Essene Bread for the Bread Machine

It will take several days for the wheat berries to sprout before you can use them in this recipe. The reward for your patience is a hearty loaf packed with protein. Special care needs to be taken with this bread and the instructions need to be followed very carefully.

Original recipe makes 1 – 1 1/2 pound loaf

Ingredients

1/2 cup sprouted wheat berries, ground
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 egg
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten
2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

PREP

1 hr 30 mins
COOK

3 hrs
READY IN

3 days 11 hrs 20 mins

Directions

Beginning several days before you hope to be eating this bread, rinse 1/2 cup raw wheat berries in cool water; drain. Soak the berries with cool water in a large bowl. Cover the bowl with a plate or cloth, and allow the berries to soak at normal room temperature overnight or for about 12 hours. The berries will soak up a considerable amount of water. Drain the berries in a colander, cover the colander with a plate to prevent the berries from drying out, and set it in a place away from light. Rinse the berries about 3 times a day, and they will soon begin to sprout. In a couple of days the sprouts will reach their optimum length of about l/4 inch. Drain the sprouts and grind them in a blender or food processor.
Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select Whole Wheat cycle and Medium Crust setting; press Start.
If your machine has a raisin cycle, you can put the sprouts in at the beep for more intact sprouts. If not, the bread may have a mushy consistency.