Homemade Multigrain Biscuit Mix and 15-Minute Biscuits
Wheat Germ and Sun-Dried Tomato Muffins
Lime-Coconut Banana Muffins with Macadamias
Fast and Flexible Whole- Grain Rolls
Crystallized Ginger and Barley Tea Bread
Farro-Studded Focaccia with Herbs
Power Buns with Flax, Soy, and Blueberries
THESE THIN BREADS ARE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN CRÊPES AND CHAPATIS. With no kneading or rolling, the batter is easy to whisk together, and the breads cook quickly on the stovetop. Feel free to flavor them as you see fit, with spices and herbs to go with the meal, or with different whole-grain flours. For a gluten-free bread, just use brown rice or bean flour instead of wheat. Try them with the Spicy Yellow Split Pea Quinoa Dal and some chutney.
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup oat, millet, teff, or amaranth flour
¼ to ½ teaspoon salt, to taste
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup plain yogurt, any type
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, plus more if needed
In a large bowl, combine the flours, salt, and baking soda. In a cup, whisk the yogurt and water together, then stir into the dry mixture. Add additional water, if needed, to make a batter with the consistency of heavy cream. Cover and let stand for half an hour.
Heat a nonstick, 10-inch sauté pan over high heat, and use a paper towel to smear just a bit of oil in the pan. Use a scant ½-cup measure to scoop batter into the hot pan, then tilt and swirl the pan to spread it out to a round about 8 inches across. If the first one is too thick, thin the batter a bit with water. Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for 1 minute, flip the bread, cover, and cook for 1 minute more. Flip the bread, and cook for 1 minute uncovered, then flip once more, and cook for 1 minute uncovered. Slide it out onto a plate and continue with the rest of the batter.
Serve the breads warm with soup, or topped with cheese, or rolled with fillings.
ROLLED QUINOA, ALSO CALLED QUINOA FLAKES, is a delicious flat version of the “mother Grain.” If you can’t find it, use wheat germ, rolled barley, or more rolled oats. This mix is incredibly flexible and can even be made with gluten-free flours. Vegans can use soy protein powder and margarine. The biscuits are substantial, crunchy, and full of grainy flavors, perfect for dipping into the Classic Squash, Wild Rice, and Apple Soup with Sage.
BISCUIT MIX
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup kamut flour or spelt flour
1 cup cornmeal
½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats, rolled rye, or rolled barley
½ cup rolled quinoa or wheat germ
½ cup nonfat powdered milk
2 tablespoons baking powder
¼ cup sugar or other granular sweetener
2 teaspoons salt
½ cup cold butter or margarine
FOR 4 BISCUITS
1 cup biscuit mix
¼ cup water, or more if needed
1 tablespoon milk (optional)
For the biscuit mix, in a large bowl, mix the flours, cornmeal, rolled grains, milk powder, baking powder, sugar, and salt. When well combined, use a grater to shred the cold butter or margarine into the bowl, tossing with the flour to coat. Squeeze the mixture in handfuls to break up the butter or margarine into small pieces. Store in zipper-top bags in the refrigerator or freezer. (If frozen, measure what you want to use and let it come to room temperature for an hour before proceeding.)
To make 4 biscuits, preheat the oven to 450°F. Measure 1 cup of the mix into a large bowl. Quickly stir in ¼ cup water or enough just to moisten; don’t overstir. Flatten the dough in the bottom of the bowl and cut it into 4 wedges. Transfer the biscuits to an ungreased baking pan. Brush the tops with milk (if desired), and bake for 10 minutes. Serve hot.
WHOLE WHEAT PASTRY FLOUR MAKES A TENDER BISCUIT, and the luscious sweet potato and cheddar add color and flavor. This is a great companion to a hearty soup, especially the Quick Summer Veggie—Wild Rice Soup. Sweet potatoes can vary in their moisture content, so you may need more or less buttermilk to make a firm dough.
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar or other granular sweetener
1 tablespoon fresh herbs, such as marjoram, thyme, or parsley
5 tablespoons cold butter
¼ cup buttermilk, or more if needed
1 cup cooked, puréed sweet potato
2 to 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, diced
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spray a nonstick baking sheet with vegetable oil spray. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Chop the fresh herbs and stir into the flour mixture. Grate the butter into the flour mixture and work it in with your fingers until rice-size pieces remain.
