SPROUTED BLACK LENTIL SOURDOUGH BREAD

In my "previous life," before the internet, I sourced ingredients for food manufacturers and bakeries. One of my clients was Food for Life Baking Company that bought truckloads of organic lentils from me.  As I got to know the founders of that company, I appreciated their philosophy and ethos.  One of the things I learned was the importance of sprouted grain breads and its amazing health benefits.  I've been doing much research and experimentation which has resulted in this hearty sprouted black lentil sourdough bread recipe.

In my travels to India, I was fascinated by how lentils were the backbone to this predominantly vegetarian country.  Every dish had lentils and there  are so many different kinds of lentils.  I decided to do more extensive research on lentils for their health benefits. 

Because lentils are very healthy and high in protein, fiber and calcium, I decided to look into which lentil was the healthiest and use that for my sprouted bread. Here is my discovery.

I initially made a black lentil bread without sprouting and just added the soaked seeds into the bread. The lentils were hard and proved to be a dental hazard.  I thus decided to take the time and sprout the lentils.  I was curious about the health benefits of sprouting the lentils.  According to some health websites, they claim that sprouting can increase the protein level, improve the digestibility of nutrients, improve the blood sugar levels and enhance the levels of vitamin C and antioxidants.  

I was sold! Sprouting made sense.  It would add a few extra days to the baking, but if you're baking for yourself and your family, you might as well bake the healthiest and most delicious bread.

Tips to making sprouted black lentil sourdough bread.

Ingredients requiring prep time.

Black lentils

Sprouting will take at least 4 days, but it is well worth the effort. There is really no active work, but just waiting for nature to do its thing.  Soak the lentils at least 24 hours in a container that has lid.

After 24 hours, drain the water, gently rinse the lentils, drain the water and allow them to germinate.  Do that until all the lentils have sprouted.

After the lentils have sprouted, drain all the water from the lentils and blend to chop most of the lentils.  I like being able to distinguish some lentils but if you throw in the lentils whole, they become very hard and may prove to be a dental hazard.

When adding the chopped lentils to the bread dough, drain as much of the water out as possible. Otherwise, the high moisture dough becomes difficult to work with.

Levain.

The active starter or levain should be prepared at least 6 hours or the night before use.  It should be light and airy and will actually float on the water when added. 

Soak the whole wheat flour in the required amount of water to fully hydrate the germ. Since the germ is in the flour, it acts as sharp shards when the dough is forming and hinders the dough development.  In my experience, soaking the whole wheat flour results in a softer and loftier crumb.

Autolyse.

Mix the dough by hand until all the flour is incorporated into the water, levain mixture. Allow this dough to sit for 30-45 minutes.  This resting allows the water to fully hydrate the bread flour, making it easier to work with.  

See the basic sourdough bread post for more tips for successful baking.  Let me know how it turned out in the comment section.