Usually on this blog, I stick to strictly gluten-free recipes and will continue to do so in the future. However, I wanted to make an exception today for what I consider to be an exceptional recipe.
First, let me explain that while Gabriel is allergic to wheat – thus our gluten-free diet – he’s not necessarily allergic to spelt. I know there’s a controversy over whether spelt is okay for the person with allergies to other glutenous grains.
We’ve done numerous tests with spelt, in fact, at one point, Gabriel went over a year without eating it, and has never been able to see an allergic reaction to it. Thus, our position at this point is that spelt is fine for him.
With that said, we don’t usually buy spelt because of the price – I think it’s roughly the same as most pre-packaged gluten-free flour mixes – and to be honest, gluten-free sandwich bread is pretty good anyway!
But this past summer we came across a steal of a deal on some spelt berries and jumped on it (if we ever get around to figuring out how to clean feed-grade spelt berries for human consumption, they’ll probably be a regular part of our diet).
So, we’ve been cooking with spelt a little here and there. Our three main uses for it are homemade spelt tortillas (personally, I prefer spelt tortillas over the wheat equivalent), pizza crust, and bread.
This spelt sandwich bread recipe is amazing. For the longest time, I didn’t make spelt bread much because it has a tendency to dry out really quickly and get crumbly.
But then a friend was telling me that she puts guar gum in her to make the perfect Spelt Sandwich Bread Recipe. My reaction at the time was “Whaaaaa!? you don’t put guar gum in spelt!” But after digesting it for a while (no pun intended), I decided it was worth a try.
Oh my goodness, the results were amazing! We devoured that first fluffy loaf of goodness in record time.
I don’t think I’ve ever tasted wheat-based yeast bread that was better, and quickly decided that we better reserve this recipe for special occasions because it’s just too good not to eat it up – which isn’t very good for our health when we’re talking two (maaybbee three if Garrett is lucky enough to not be taking a nap when it comes out of the oven) people consuming an entire loaf in day.
And if we do have leftovers? There isn’t much better than homemade spelt bread with peanut butter and sugar-free strawberry jam!
PrintPerfect Spelt Sandwich Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups spelt flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Guar Gum
- 3 Tablespoons sugar/honey/sorghum
- 3Tablespoons oil
- 1 cup warm water
Instructions
- Mix dry ingredients in bowl (preferebly a mixer with a dough hook).
- Add wet ingredients, and knead for roughly 4 minutes.
- It’s said that spelt doesn’t require as much kneading as wheat, and I’ve found four minutes to work very well.
- let rise in bowl, covered with a light cloth until double. shape into a loaf, and let rise again in a greased loaf pan.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and bake for 30-40 minutes in the center of the oven.
- Let cool on a cooling grid, slice, and enjoy!
Christine says
I buy spelt bread but have run out. So I am going to try you recipe and make my own. But I do not have any guar gum. What can I do to stop it from being crumbly.
Shanna Dick says
I used xanthan fun and it is a substitute for guar gum.
Shanna Dick says
Xanthan gum.
Charlotte says
I am literally making the first loaf of bread in my life. These instructions are a little vague for an am-mature. Doesn’t Yeast have to be activated with sugar and water? If so, is that why those are listed in the ingredients? Or is what’s listed, IN ADDITION to the activated yeast and I dump that in when it calls for the wet and dry ingredients? Does that make sense? Help me!
Lori says
If you use instant yeast, you don’t need to proof it beforehand and it can be added directly to a recipe.
Suzanne says
My family and I love this recipe! The bread tastes so good and is nice and fluffy and I like that it doesn’t require alot of work. I normally don’t comment on recipes I find online but this one was so good! I use arrowroot powder instead of guar gum and it turns out perfect every time!
Lori says
Can I use sprouted whole grain spelt flour?
Mitch says
I came across your recipe while looking for a good and easy spelt bread. Your bread looks great and recipe is pretty easy. I grind my own berries so I hoping that is not my problem. On the first loaf I used maple syrup for the yeast. Everything went well mixing, rising ect… but it never did rise when it was cooked just came out dense. The second loaf I used sugar and again everything went well and again dense nothing like your picture. So, if you can want I’m missing or need to do let me know, such a easy recipe I don’t want to give up on it.
Courtney says
Hi there, I’m wondering how long you let your loaf rise on the first round, and again on the second? Just an approximation would be much appreciated 😊
★★★★★