NO-KNEAD SEEDED MORNING BREAD

I am not very good at making bread. I don't have the patience to knead it for a long time. However, I had some wholemeal spelt flour in the pantry that needed to be used. I found this recipe by chance and decided to have a go at it. The result was just great. A very delicious and wholesome bread. You only need a slice to feel satisfied. The actual recipe used white spelt flour, and it was obviously lighter than mine. The only change I made was to double the yeast. Wonderful recipe.

INGREDIENTS

3 1/2 cups (830ml) water 
1 sachet (15g) dry yeast
1 Tbsp maple syrup
3 tsp sea salt flakes
6 cups (780g) wholemeal spelt flour, plus extra for dusting
1/2 cup (90g) linseeds (flaxseeds)
1/2 cup (80g) sunflower seeds
butter, to serve

METHOD:
Place the water, yeast, maple syrup and salt in a large bowl and mix to combine. 

Add the flour, linseeds and sunflower seeds. 

Mix well until a sticky dough forms.

Turn out the dough onto a surface dusted with flour and fold over the edges to form a rough round loaf.

Place the dough in a clean bowl dusted with flour. 

Dust the top of the dough with flour and cover with a clean tea towel.

Allow to stand for 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 250°C. Heat a large heavy based cast-iron saucepan in the oven for 30 minutes or until very hot.
Carefully remove the pan from the oven and dust with flour.
Slide the dough into the hot pan. Using a small sharp knife, score the top of the dough with a cross pattern. 

Cover with a tight-fitting lid and bake for 40-45 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 220°C, remove the lid and bake, uncovered, for a further 20 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped.

Slice the bread and serve warm with butter.

Makes 1 loaf

It the bread with a selection of cheeses and cold meats. I love it with a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, but it is also delicious with butter. If you want to try something different you can rub it with a very ripe tomato, add a pinch of salt and then drizzle with olive oil. It is a traditional recipe from Catalonia.