In a measuring cup, mix the buttermilk into the sweet potato. Gently stir the wet ingredients into the flour mixture, using your hands to gently knead. As it comes together, add the cheese and mix. If the dough is too dry, mix in more buttermilk, a teaspoon at a time.
Pat the dough out on a floured counter, about ¾ inch thick, and cut in either rounds or squares. Pat the scraps together to cut again. Place the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden and lightly browned.
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1½ cups wheat germ
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
¼ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 large eggs, separated
1½ cups buttermilk
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
THE GERM OF THE WHEAT KERNEL IS WHERE THE NUTRIENTS ARE STORED, so this muffin is extra-nutritious. You can substitute oat bran if you are looking for more fiber. I enjoy a savory muffin like this alongside a bowl of soup, and the Italian flavors make it a great companion to the Zuppa Fiorentina or Creamy Cannellini Bean–Amaranth Soup with Basil.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a small, heat-safe bowl, pour the boiling water over the sun-dried tomatoes and cover with a small plate, to let them plump. When they are fully rehydrated and soft, drain them and squeeze out the excess water, then chop into ¼-inch pieces. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper muffin liners, and spritz the top of the pan with vegetable oil spray to keep the muffin tops from sticking.
In a large bowl, mix the wheat germ, flour, brown sugar, basil, Parmesan, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In another bowl or measuring cup, whisk the egg yolks with the buttermilk and olive oil. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites to stiff peaks.
Mix the buttermilk mixture and the chopped tomatoes into the dry ingredients, then fold the egg whites into the batter. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them just to the top of the cup. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on racks.
TAKE A TRIP TO THE TROPICS WITH THESE MUFFINS. They are a great example of using strong accent flavors to balance the stronger flavor of whole wheat flour. Soft whole wheat pastry flour helps keep the muffins tender while contributing the full fiber and benefits of wheat. If your limes are small, get a couple extra, so you will have enough juice.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coarsely chop the macadamia nuts and reserve. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper muffin liners, and spritz the top of the pan with vegetable oil spray to keep the muffin tops from sticking.
In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and coconut. In a food processor or blender, purée the bananas. Add the brown sugar, and purée again. Grate the zest from the limes and add to the dry mixture, then juice the limes and measure ½ cup of the juice for the batter, reserving 2 tablespoons for the glaze. Add the ½ cup lime juice, egg, and oil to the banana mixture and purée to mix.
Stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture, then fold in the macadamias. Portion into the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on a rack.
When the muffins are completely cool, measure the powdered sugar, reserved 2 tablespoons lime juice, and vanilla into a shallow bowl. Stir thoroughly to make a thick paste. If it is too dry, add a few more drops of juice. Dip each cooled muffin into the glaze, gently scraping off the excess on the side of the bowl. Let the muffins dry on a cooling rack before putting them in an airtight container.
½ cup macadamia nuts
2¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsweetened coconut, shredded
2 large, overripe bananas
1 cup brown sugar
4 limes
1 large egg
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
WHAT TO DO WITH THAT BROWN RICE LEFT OVER FROM DINNER? Make these delicious rolls, and savor the moist, chewy presence of whole grains all week. Rolls are the easiest to make and quickest to bake of all yeast breads. They freeze well and can be taken out of the freezer one at a time to thaw, for ultimate flexibility.
2 cups water, divided, for bulgur, or 1½ cups water for cooked grain
½ cup bulgur or 1 cup cooked grain
¼ cup honey (not raw honey; it may kill the yeast)
½ cup olive oil or nut oil
½ teaspoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon quick-rise yeast
5 cups whole wheat bread flour, divided
2 teaspoons salt
Bring 1½ cups water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the bulgur and return to a full, rolling boil. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes, then let stand for 5 minutes. Add ½ cup cool water to bring the temperature down. (If using cooked grain, bring 1½ cups water to a boil, add the cooked grain, and remove from the heat.)
