Bread has been a staple food since ancient times and you can still recreate bread the old way. That means combining wet and dry ingredients, kneading dough, and allowing it to rise.
The ingredients are crucial and you can still use the grains that they used millennia ago. Keep that bag of plain flour at the back of the cupboard and delve into some ancient grains for your bread.
In this guide, we will look at seven delicious ancient grains bread recipes including Einkorn Bread, Hearty Ancient Grains Bread, and Multiseed No Knead Ancient Grains Bread.
We will also detail a set of Wholemeal Spelt English Muffins, Spelt And Rye Flatbread, Overnight Dark Rye Bread, and Ancient Multigrain Bread.
1. Easy Einkorn Sandwich Bread
If you can find all-purpose Einkorn flour then you are duty-bound to create a loaf of sandwich bread with it.
In a bowl, combine one and a quarter cups of warm water with one and a half teaspoons of dry active yeast, two tablespoons of oil (or melted, cooled butter), and a tablespoon of sugar or honey.
Add three and three-quarter cups of all-purpose Einkorn flour onto the top with one and quarter teaspoons of sea salt. Mix it all together with a spatula until you have a sticky and wet dough.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for 45 minutes then shape it into a sticky dough on a floured surface.
Place the dough in a buttered loaf pan and cover it with more plastic wrap to allow another rise for half an hour.
Bake without the plastic wrap for 40 minutes at 375°F when the crust should be golden brown.
2. Hearty Ancient Grains Bread
With a tablespoon each of quinoa, millet, sesame seeds, and cracked wheat, this is a loaf of bread packed full of grains.
Then you can count on half a cup of sunflower seeds and a full cup of dried cranberries.
This recipe also uses one and a quarter cups of warm milk, a tablespoon of honey, and a quarter cup of maple syrup for that indulgent touch.
With two cups of whole wheat flour and a cup of all-purpose flour, the dough should be a touch sticky.
Leave it to rise in a prepared bread tin under plastic wrap for around three hours in a warm spot. Once the loaf has risen, you only need to bake it for 35 minutes.
3. Wholemeal Spelt English Muffins
Some English bakers simply prefer baking the old way and that means using wholemeal spelt flour. You will need 600g of the stuff to mix with 14g of salt and evenly combine.
Next, dissolve 20g of honey in around 50ml of water, then stir in 10g of quick yeast with 350ml of lukewarm water.
Quickly mix the dough so it does not over mix as you want a spongy dough, not a crumbly one.
Shape that dough into a ball then leave to rise in an oiled bowl for 45 minutes.
The dough should be springy and light then you can roll it out onto a surface coated with flour and semolina (see also ‘Is Semolina A Whole Grain?‘).
Cut out the muffins then leave them to rise for another half an hour on some parchment paper. Instead of baking, these English muffins must be fried in hot oil until golden brown.
4. Spelt And Rye Flatbread
As you may expect, spelt flour goes really well with rye flour. First, combine 400ml of lukewarm water with 10g of dried yeast then simply leave it for ten minutes.
Mix in 200g of spelt flour with 250g of rye flour until you get a smooth dough then leave that to rest for 20 more minutes.
Divide the dough into four parts then roll them out as thinly as possible and bake at 340°F for 15 minutes then sprinkle on sea salt and rapeseed oil.
5. Overnight Dark Rye Bread
Rye bread is a classic creation from Northern Europe. This recipe contains cocoa, oats, whole grain rye, and spelt flour for a dense and chewy, but not dry, bread.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together 500ml of room-temperature water with a teaspoon of maple syrup and a quarter teaspoon of dry yeast.
Throw in 450g of whole spelt flour, 150g of rye flour, 60g of rolled oats, one and a half teaspoons of sea salt, and 25g of cocoa powder.
You can add some dry yeast to the dry ingredients but make sure it is completely combined with a wooden spoon.
Cover the bowl and allow it to sit overnight, or at least 12 to 15 hours at room temperature to double in size.
Grease a bread tin and scrape in the dough then cover with a towel to allow a further rise for one to two hours at room temperature.
Bake the bread in a hot oven for between 40 and 45 minutes until the crust has hardened.
6. Multiseed No Knead Ancient Grains Bread
If you do not enjoy kneading your bread dough, simply let it rise all on its own accord.
You will still need two and a half cups of all-purpose flour to combine with a quarter-cup each of whole wheat flour and rolled oats, the old-fashioned kind.
Next come your seeds including two tablespoons each of pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds with a tablespoon each of flaxseeds and poppy seeds.
To finish off your dry ingredients, add one and a half teaspoons of salt and half a teaspoon of instant yeast.
Once those dry ingredients are fully mixed, gradually stir in one and a half cups of room-temperature water.
You should get a chunky and thick dough that you can simply leave covered with plastic wrap or a cloth overnight, also at room temperature.
Once the rising has been completed, place a large four to six-quart cast iron, ceramic, or enamel-covered pot in the oven at 450°F for around half an hour.
With a hot oven, remove the pot and line it with parchment paper then shape the dough into a ball and place it into the pot.
Sprinkle on some seeds, drop on the lid and bake for half an hour. You will need to remove the lid to let the bread bake for a further ten to fifteen minutes so the crust crisps up then you get to let it cool.
7. Ancient Multigrain Bread
The grains may be ancient but you still use some modern technology to create a delicious loaf of bread.
This recipe uses a bread machine which certainly takes some of the effort out of its creation but makes it so easy.
With ground flax seed and uncooked quinoa, these ancient grains are relatively common and easy to find. Just make sure that your bread machine has a multigrain cycle.
Check the manual that comes with the bread machine to confirm the order of the ingredients.
You can start with three and three-quarter cups of whole wheat flour, two teaspoons of salt, two tablespoons of dry/powdered milk, and two and a half tablespoons of butter.
Add three tablespoons of brown sugar and then come your ancient grains including two tablespoons of uncooked quinoa and a tablespoon of ground flax seed.
Finally, add one and three-quarter cups of water with one and a half teaspoons of quick-rise yeast.
Choose the multigrain cycle and let the bread machine work its magic. This may take around five hours so be patient, you will also need to let the loaf cool for an hour before slicing it up.
Final Thoughts
Using ancient grains does not mean having to use traditional equipment as you will still need to use an oven and you can even use a bread machine.
There are some methods that have stood the test of time including simply allowing the dough to rise at room temperature.
Many cultures have used ancient grains too so that could mean English Muffins, Flatbread, or Dark Rye Bread.
If you do decide to use ancient grains, you will be benefiting from their nutritional content too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Loaves Of Bread Baked With Ancient Grains Considered To Be Healthier For You?
Without being refined like white rice, white flour, or the white bread you can make with it, ancient grains are said to be healthier for you.
That’s largely because they still contain a lot of those healthy components, these include omega-3 fatty acids, protein, B vitamins, as well as zinc.
You can also rely on a much bigger fiber content than regular bread.
Is Ancient Bread Supposed To Be Good For Weight Loss?
With more fiber and protein, you can expect to be more sated after eating some ancient bread compared to regular bread.
By incorporating more whole grains into your diet with ancient grains, it can help with weight loss as you should eat less food and still enjoy those vital nutrients.
