These spelt rolls have a wonderful lightly nutty flavor, tender crumb and are perfect for lunch or as a side to a meal. Pair these soft yeast-based bread rolls with butter, cheese or other favorites to let their flavor shine.
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Making my own bread is often one of those things that I like the idea of doing but don't manage to do quite as often as I might like, even the lovely milk bread. I'm more likely to manage pizza now and then (which the kids love, especially as we often pair it with movie night).
Now, though, since we like most people are in home a whole lot more, it's that bit easier to make some. And since 'regular' flour seems to be in short supply for many, including us, it's also a great opportunity to experiment.
I found, and you might too, that less typical flours like spelt flour, buckwheat flour and almond flour are not flying off the shelves quite as quickly. And each has certain benefits over processed white flour as well.
What is spelt?
Spelt is an ancient form of wheat that was considered a peasant staple from Bronze Age to Medieval times. It was particularly popular in central Europe before it went out of fashion in the 19th century. More recently, though, it has been re-emerging.
Germany and Austria is one of the areas you'll find it most commonly today. Dried unripe grains, "grunkern", are popular to add texture to breads for example. It's also used in the Netherlands as the base for making the spirit Jenever.
Is it a whole grain?
Spelt, like 'regular' wheat flour comes in both the more processed white and wholegrain form. It contains gluten, but a bit less than standard wheat. Wholegrain spelt flour is similar in nutritional value to whole wheat flour, but with a couple of bonuses.
First, it has a slightly higher mineral content but it is also found by many to be more easily digestible than wheat flour. The other plus is it tends to make more of a gently sweet, nutty bread rather than slightly bitter, as whole wheat flour can be.
Tips for baking with spelt
The only downside to spelt is it has a weaker gluten structure so the bread can feel like it doesn't really hold firm. It will maybe feel like the dough is running away on the baking sheet as you set a formed loaf/roll down. It's also pretty soft as you knead it. On the plus side, you don't need to knead it all that long and it tastes lighter than its floppiness might suggest.
As a result, a great place to start using it is to use 50-50 with plain wheat flour. While still soft, it makes loaves , or rolls, that hold their shape better, as I have gone for here. You still get the lovely gently nutty flavor and health benefits of the wholegrain spelt compared to a plain white loaf.
In case you are tempted, you could make these with all spelt flour, too. However, I'd recommend if you do, use a mould of some kind. I'd suggest a bread tin for a loaf, or small skillet for rolls, for example. Even still, the rolls or loaf will probably still be a little 'flat'. But while hearty, they have a nice soft texture and flavor.
You could easily make this as a loaf of bread if you prefer, but we loved them as rolls. We served them with some butter and cheese, plus they also paired perfectly with some semi-sundried tomatoes (and I think next time I need to make some slow roasted tomatoes as well as they'd be great too).
These flavorful spelt rolls are such lovely, delicious little bites that are perfect for lunch or alongside a main meal. So practice your bread-making skills and give them a try!
Try these other tasty bread recipes:
- Chestnut bread rolls - made with a mix of wheat, chestnut and rye flours for a lovely flavor
- Pain de campagne - a classic French country bread made with part rye and a slight sourdough-like tang
- Anadama bread - a gently sweet bread made with molasses and cornmeal
- Sprouted wheat bread - a bread with some similarities to this, being both slightly nutty and for some easier to digest
- Swedish limpa bread - another flavorful bread (though mildly so and still versatile) with part rye, molasses and warm spice flavors.
- Plus get more bread recipes in the archives.
Spelt rolls
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour plain flour (see note below)
- 1 cup wholegrain spelt flour (note if you use cup measurement, you may need a little more)
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast fast acting yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¾ cup water lukewarm
Instructions
- Mix together the flours, yeast and salt. Add the oil, honey and warm water and mix so that is comes together. Try not to mix too much, if possible. Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface and gently knead it.
- Knead the dough for a couple of minutes to stretch the dough a little and avoid it being too sticky. It won't need as much as some breads, but a little will help. Add some extra flour as needed as it may be a little sticky. It will still be soft, but you don't want it to constantly stick to your hands.
- Lightly oil a large bowl then put the dough inside, cover and transfer to a warm, draft-free spot. It shouldn't be hot, but an oven that has almost cooled will be great and will reduce the rising time. Leave to roughly double in size, around 1 hour depending on how warm it is.
- Once it has risen, tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knock it back (press into the dough with your fingers a few times to get out the excess bubbles). Divide into 6 equal pieces.
- Line a baking sheet/tray with parchment. Form each piece of dough into a ball with lightly floured hands and place on the parchment with at least 1 ½inches/4cm between them. Cover with a cloth and leave to rise a little more for approx 30 minutes. During this time, preheat the oven to 465F/240C (Note if your oven is fan-assisted, reduce by around 20 degrees).
- Bake the rolls for approximately 15 minutes until they are brown and sound hollow when you turn it over and tap the bottom. Allow to cool a few minutes before using.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe draws on a few spelt bread recipes, including Nigel Slater's, as well as my fig and walnut bread.