Stir the honey, oil, and vinegar into the hot grain mixture. Take the temperature of the mixture, and follow the yeast package recommendations, letting it cool if necessary. In a stand mixer or large bowl, mix 4 cups of the flour with the yeast and salt. Using the dough hook, stir in the grain mixture. Knead to mix. When the flour is mixed in, knead in the remaining cup, to make a soft dough. The dough will seem sticky in the bowl, but you should be able to handle it without it sticking to your hands. Oil a large mixing bowl and scrape the dough into the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for at least 45 minutes, and up to 3 hours.
Oil a heavy sheet pan. Preheat the oven to 375°F. The dough should be bigger than it was. Tear off small handfuls of dough, about three-fourths of the size you would like the rolls to be. Roll each piece into a ball, and place on the oiled pan. Lightly cover with a sheet of plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot for at least 30 minutes.
Bake for 15 minutes. Slide the rolls off the pan onto a rack to cool.
VARIATIONS:
Add herbs, nuts, or cheese to the dough. You can make it sweeter by doubling the honey, and use it for cinnamon rolls.
After the first rising, pat the dough out to a large rectangle and cover with a filling (see the list below), then roll up into a cylinder. Slice the roll in 1-inch-thick rounds, and place on the pan. Bake as directed in the main recipe.
SUGGESTED FILLINGS:
Cinnamon–sugar and raisins, shredded cheese and nuts or sautéed onions, pesto and grated Parmesan, spinach and feta, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes.
THIS SPICY LOAF IS STUDDED WITH CHEWY BARLEY AND ZINGY GINGER CHUNKS. Job’s tears, if you can get it, is an outstanding grain in this bread. Purple barley is a colorful addition, as would be red or black rice. Start with a heaping 1/3 cup grain to get 1 cup after cooking, and let it cool completely before adding it to the batter.
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup raw sugar or brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk or yogurt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup cooked barley or Job’s tears, cooled
1 cup chopped crystallized ginger
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, such as Sugar in the Raw
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a loaf pan with vegetable Bake for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted in the center oil. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking of the loaf comes out clean. Cool on a rack. powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
In 1-quart bowl, mix the eggs, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla. Quickly stir into the dry mixture and fold in the cooked barley and ginger. Scrape into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar.
Bake for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool on a rack.
WHOLE FARRO, KAMUT, OR ANY GRAIN MAKES A CHEWY, SWEET NOTE in this focaccia. Farro is an ancient variety of wheat, probably used in antiquity to make breads, risotti, and even pasta.
¼ cup whole farro or kamut
1½ cups boiling water
3 cups whole wheat bread flour
2 teaspoons quick-rise yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1¼ cups water
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves
½ small onion, thinly sliced
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, or ½ teaspoon coarse salt
Cook the farro in the 1½ cups boiling water in a small saucepan for about 40 minutes, until very tender. Drain well. In a stand mixer or large bowl, mix the flour, yeast, and salt. Heat the 1¼ cups water to the temperature the yeast package recommends for mixing into a dry mixture, usually 110°F to 130°F. With the mixer running, pour in the water and 3 tablespoons of the oil. Knead until well mixed, then knead for 5 minutes more. It will be a sticky, soft dough. Knead in the cooked farro.
Grease a 9-inch square baking pan with a little olive oil. Scrape the dough into the prepared pan and spread it out to the corners. Let the focaccia rise, covered, for an hour, or until doubled in height.
Preheat the oven to 375°F. When the focaccia has risen, sprinkle the thyme, rosemary, and onion over the dough. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil, and top with the Parmesan or salt. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the focaccia is firm and browned around the edges.
THE POWER BAGEL IS SOMETHING THAT APPEARED IN STORES a few years ago. As far as I can tell, the bagel’s “power” lies in the fact that it actually contains fiber. These hearty buns have the darlings of the “power foods” lists: soy, flax, and blueberries for antioxidants, good fats, and protein.
3¼ cups whole wheat bread flour, divided
½ cup soy flour
¼ cup flax seeds
1 tablespoon quick-rise yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1½ cups hot water
¼ cup canola oil
¼ cup honey
½ cup dried blueberries
In a stand mixer or large bowl, mix 3 cups of the whole wheat flour with the soy flour, flax seeds, yeast, and salt. In a small saucepan, stir together the hot water, oil, and honey. Take the temperature of the mixture, and heat the mixture if necessary to adjust the temperature according to the yeast package directions. Using the dough hook or by hand, stir the liquid into the dry ingredients. Knead until the dough is well mixed, then knead for 10 minutes more. The dough can be a little sticky; add some more flour to make a supple dough, but don’t add too much or the buns will be tough. Knead in the blueberries.
