Soft Spelt Buns & Braided Pastry

Hildegard's Way

Ingredients:

550 g light spelt flour (type 650 or 405)
2 tsp dry yeast
70 g sugar
½ tsp salt
75 g melted butter (warm, not hot)
2 eggs (room temperature)
200 ml warm milk (for type 405 flour) or 220 ml (for type 650 flour)

Directions:

Mix the dry ingredients – In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.
Prepare the wet mixture – Stir melted butter into warm milk.
Make the dough – Add eggs to the dry ingredients, pour in the milk–butter mix, and knead until smooth and elastic. If sticky, dust hands lightly with flour (avoid over-flouring).
First rise – Shape into a ball, cover with a cloth, and let rise 1½ hours until doubled.

Shape the dough (choose your style):

Round buns – Shape small balls, place on a baking sheet, let rise 10–15 min, press the center with a small glass for filling space.

Braided buns – Roll out the dough and cut discs with a cereal bowl. Fold in half, make small incisions about 1/2" wide and 3/4" long, then weave strips as shown in the video. Unfold, flip, fill along the braid, and seal sides to form buns.

Braided pastry loaf – Divide dough into three portions, roll each into a rectangle, spread filling leaving ½" edges, roll up lengthwise, place rolls side by side, pinch one end together, braid, egg wash, and optionally sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake 15–20 min at 375 °F until golden. Cool on a rack.

Fill – Use farmer’s cheese filling (below), chestnut spread, or fruit preserves.

Finish: bake – Brush with egg wash, rest 15–20 min, bake at 375 °F for 15–20 min until lightly golden.

Farmer’s Cheese Filling