I've been making Kefir daily for quite some time, normally making just half a litre. Had some friends visiting who wanted to try it so made extra, then they had to cancel. I had read somewhere about using Kefir as a starter for sourdough so decided to give it a try and to use up the extra. And it came out really fabulous, so have repeated it a few times now. I use my bread maker on bake only cycle to save heating up my kitchen in the middle of an Australian summer.
Ingredients:
350gm Plain Wheat Flour
150gm Rye Meal
2 tblsp Molasses dissolved in 100ml warm water
1 tsp salt
400ml of Kefir - both curds and whey.
Mix dry ingredients, add liquid and mix. The turn out onto bench and lightly knead. Place in bread machine pan, cover with damp tea towel and leave to prove for 30 hours. Then bake in machine on bake only cycle for 60 minutes.
It's worth noting that no commercial yeasts are used, only the naturally occurring yeasts and lactobacillus in the Kefir. The Kefir is made in house using milk grains and A2 full fat milk. With no preservatives I keep the bread in the fridge, so it gets pretty chewy by day three, even after cutting it very thin and toasting it. It's the kind of bread you can get your teeth into, and if not careful leave them there.
Health implications:
I don't know whether I am gluten, wheat intolerant or whatever, but my tummy seems very happy eating this. I do make a point of not eating any whilst it's still hot, giving it at least three to four hours to stand. Todate I've had none of the issues I have with normal bought bread, quite the opposite.
Alison