is attributed to a cross pollination between emmer wheat (latin name;
triticum dicoccoides) and goat grass (aegilips squarrosa).
Spelt grain (latin name; triticum spelta) comes
from the same genus as common wheat (triticum aestivum). It is a hexaploid wheat
with 42 chromosomes and several distinctive physical & nutritional
characteritics, that differentiate it from the common wheat grown today.
These unique characteristics were key to the
popularity of spelt, which was widespread until the industrial revolution.
Developments in agricultural methods, engineering, and animal husbandry led to
the widespread preference for common wheat which was easy to thrash & the
fall from popularity of spelt.
Gluten Content
Spelt is an excellent breadmaking flour, with
good quality gluten, and an intense flavour. It is particularly suited to quick
breads which are characterised by a firm crust and crumb structure that is open
yet dense.
The gluten of spelt flour is of a different type
to the gluten found in ordinary wheat flour. Spelt gluten imparts its own
distinctive characteristics during breadmaking and has a unique amino acid
protein profile.
 Baking
With Spelt Flour
Yeasted spelt bread doughs will rise, ripen and
mature more quickly than ordinary doughs. This means spelt is especially good
for quick and single rise breads as well as with double rise bread baking
methods.
When adapting your favourite yeasted recipes for
use with spelt flour you will need to reduce the proving times to prevent over
ripening, which can cause the dough to collapse or produce a flying crust in
baked bread. If for example the dough has doubled in size after 20 minutes
rather than the 30 stated in a recipe, proceed to the next stage without delay.
Bake as normal.
Treat Spelt flour as a wholemeal flour in your
baking.
In
Bread Machines
The timing programmes on bread machines have been
carefully devised for use with conventional wheat flours. As the prooving time
for spelt flour is much shorter than that for ordinary flour, bread made
exclusively with spelt flour will rise and collapse before the machine’s
baking cycle has completed.
However you can still enjoy spelt in your bread
machine by blending it half and half with strong white bread flour.
Alternatively run the dough programme, then place the dough on a baking tray,
allow to rise and bake in a conventional oven.
Unique Characteristics
During cultivation the spelt plant has a strong
resemblance to wheat, often grows vigorously, and takes on a burnished gold
colour when ripening. Its widespread popularity indicates that spelt was adapted
for growing in a wide variety of different soils and climates. The crop produces
a long straight and robust straw which would have been very useful for
thatching.
When harvested the ears of spelt break into many
spikelets with an inedible chaff encasing between one and three grains. The
modern combine harvester is unable to remove spelt chaff in its thrashing drum,
so it harvests and delivers the whole spelt spikelets to the store or mill.
The inedible chaff that encase the grain are
thought to offer the growing plant extra protection from disease and weather
spoilage as well as making it less palatable to wild and grazing animals. The
chaff encases and protects the grain from animal and storage pest damage between
growing seasons, and also during storage before consumption. This also shrouds
the seed making it less attractive to insects and animals during the crucial
stages between planting, germination, and establishment of the crop.
Preparing The Grain
As simple threshing does not dislodge the grain
from the inedible chaff, other strategies have been used over the centuries to
prepare the grain for consumption. Historically this was done by vigorous
rubbing and partly crushing the grain between pieces of stone. This action
releases the grain, but can also partly break up the grain into a kind of meal.
This would have been very desirable to ancient civilizations who could safely
store the grain until required, then prepare it in one process by crushing. The
inedible chaff would release the grains as it was crushed and ground, producing
a very coarse flour ready for cooking. The unwanted chaff could easily be sieved
out or blown away when the crushing process was finished.
Today mechanical removal at the mill ensures the
inedible chaff is removed without damaging the spelt grain. When finally
released from the chaff, spelt looks very similar to, if a little longer than,
common wheat.
|
