Whole Grain Sourdough Brown Rice Bread 

Starter (from scratch):

Take 2 Cups of whole wheat flour and add water to make a thick batter (you can use other flours, if you wish)

Cover with a clean, damp towel and let sit in a warm place for 3 - 4 days

Save 1/2 cup in a sterilized jar with holes in top and put in refrigerator - add 1/4 - 1/2 cup of flour every day. You can also add leftover grains and a little water every once in awhile.

Brown Rice Bread (for best results, make dough in the morning and bake in the afternoon):

4 cups of whole wheat flour

1/4 - 1/2 tsp of sea salt (SI Salt)

4 cups of cooked short grain brown rice

1/4 cup untoasted Sesame oil

Water

Mix flour and sea salt Add rice and sift through both hands until rice is completely coated with flour

Add oil

Add 1 1/2 cups of newly made starter (if you already have had starter for at least a couple of months in the refrigerator, then use 1 cup of starter and increase flour in recipe to 4 1/2 cups)

Add enough water to form a ball of dough that holds its own shape Sprinkle some flour on a breadboard and knead dough 300 to 350 times (approximately 10 - 15 minutes) If dough becomes moist and sticky, sprinkle with small amounts of pastry flour and keep kneading. To knead, push the dough away from you until it flattens, then roll back and repeat. It’s great exercise!

Oil 2 bread pans (special pans) with sesame oil

Form dough into 2 loaves and place in pans

Press dough down all along the edges of pans to leave it higher in the center and give it a rounded effect

Make shallow, 1/4 inch deep slit down the middle

Place a damp, clean towel over pans and let sit for 8 - 12 hours in a warm place

Bake at 300 degrees in a preheated oven for 15 - 20 minutes and then at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes

Remove from pans and let cool on cooling rack If you’d like, raisins can be added after kneading 200 - 250 times and then knead 50 - 100 times more

(From W. Esko, P. Bursell, B. Neall and experience.)

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