New to soaking grains for baking -please help!

[t2009]

After soaking whole grains for quite a while, I'm ready to jump into baking with soaked grains. I'm trying out NT's banana bread recipe, which calls for 3 cups of whole wheat flour & 2 cups of soaking medium.

I am using store bought (good quality) yogurt. It's whole milk & so quite thick. I mixed it all together & I'm certain it's not right - the yogurt doesn't have enough liquid to really "soak" anything!

I've added some room-temp water. It pretty much just looks like dough.

Is that right? Or do I need more liquid?

Please help!!

[tracyamber]

what did you end up doing? how did the bread come out. i am very curious about soaking grains and i just saw your post.

[t2009]

I'm glad I added the water. I do think the commercial yogurt is not liquid enough. If I can plan ahead next time, I'll try straining some yogurt to get some whey. Or just mix yogurt & water. Or try ACV.

I was surprised that it was not sour! It soaked for about 20 hours & did not have the sour scent I detect (& have grown to like) when I make oatmeal or soak other whole grains.

The only thing that was strange once I started baking is that I was certain it was done as it was pulling off of the pan but it really took forever to bake all the way through.

Still open to pointers from more experienced TF bakers!

[t2009]

OK. So I tried the same banana bread recipe, this time using water & apple cider vinegar... Woah! It was so watery! And I just kept going with it & the loaf totally fell apart. I mixed 1/2 spelt flower & 1/2 whole wheat. But I was still surprised.

So, experts... What should the consistency be when you start soaking?

I've gotten too dry with commercial (but high quality) yogurt and far too wet with water + ACV.

I'm so confused! I don't bake that often (we're mostly wheat free) so I hate that it's come out so poorly the recent times that I have baked!

[Blueriver]

    I have had quite a lot of wild fermintation experiance as well as making sour dough bread. I use Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz.

Try making your own starter, with any flour, and water. In a bowl or jar mix 2 cups each of water and flour. Un florinated water is best.

Stire it every day to introduce wild yeast, then cover with a breathable cloth. Keep it in a warm place and add water to keep flour coverd. Mold might grow on the sides, but simply scrape it off. In 3 to 4 days it will start bubbiling as yeast grows producing lactobacilli which brakes down gluten as well as preserves it. Ad a little flour to keep the yeast alive. If it does not get food it will die and insted of smelling sour and happy, will get putrid. From this you can make yummy sour pancakes with coconut butter, lemon juice and raw honey. Or you could use the starter for sour dough. if you do remember to feed your starter there are lots of good recipes on line. Another baking and soking tip would be to buy hole grains soke them then dry and grind, this abviously takes longer.

                                                                 I wish you luck on your baking adventure

[mountainspring]

I'm just getting started with soaking grains and going through the Nourishing Traditions book. 

I did the waffle recipe with spelt. When I think of the word "soaking", I think of "submerged under water", so when I made the waffle recipe, I was surprised too when it was more like a dough...very dry but I mixed it up as best as I could and let it sit. It still did sour a little and the waffles turned out well. 

I'm soaking ground corn for polenta today. It is also not really wet...it is, but not as wet as I would think, but it's probably good enough, so we'll see. =)