Carol particularly likes the whole grain German breads like Vollkornbrod, which are high fiber, low glycemic, and very good sliced thinly and topped with smoked salmon, paté, or soft cheeses.  This bread, adapted from Emmanuel Hadjiandreou’s book How to Make Sourdough, is a similar bread made with pearled barley and barley and rye flour.  This is a 3-day project, which yield’s a 9-inch loaf weighing about 30 oz.  Unlike most of the breads I make, this one does not rise very much, since barley has no gluten, and rye has less gluten than wheat.

For a rye sourdough starter

20 g. sourdough starter (50/50 all-purpose flour/water by weight)

40 g. rye flour

40 g. lukewarm water

For the preferment

100 g. rye sourdough starter

150 g. rye flour (dark preferred but I had non-dark)

200 g. cold water

For the bread

350 g. preferment

150 g. pearl barley, soaked

200 g. barley flour

6 g. (1 tsp.) salt

150 g. freshly boiled water

Rye flour for dusting the top.

On day one make the rye sourdough starter, by mixing together in a small container the regular sourdough starter with the rye flour and lukewarm water.  Cover and allow to ferment at room temperature 8 hours or overnight, until it is bubbling nicely.

When the rye sourdough starter is active (likely on day 2) make the preferment by mixing together the rye sourdough starter with the rye flour and cold water.  Cover and allow to ferment at room temperature 8 hours or overnight, until it is bubbling nicely.

While the starter is activating, soak the pearl barley in about twice its volume of water for 8 hours or overnight.  After soaking drain it in a sieve.

Mix together the barley flour and salt.  Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

When the preferment is bubbly and the pearl barley is soaked, put them in a large mixing bowl with the barley flour.  Mix well with a dough whisk.  Pour in the hot water and mix into a smooth dough.  Pour the dough into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top.  Sprinkle the top with rye flour and make decorative cuts.  Cover and allow to rise on the counter for 1-2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.  Check readiness to bake by looking for small bubbles and cracks in the loaf.  It will not rise very much.

About a half hour before the dough is ready to be baked put a baking steel or stone in the middle of the oven and a large cast iron skillet on the bottom rack.  Preheat them and the oven to 475 degrees.

When ready to bake, put the loaf pan on the baking stone or steel and a cup or so of boiling water in the hot cast iron skillet.  Immediately close the oven door and reduce the temperature to 425 degrees.  Bake for 30-40 minutes until browned and 200+ degrees in the center as measured by an instant read thermometer.

Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 5 minutes.  Then remove from the pan and allow to fully cool on the rack.  Serve by cutting in thin slices.