Multigrain Sourdough Bread

This seeded multigrain sourdough bread recipe is a healthy, hearty whole grain bread. It requires a bit of planning and time, but most of the process is hands-off. This bread doesn't require any kneading, fancy folds, not even a Dutch oven. You simply mix it, allow it to proof, shape it, and then bake it.

About Seeded Multigrain Bread

This seeded multigrain bread is wonderful if you are looking for nutritious bread with some texture. The recipe begins with a sourdough starter, which provides an acidic taste while adding yeast into the dough to leaven it. You will need to make sure you have an active sourdough starter ready to go when you want to make this bread recipe.

This bread includes both all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour. Spelt flour is also great here. While you may be tempted to use all whole wheat flour, it tends to produce a denser loaf if it doesn't include some white flour as well. For that reason, the white flour makes up more than double the whole wheat in this whole-grain bread recipe.

Seeds are kneaded into the bread dough for both flavor and texture. You can use whatever type of seeds you like but I love a combination of pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and flax seeds, as they add varying colours, textures, and flavours into the loaf. However, if you like, you could also try sunflower seeds, hemp hearts, millet, poppy seeds, quinoa, or even rolled or steel cut oats as well.

How to Make Seeded Multigrain Bread

To make this seeded multigrain bread recipe, you will need to make sure you have an active sourdough starter. This is a mixture of flour and water that has fermented at room temperature, and developed an abundance of wild yeast that can replace commercial yeast. Besides that, the ingredients in the bread are simple, comprising of two types of flour, seeds, water, and salt.

Once you are ready to begin making the bread, toast the seeds in a dry skillet until they are fragrant and lightly roasted. This gives the seeds more colour and amplifies their flavour.  Once the seeds are cooled, you can proceed to the next step.

Mixing the Dough

1. To mix the dough, stir the sourdough starter with the filtered water until combined in a large bowl. Filtered water is the best as it has less of the things (chlorine) in it that can inhibit the develop of yeast in your bread.

2. Then, add the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, seeds, and salt to the sourdough mixture.

3. Stir with a spatula until everything is combined and forming a dough. Now, cover the bowl with the dough and allow it to ferment at room temperature for 12 to 18 hours. You can cover it with a lid or plate for a reusable option, or plastic wrap if that is all you have. If you have cloth bowl covers, they would work as well. You could also cover the bowl with a tea towel.

Shaping the Multigrain Sourdough Bread

Once you are ready to bake your bread, preheat your oven to 450°F with an oven-safe glass bowl or Dutch oven inside for 30 minutes. While you may be tempted to use loaf pans, a Dutch oven or bowl with a lid are most ideal because having the lid will aid in the formation of steam, and subsequently the development of the crust.

4. Meanwhile, dust a piece of parchment paper with flour on your work surface and place the dough on top.

5. At this point, use a spatula or (wet) hands to shape the dough into a ball. Alternatively, if you have a banneton, you can allow the dough to sit seam side down in that, to shape it until your oven has finished preheating.

Baking the Bread

6. Once the bowl or Dutch oven has preheated, remove it from the oven. Then, you can lift the parchment paper with the dough on it and set it in the bowl. The parchment paper makes the dough easy to maneuver and ensures that the loaf doesn't stick to the bowl or Dutch oven.

You should score the bread before you bake it as it will control the rising of the bread during baking and inhibit cracking. Feel free to try something as simple as a cut down the center or a cross with a sharp knife or lame, or try out some fancier designs like a wheat design.

Bake the bread covered for a total of 25 minutes. Use an oven-safe lid or aluminum foil to cover the bread. Then, uncover it and allow it to bake until the bread it golden and has a crispy crust, about another 15 to 20 minutes. Use an instant thermometer to ensure that the internal temperature of the bread once baked is at least 190°F.

The bread should cool completely before you slice it. Otherwise, you may run the risk of crushing it when you slice through it, as the exterior will be quite crusty. Cutting a warm bread also makes for a gummy interior texture. Placing the baked loaf on a wire rack will help it cool faster but it isn't a necessary step.

Serving Ideas for Multigrain Sourdough Bread

This multigrain sourdough bread is a wonderful sandwich bread rich in fiber. You can enjoy it in a multitude of ways from a simple piece of toast with butter to the most elaborate triple decker sandwich. Here are some ideas for serving this bread.

• Make a BLT sandwich with mayonnaise, iceberg lettuce, fresh sliced tomatoes, and crispy bacon.
• Use it for a French toast, which would be delicious with the addition of seeds in the bread. Try topping it with some yogurt, stewed berries, and maple syrup for an extra intriguing breakfast!
• Leftover bread that is past its prime is wonderful to grind up in a food processor to make your own homemade breadcrumbs to add to hamburgers or meat loaves.
• Once the bread isn't as fresh as you would like, you can thinly slice it, brush it with olive oil on both sides, and bake it in the oven until crisp. This would be a wonderful base for Bruschetta and other toppings.

Other Bread Recipes You'll Love:

• Coconut Flour Pumpkin Bread
• Irish Spelt Flour Soda Bread
• Coconut Flour Tortillas
• Overnight No Knead Bread

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