Despite what some “diet gurus” say, certain kinds of bread in moderation can be a part of a healthy diet.
Recently, I introduced you to what I believe to be the healthiest bread in the world. I listed four reasons for my belief:
- I make mine with kamut berries.
- I sprout and dehydrate the berries, then grind them myself.
- It contains the nutrition powerhouse known as raw milk kefir (no sourdough starter required!).
- The flour is soaked overnight, which neutralizes the phytates.
For those of you I’ve already lost, kamut is modern-day wheat’s ancestor. It has a lower gluten and much higher nutrient content–a great source of magnesium, zinc, and some of the B vitamins–and has a buttery flavor that regular wheat can’t hold a candle to. I buy mine at Whole Foods, and it is also available at online stores that sell organic bulk food products.
Why do I go to the bother of sprouting it before turning it into flour? For two simple reasons: first, the process of germinating a seed increases its nutritional value many times higher than what it had while it was still dry and unsprouted; and second, sprouting a seed neutralizes the phytates.
(Phytates are chemical compounds that exist in all dry grains and seeds, and which will inhibit the absorption of certain minerals into your bloodstream unless they are neutralized by either sprouting or soaking the seeds prior to consumption.)
Even if you don’t sprout the grain before hand, buying the kamut/rye/wheat berries and then grinding them yourself with a 
grain and flour mill
So now you know why using sprouted and freshly ground kamut berries produces a more nutritious bread than unsprouted, run-of-the-mill wheat flour. What about the raw milk kefir?
First, a note: if your state has outlawed the sale of raw milk from dairy farms, the next best thing is to make it from pasteurized milk from grass-fed cows.
What makes kefir an exceptional ingredient in the bread is that it has naturally occurring yeasts. The conventional active dry yeast you buy in a grocery store has been highly processed, and is of the type that will enhance the growth of Candida in the gut. The yeasts in the kefir will not. And using raw milk kefir (visit the kefirlady’s site to find out more about kefir and how to make your own) adds a nice boost to the nutritional value of the bread.
Finally, the dough is left overnight to ferment. In the event that you use flour from non-sprouted grains, this process neutralizes the phytates. So even if you’re not as ambitious as I, you will still end up with a healthy bread, one that will not encourage mineral deficiency as do yeast-based, non-sprouted grain breads.
So now, the moment you’ve been waiting for…the recipe for The Healthiest Bread In The World!
Sourdough Bread The Slightly More Complicated Way
Note: I double the recipe to make 2 loaves at a time, and have reflected that in the modified recipe.
- 24 ounces (3 cups) of kefir
- 1/2 cup water (making it by hand, it ends up too dry with just the kefir; I find adding the water makes the dough easier to knead and the end product delightfully moist)
- 6 cups (preferably freshly ground) kamut/organic wheat flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 4 tsp. maple syrup, honey, or agave nectar (what I use; notice the sweetener amount is doubled from Marilyn’s recipe; it takes a bit of the edge off the sour flavor)
Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap/bag. Knead 80-100 turns about 4 hours later. Cover again and let sit for about 24 hours. Knead 80-100 turns again. Divide dough into 2 equal parts and place each part in a greased bread pan. Cover and let sit another four hours or so. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Bake bread for 1 – 1/4 hours (an hour and fifteen minutes). Let cool, slice, and enjoy!
As the recipe I provided last week requires neither kamut flour nor sprouting the grain before turning into flour, a purest may consider that recipe the second-healthiest. But, in the grand scheme of things, both recipes are much more nutritious than most breads you can buy in a store, so pick the one you like best and run with it!
For more recipes for healthy baked goods using soaked flour–including cookies and muffins–check out Sally Fallon’s book Nourishing Traditions.
**************************
Learn the principles of living in optimum health.
Looking for natural, chemical-free treatments and cures that work? Try undiluted, unadulterated essential oils.
There is no better supplement than Masaji. Find out how it changed my life here.
You’re improving your health; ready to get really free? Check out my other blog, freetoliveyourdreams.com.
