Granary Baps

 

'Granary' flour is actually a registered trade mark of Rank Hovis, used to describe their malted wheat grain flour. Essentially, it's a blend of brown, white, and rye flours to which malted wheat grains have been added. 

Other mills produce their own versions; for example, Shipton Mill produce their 'granary-type flour' under the brand name 'Light Malthouse Flour'. 

In the same way as the term 'hoover' is used to generically describe all manner of vacuum cleaners and the process of using one on flooring, so 'granary' is any bread made with flour to which malted and cracked grains of barley and wheat have been added. 

In the United States, where malted barley grains are almost impossible to find, American producers use barley malt powder and malted wheat flakes to produce a similar product. 

'Granary' flour does not start off as wholemeal or wholewheat flour. Rather, its baseline is a brown, white and rye flour with about 10% wheatgerm. It's a good source of protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. On average, white flour contains about 75% of the original wheat grain, whereas brown contains about 85%. White flour has more of the wheatgerm and bran removed, so, in theory, in terms of 'being healthy' white flour would score below brown; which would score below wholemeal or whole wheat / stoneground flours. 

Remember that all flour is fortified. Under the terms of the Bread and Flour Regulations (1998), all commercially-sold flour has, by law, to be fortified with:

• calcium carbonate (chalk) - except in wholemeal
• iron
• thiamin (vitamin B1)
• nicotinic acid or nicotinamide

The exception is when the mill can prove that levels of thiamine and iron are already present at the correct percentages. 

Currently, the Real Bread Campaign (https://www.sustainweb.org/realbread/) continues to lobby DEFRA to have fortified nutrients removed. Now the UK has left the EU, the current situation will, no doubt, be under review. 

So, we're going to make malted wheatgrain baps. We're just calling it 'granary baps because that's a term with which we are all familiar. 

Alternative granary / malted flours

Hovis Granary Flour

Matthews Cotswold Crunch

Shipton Mill Light Malthouse Flour

Doves Farm Malthouse Flour

Allinson's Harvester Strong Malted Bread Flour

Alternatively, you could mix your own. Experiment with blends of wholewheat, rye and strong white flours, malted wheat flakes and sprouted wheat berries......or maybe not! 

I'm using Rank Hovis Granary Flour but any alternative would be suitable and possibly preferred. The choice is yours. 

INGREDIENTS

500 gms strong malted flour or Granary flour (™Rank Hovis)

375 mls water

2 tablespoons dried milk powder

1 teaspoon of sea salt

1 tablespoon demerera sugar

25 gms unsalted butter

1 teaspoon fast action instant yeast

METHOD

If you're using a machine, add the flour and the salt to the pan and cover with the liquid. Leave to autolyse for fifteen minutes. Add the remainder of the ingredients and choose a Wholemeal dough (or equivalent) programme (3hrs 15 mins). The proceed to the next stage. 

If you're mixing by hand or using a stand mixer, add the softened butter and the salt to the flour and mix thoroughly. Then add the remainder of the dry ingredients (except the yeast). Slowly add the liquid and then the yeast until you have a sticky mix. Turn the mix out onto a floured board and knead until you have a silky and pliable dough. (There are 'Help' videos and articles in the 'Useful Web and YouTube links' on the lefthand side of this page). Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover. Leave for an hour somewhere warm until the dough has doubled in size. 

Weigh your dough. This mix should weigh in at approximately 921 grams, making each of the 8 baps 115 gms. 

Divide the dough into 8 parts. Make each part into a bap. 

There are two ways of doing this:

Method 1 : Make your hand into a claw and place it over the dough - as though it's a ball in your hand. Then rotate the dough on an unfloured wooden surface until it forms a ball within your hand. Place the ball on a floured baking tray and move in to the next bap. 

Method 2 : Take each piece of dough and flatten it out on a floured board. Bring in all the corners into the middle and then turn the dough over so the seam is at the bottom. Cup your hands around the dough and shape it into a ball. Then gently flatten the ball with your palm forming a bap. Place the bap on a floured bakign tray and move on to the next piece of dough. 

You should end up with 8 baps. 

Cover the baps with a piece of parchment paper and place somewhere warm for 30 minutes until doubled in size. 

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C. 

Place the baking sheets in the oven and bake for approxinately 20 minutes until they look baked and they sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Cool on a wire rack. 

Happy baking...