After kneading, scrape the dough into a large, oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for an hour. The dough should have doubled in bulk. Oil a sheet pan. Punch down the dough, then tear off pieces, each about ½ cup in volume. Shape into rolls and place the prepared pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and put somewhere warm to rise for about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
When the buns have almost doubled, bake them for 15 minutes. They should be golden brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Transfer the buns to a rack to cool.
TO MAKE THE KIND OF RUSTIC BREADS YOUR FAVORITE BAKERY PRODUCES, you need patience and a few pieces of equipment. A pizza stone, water misting bottle, and pan of water for the oven are necessary to get the crisp crust. Your flour makes all the difference, so try a few brands made from hard winter wheat and see how each affects the final product. This makes a dense, crusty loaf, filled with intense wheaty flavor.
1 cup water
4 cups plus 2 tablespoons whole wheat bread flour, divided
4 teaspoons quick-rise yeast, divided
½ cup raisins
1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons barley malt syrup
2 tablespoons gluten flour
2 teaspoons salt
½ cup broken walnuts
½ cup sesame seeds
Four hours before mixing the dough, make the sponge. In a ceramic bowl, mix the 1 cup water, 1 cup of the flour, and 2 teaspoons of the yeast. Cover the bowl with a dampened kitchen towel and set somewhere warm to ferment for 4 hours, after which the sponge should be bubbly. At this point, you can refrigerate the sponge overnight, then let it sit for an hour to come to room temperature before mixing the dough.
Pour the sponge into a stand mixer bowl or large mixing bowl, and fit the mixer with the dough hook. Plump the raisins by soaking them in hot water, then draining. Mix the 1 cup warm water with the malt syrup and stir it into the sponge. Combine 1 cup of the remaining flour with the remaining 2 teaspoons yeast, gluten flour, and salt and mix into the sponge, then raise the speed of the mixer and beat for 2 minutes to activate the gluten. Knead the dough, adding the last 2 cups and 2 tablespoons of flour as needed to make a soft, slightly sticky dough. Knead the dough for 10 minutes. Knead in the raisins and walnuts. Oil a large mixing bowl, and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and put it in a warm place to rise for 2 hours, or until tripled in bulk.
Spread the sesame seeds on a baking sheet with no rim or a pizza peel, having them close to one edge, so that the seeds will act like little furniture feet to slide the loaves onto the stone. Punch down the dough, and cut the mass in half. Tuck the edges under, shaping each loaf into an oval or round. Try to tuck the raisins inside, so they will not stick out and burn. Place the loves on the sesame seeds, at least 4 inches apart. Cover loosely with a damp towel and let rise for at least an hour, until the loaves are doubled in bulk.
Preheat a pizza stone for 30 minutes at 425°F. Put a small pan of water in the bottom of the oven, and have a water mister close by. When the stone is hot, use a sharp knife to slash the loaf tops quickly, then use a long metal spatula to help slide the loaves onto the stone, trying not to deflate them. Spritz with water and bake for 20 minutes, spritzing again after 5 minutes.
When the loaves sound hollow when tapped with a finger, they are done. Cool on racks completely before slicing.
CORNMEAL ADDS GREAT TEXTURE AND FAVOR TO BREADS, as well as being as high in antioxidants as spinach. The island twist of using coconut makes this bread ever so tender and luscious, even without adding oil. Vegans can substitute a couple tablespoons of coconut milk for the egg.
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 cup coarse cornmeal
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1½ cups coconut milk
1 large egg
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Oil a 9-by-9-inch square baking pan and set aside. Spread the coconut on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes, then stir, bake for 5 minutes more, and stir again. When the coconut is golden, transfer to a bowl to cool. Raise the temperature of the oven to 400°F.
In a large bowl, stir together the coconut, cornmeal, pastry flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar. Break up any clumps of brown sugar with your fingers. In a small bowl, whisk the coconut milk and egg. Stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture and transfer to the prepared baking pan, smoothing the top of the batter. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool on a rack.
