Quinoa Bread

Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com

Quinoa — “mother of all grains” in Quechua langage — is considered a pseudo-cereal since it doesn’t belong to the grass family, but the beet and spinach likes.

It’s only recently that we rediscovered this traditional plant cultivated for over five thousand years in the highlands of South America. Such as beans, potatoes, and corn ; quinoa was the staple food of pre-Columbian civilizations. Unlike corn, it did not attracted the attention of the Spanish conquerors.

To make these quinoa breads, you can buy quinoa flour in organic food stores. It makes the bread taste like hazelnut and corn flour, and gives the dense bread crumb, which is very nice.

Ingredient list for the quinoa bread recipe

• 4 cups (400g) organic wheat flour
• 1 cup (100g) organic quinoa flour
• 6 ounces (170g) of ripe sourdough (a very informative sourdough recipe can be found at Nourishing Foodways )
• 1 1/2 cup (330ml) of water
• 2 teaspoons (10g) gray sea salt

Baking instructions

H is the time you start to make your quinoa breads.

H: put the flour in a large mixing bowl, make a well, put the sourdough and cover with flour. Melt the salt in water and add to mixture. Stir with a large wooden spoon until the flour is well mixed, when there is no more visible flour, let stand for 15 minutes — this is the autolysis phase that allows water to spread in the flour.

H + 15 min: put the dough onto a floured surface and knead it from outside back towards the center, flattening with your hands. When the dough is firm, place it in your bowl.
Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest in the hottest spot of your home (near a radiator, a sunny window, or in a preheated oven for 5 minutes at 95°f – 35°c).

H + 3 h: put the dough back on a floured surface. Share the dough in half or quarters, depending the size and number of loaves you want. Degas. Make a rectangle, fold in three, edge to edge by pinching the dough well to close bread, roll it back and do a little back and forth. Place on a baking sheet, repeat with the second piece of dough and cover with a cloth.

H + 5 h: set the oven to preheat for 15 minutes at 480°f (250°c)  with the roasting pan positioned below. Then incise the bread using a incisette or a very sharp razor blade. Open the oven and place the quinoa bread. Fill the roasting pan with cold water. You can also spray a small amount of water on top of loaves. Bake for about 20 minutes at 480°f (250°c). Bake for 15 minutes if you made smaller quinoa breads, like the pictures.

Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com

photo: quinoa bread recipe