Sprouted Wheat Pain de Mie (Sandwich Bread)

This sprouted wheat pain de mie is soft and delicious, and loaded with nutritious sprouted grains.

This pain de mie is a nutritious take on the soft sandwich breads that are made in a lidded Pullman pan. This bread is loaded with sprouted wheat, which makes the bread slightly sweeter, softer, and more fragrant than standard whole wheat bread.

This loaf is also coated wheat bran to add even more nutrition to the loaf.

This bread is my first experience with using sprouted grains, and I'm really excited with the results.

What are sprouted grains?

Sprouted grains are the seeds from cereal plants such as wheat, barley, kamut, emmer, einkorn, amaranth, and spelt. Do you remember sprouting beans in science class by giving them just a little bit of moisture and allowing them to germinate? 

For baking, the grains are allowed to sprout just a little, and then the grains are dried and ground into flour. 

You can do this yourself, and supposedly it's pretty easy. In fact, I have some whole grain amaranth and spelt berries that I may have to experiment with. However, in this case, I used King Arthur Flour's sprouted wheat flour (affiliate link). It is perfect for bread. 

Fans of sprouted grains also believe (and there are some studies to support these beliefs) that sprouted grains are higher in protein, lower in carbohydrates, higher in vitamins, and higher in antioxidants. Also, the process of sprouting is supposed to make the grains and their nutrients easier to digest and absorb (Source).

Will it make a huge difference nutrition-wise? I'm not sure when it comes to baked goods. I am neither a nutritionist nor a scientist. Either way, the flavor is amazing and worth exploring.

Tip for baking with sprouted wheat:

If you are substituting sprouted wheat for whole wheat flour in your favorite recipe, keep in mind that this flour is very thirsty, and you will likely have to add more water to your dough.

Another tip I learned from baking this bread is how to soften butter for baking in bread. Instead of letting it come to room temperature, pound it flat with a rolling pin. It will soften but still remain cool, and the technique will help prevent your bread from becoming heavy and greasy (source: Richard Miscovich/King Arthur Flour).

I strongly recommend using a kitchen scale (affiliate link) when baking this bread. It is the best insurance for accuracy when measuring flour. 

What is Pain de Mie?

Pain de Mie, in the most traditional sense, is basically French for soft sandwich bread. It is typically baked in a 13 inch lidded Pullman pan. If you don't have a Pullman pan, you can easily substitute two one pound loaf pans and bake the loaves for 30 to 35 minutes. 

I love baking sandwich breads in a Pullman pan. The pan, with its lid, creates loaves with perfect corners to create sandwiches that any perfectionist would love. The slices are perfect for tea sandwiches, and you can even make the bread with potatoes to make it even softer!

There is also a 9 inch Pullman pan, which I "needed" to buy for this ground flax seed bread.

This month the Bread Bakers are baking with sprouted grains. Our host is Sue of Palatable Pastime.

Be sure to check out everyone's breads with sprouted grains.

• Sprouted Wheat Flour No Knead Bread from Cook with Renu
• Sprouted Wheat Waffles from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sprouted Whole Wheat Flour Mini Rolls from Sneha's Recipe
• Artisan Sprouted Spelt Boule from Food Lust People Love
• Sprouted Wheat Pain de Mie Sandwich Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Seeded Sprouted Wheat Loaf from A Messy Kitchen
• Sprouted Wheat Green Chile Pretzel Braid from Amandie Bakes

Sprouted Wheat Pain de Mie (Sandwich Bread)

This sprouted wheat sandwich bread is nutritious, tasty, and easy to make. If you try it, please let me know!

Sprouted Wheat Pain de Mie (Sandwich Bread)

Yield: 1 13 inch long loaf

Author: Karen Kerr

This sprouted wheat pain de mie is soft and delicious, and loaded with nutritious sprouted grains.

ingredients:

• 436 grams (scant 4 cups) sprouted wheat flour, divided
• 290 grams (2 1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon) unbleached all purpose flour
• 6 grams (1 1/2 teaspoons) instant yeast
• 15 grams (1 tablespoon) kosher salt
• 23 grams (1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons) sugar
• 29 grams (3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon) dry milk. I used King Arthur Flour Bakers' Special dry milk
• 395 grams (1 3/4 cups) water, plus more as needed
• 104 grams (7 tablespoons) unsalted butter, pounded with a rolling pin to soften
• Wheat bran to coat the loaf

instructions:

How to cook Sprouted Wheat Pain de Mie (Sandwich Bread)

1. Set aside 145 grams (about 1 1/3 cups) of the sprouted wheat flour. 
2. Combine the rest of the ingredients except the butter and the bran in the bowl of a stand mixer. 
3. Mix on low with the dough hook for about 4 minutes. 
4. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium and add half of the butter. Mix for one minute. 
5. Add the rest of the butter and mix for 5 minutes on medium speed. 
6. Add the remaining sprouted wheat flour and mix thoroughly, adding more water as needed, 1 to 3 tablespoons. The dough should be tacky but not sticky. 
7. Form the dough into a ball and place it into an oiled bowl or dough rising bucket, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 60 to 90 minutes until puffy, but not necessarily doubled. 
8. Deflate the dough, gently pressing it into a rectangle. Roll up the dough to form a 13 inch log. Generously sprinkle the bran out onto your work surface, and roll the dough log over the bran to coat. 
9. Place the dough into an oiled 13 inch by 4 inch Pullman pan and cover with plastic wrap. 
10. Let the dough rise for about 90 minutes, until it has reached about 1/2 inch from the top of the pan. 
11. In the meantime, heat the oven to 350 degrees F. 
12. Oil the lid of the Pullman pan and slide it on top of the pan, closing it completely. 
13. Bake the loaf, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove the lid, and bake the loaf for 10 to 15 minutes more, until the interior of the loaf reaches 190 degrees F. 
14. Remove the loaf from the pan, place it on a sheet pan, return it to the oven, and bake for an additional 5 minutes to firm the sides of the bread. 
15. Cool the bread completely on a wire rack before slicing.  

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2020/01/sprouted-wheat-pain-de-mie-sandwich.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

bread, pain de mie, sprouted wheat

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Created using The Recipes Generator

This recipe is slightly adapted from King Arthur Flour and was written by Richard Miscovich. His book, From the Wood-Fired Oven: New and Traditional Techniques for Cooking and Baking with Fire is one of my favorite bread books. You don't need a wood fired oven to bake from it.

Be sure to visit Richard Miscovich's blog post about this recipe to view photos and instructions on how to sprout your own grains.