Spent Grains Sourdough
My husband brews beer using the all-grain method, which means that he produces massive quantities of spent grains after each batch. It seems like such a waste to just toss them - even if they are, well, spent - so I thought I'd incorporate them into my bread.
I followed my same basic formula except that I added about a cup of the spent grains and a tablespoon of honey. The grains were for a porter so I thought a little sweetness would help produce a hearty, full bodied, slightly malty bread just hinting of a porter.
The dough was a little wetter than usual, no doubt from the moisture of the grains. Other than that it was a dream to work with. The bread rose beautifully and the crumb is incredibly moist and soft. However, it's not an overwhelmingly beer-flavored bread. It has a really deep grainy flavor but a wonderful malty smell, but you wouldn't taste it and think beer bread. So when the beer is actually ready, I'm going to swap that in for the water and use another cup of grains (I stored a bunch in the freezer). And then I'm going to make a hearty beef stew because maybe by then the temperatures will be under 80 and we can pretend it's fall in Houston. Stay posted.
