bread baking!

spelt-rice bread with imagine foods sweet corn soup and a baby romaine and tomato salad with annie's lemon-chive dressing:


today was a bearable day, almost chilly at times, which is a welcome change from the heat and humidity of late. so i decided it was cool enough to try some baking. i found this recipe in my ExtraVeganZa! cookbook and have been wanting to make it for quite some time because it sounded so weird (cooked rice, spelt, cornmeal, no yeast or leavening agents!). it has a really weird name too, with somebody's name and old english spellings (?) that sound like more of a quote than a title. it also asks for sesame seeds in the recipe without listing it in the ingredients, so i put my own version below. anyway, i popped into work and got a container of cooked rice (because i was a little lazy) and some soup and salad fixings. then i got to work...

spelt-rice bread (makes one loaf):
1/2 c. cornmeal
2 c. spelt flour
1 tbsp. olive, corn, sesame, or other natural oil
1 1/2-2 c. brown rice, cooked and cooled
2/3 tsp. sea salt
3/4 c. (or more) water
about 1/8 c. sesame seeds

in a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, and salt, and rub in the oil with your fingertips. work the rice with your fingers until all of the grains are separated and kinda coated with the flour mixture. add enough water to make a dough that sticks together easily. it will look something like this:



shape the dough into a round loaf. place the sesame seeds on a plate, then roll the loaf in the sesame seeds until it is completely covered (or until all the seeds are used up):



sprinkle some sesame seeds on a baking sheet, then place the loaf on the sheet. put loaf into a cold oven, then turn oven to 350 degrees and bake for one hour. remove from oven and allow to cool. serve with soup and salad, or just with your favorite topping! keep remaining bread in sealed container or plastic bag to retain moistness.



observations:
this dough is quick to make, and easy to work with (not very sticky like other doughs can be). it doesn't rise (duh), so don't be alarmed if it's the same size when you pull it out of the oven as when you put it in. it's super-dense, simple, and (so far) pretty moist. i bet toasted it would make a good open-faced sandwich base (mmmm... cashew cheese!!).

on a related note, i'm going to try and make my own sweet corn soup soon. the imagine foods brand is delicious (and vegan of course) but i bet homemade it could be even tastier. the ingredients don't seem to weird or vague, either, so whenever my corn crop is ready for eating, sweet corn chowder here i come! (or i may have to make it sooner).