sEven years ago, I was walking around London's Oxford Street with bakers and writers Henrietta Inman. I can't remember where we were to be lit up by foot lockers and muji in the middle of the night, but I remember talking about spelling flour. Or rather, Henrietta described the flavour as soft and nutty, and as part of our broader conversation about her decision to leave the basement pastry kitchen of the five-star London hotel and return to Dorset, she adapted her knowledge and skills to different ingredients, becoming her book, The Natural Baker.
At the time I was a bit aware of the importance of spelling in ancient cuisine (by various civilizations, including the Romans who called it March Grain), but I was confused about what was actually spelled. Superta, Faro Superta, Emmer, Encorn, Dinkel wheat. While we crossed Regent Street and passed many windows at John Lewis, Henrietta explained that what was spelled was grass related to wheat and cousins to Faro. She also encouraged me to think less about the name, less about the flavor and less about how it works with pastries and biscuits. Also try the flour from Emmer, Einkorn, Rye and Borley. It'll take seven years to listen to her advice.
During that year, I also have the opportunity to travel with Henrietta. Wakelin Suffolk's organic agroforestry hub, and is about to open another (herself) as part of Homededods (Even in Suffolk). With Italian journalist Laura Lazaroni, we visited the Biodynamic Farm in Le Marche, eastern Italy. Coste del SoleWe just tasted the milled Faro Dicocco flour and thought it contained hazelnuts as it was very aromatic and edible. This same trip made me realize how little I thought about the flavour of flour.
Henrietta was right: The spelled flour is soft, nutritious, with notes of sourness and natural sweetness, and the recipe inspired by my own need for hazelnut shortbreads (Henrietta's malt biscuits, Laura's shortbreads, and hazelnuts, means there's less sugar, and because it contains butter, the dough is well chilled (for a few hours safely) and still the biscuits spread slightly.
It is best to lift the biscuits from the hot tray onto the rack and chill them as quickly as possible, but do it very carefully. It is also recommended to eat these biscuits with hot drinks, tea, milky coffee and hot chocolate, as warmth wakes up three things.
Hazelnut, spelled, butter biscuits
make 12-14
120g Spelling, whole wheat flour or plain flour
160g Toasted hazelnutsor almonds or walnuts, Strange chunks of thin sandy flour on the ground
A pinch of salt
150g cold butterCut into small cubes
90g Muscovado Sugaror soft brown sugar
1 egg yellow
Work in a bowl and mix the flour with 100g of ground nuts (save the rest later) and salt. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fat bread crumbs, add the sugar and egg yolks, and place everything in a bowl.
Form the dough into logs with a diameter of 5-6cm. It's a bit sticky, but this is a good thing. The next step is to roll with the reserved nut mix. Wrap the nut-covered log in baking paper and refrigerate until completely cooled. So at least a few hours.
Heat the oven to 170C (150C fan)/340F/gas 3½ and arrange the baking tray with paper. Using a sharp knife, cut the logs into round rounds, 1cm thick, to give them plenty of space in the tray. The biscuits spread about 1cm wide. Pay attention to them and bake the biscuits for 12-14 minutes. They become light gold and just touch it makes them firm. Carefully lift it onto a wire rack and allow it to cool completely.
