Spent Grain Bread

Love bread? (Heck yeah!) Love a really hearty bread? (You know it!)

Love beer? (Are you kidding me!) Homebrew? (I've dabbled.)

Want to use those spent grains instead of just throwing them out? I mean you could feed them to livestock or grow mushrooms or even make a kind of spent grain granola. But forget that! Let's make the best damn homemade bread ever with it!

Homemade bread. Is there anything more wholesome? Is there anything that gives you such a feeling of accomplishment? And it feeds you for days!

One of the most important things is to make sure you have enough yeast and that it's still alive. And let the dough rise and double completely - even if it takes 4 hours. This will make for a lighter, airier bread. Enjoy!

Spent Grain Bread

Yield: 2 loaves
Ingredients

• 3 cups spent grain, wet
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 tablespoon yeast
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3-5 cups flour (as needed)
• dash salt

Cooking Directions

1. Proof yeast in mixture of water and sugar (make a starter) for 45 minutes to one hour.
2. Put spent grain in large mixer bowl and add salt. Mix in starter, and start adding flour one cup at a time to start.
3. Keep adding flour until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky (very important).
4. Place dough in a large bowl, cover with a clean towel, and let rise until doubled. Then punch down dough.
5. Form into a round or oblong loaf and place on cookie sheet with a thin layer of corn meal under the loaf.
6. Allow loaf to double in size, bake in 375 F oven 50 to 60 minutes until browned and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.
7. Let cool before cutting.
8. Another option is to separate the dough into two loaves after it is smooth and no longer sticky. It can be baked in bread pans more easily this way.