'Long Winter' Bread
'Long Winter' Bread
This rustic bread is named after the "Little House on the Prairie" book in which it appears. It's made with ground wheat berries, bacon drippings and a homemade sourdough starter. Enjoy a warm hunk (with freshly churned butter, of course) and imagine a life on the prairie.This recipe is adapted from "The Little House Cookbook: Frontier Foods From Laura Ingalls Wilder's Classic Stories" by Barbara M. Walker (Harper Collins, 1989). It was originally published in the Chicago Tribune.
Prep Time
2.67
hours
Cook Time
45
minutes
Servings
6
Total time: 3 hours, 25 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough starter (see notes)
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 cup warm water
- 1 pound wheat berries
- 1 teaspoon bacon drippings
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
- Step 1: Place 1 cup sourdough starter in a bowl; add 2 1/2 cups flour and 2 cups warm water. Mix; set aside in a warm place until bubbly, about 2 hours.
- Step 2: In a clean coffee grinder, grind 1 pound wheat berries to get 3 1/2 cups flour. Grease a 9- or 10-inch pie pan with 1 teaspoon bacon drippings.
- Step 3: In a separate bowl, mix 2 cups of the starter-flour mixture, 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda and 3 cups of the wheat berry flour.
- Step 4: Knead the dough into a round loaf. Place in prepared pan. (Return remaining starter to fridge.) Score the loaf two or three times to make wedges. Cover; let rise, 30 minutes.
- Step 5: About 10 minutes before the loaf is finished rising, preheat oven to 350 F. Bake loaf for 45 minutes; cool before eating.