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Ash says
I started baking a while back and this was the first roll recipe I tried and it is stil my go to every time. Eating one now! So good.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear, they are tasty in deed - need to make again soon myself 🙂
Jul says
I have made these rolls on several occasions. They come out perfect every time. I made a butter honey spread to put on the rolls as soon as I take them out of the oven.
Absolutely delicious 😋.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad you have been enjoying them, and the butter honey spread sounds delicious to go with them!
Molly says
Overall, really enjoyed the rolls and even though I'm not the best baker, even I managed to get these to turn out! I just wanted to ask what function the honey plays in the recipe and if I can reduce it - they are a bit sweet for my taste
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you enjoyed them and they worked out well for you. So the honey does a few things - both honey and sugar help the yeast to activate, and the honey adds to the flavor, texture and helps with browning. You certainly could try a little less if you prefer and see how it works out, I'd suggest you may need slightly more liquid to compensate for the lower amount of liquid from the honey.
Peggy says
These are fantastic!
I also use the same measurements but sub Einkorn flour for the spelt and they are equally wonderful. I also add a hand full or 2 of King Arthur Harvest Grains to the dough for a little nutty texture. They come out perfect every time!
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad you enjoyed them, and great to hear they work well with those tweaks as well.
Renate says
We love these rolls. Have just another batch in the oven. thanks for sharing this recipe.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad you have been enjoying them, I do love the flavor spelt gives.
Helen Baskerville says
Turned out lovely thank you for sharing 👩🍳👨🍳🧑🍳
Caroline's Cooking says
That's great to hear, glad you enjoyed!
Lynne says
Yum
Easy to follow, came out perfectly !
Now I want to eat all 6 🤣
Caroline's Cooking says
That's great, glad to hear! And I can understand 🙂
Carolyn Blake says
I live at altitude of 6,000 ft in bread making is very tricky for me. The only thing I added to this recipe was a tablespoon of gluten. I have to do this at this altitude in order to get a good rise. I am thrilled with these rolls. They were so easy and they are beautiful. Fluffy, great rise, and delicious
Caroline's Cooking says
Thanks for sharing your slight adjustment for them to work at altitude. So glad to hear they came out well and were easy - I do enjoy these rolls, too.
Tracey says
Easy
Brilliant
Crunchy thin crust
Husband won’t leave them alone.
I brushed the tops with milk.
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear they worked out well and you are both enjoying!
Tracey says
How would you recommend I convert this to a loaf recipe? I’m a bread novice in Australia.
Melissa says
Anyone have a good temp for the rise using a proofing box? 😊
Caroline's Cooking says
Sorry, not able to advise on that one.
Bev Whitmore says
Can i refrigerate overnight for first rise and bake next day?
Caroline's Cooking says
I'd imagine this should work fine.
Laura Miller says
These were so great. Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you enjoyed!
Rebecca says
I have made these several times now they are becoming a family favorite!
Thank you for this great recipe.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you have been enjoying!
Anita says
I've been looking for a good clean recipe for bread rolls and now I've found it!!
I made the dough and then made 2 good size rolls to use for burgers 🙂
So good, thank you 🙂
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you enjoyed!
Traci Metcalf says
I found the recipe far too salty.
Caroline's Cooking says
Sorry to hear that, this is a pretty standard amount of salt relative to flour for bread recipes. You can certainly reduce a little, though, say to 1/2tsp if you prefer.
Laura says
Hello Caroline, thank you very much for your reply, and my apologies for my rather embarassing lack of resourcefulness when I submitted my initial question. I consider myself a seasoned baker/breadmaker (more so baker....the bread has come into the equation fairly recently and I am loving it), and considering how much I normally wish for metric measurements to be included in recipes (not just a cup of this and a cup of that) I honestly had no idea that 1 cup of flour could equal so little as 140g!! Thank you again for replying to my post - really looking forward to trying these - promise to comment (and rate) once I have!!
Caroline's Cooking says
No problem at all, look forward to hearing how you like them!
Laura says
Hello! This looks like a very nice recipe - exactly what I was looking for! I´m a bit confused by the flour measurements, though. The recipe calls for 1 cup each of all purpose and spelt flour...but also says 140g of each. Is it 1 cup of each or 140g of each that is required? Thanks and hope to try these very soon!
Caroline's Cooking says
So it is either or - some people prefer to use weight measurements, others prefer cups or don't have scales so I have given both as options. Although I just updated the notes to mention that spelt can be slightly lighter and so if you use cup measures, you may need slightly more than 1 cup. If possible, I recommend weight measurements as they are more accurate. Hope you enjoy!
Mpishi says
Are these sturdy enough to use for sandwiches without crumbling? Thanks.
Caroline's Cooking says
Yes, they are actually relatively moist rolls, they just rise a little less than a pure wheat bread, but have a lovely flavor.
Isabel says
Hello!
Thank you for this recipe! It turned out great. I did a variation to include whole wheat flour. They turned out a little smaller but very tasty. I’m trying a new variation to include sprouted whole wheat flour. Do you recommend more water?
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you enjoyed! So yes, with sprouted wheat flour you generally want a slightly higher hydration so yes, a little more flour would be a good idea. The one thing I would note is both spelt and sprouted wheat flour have lower ability to develop gluten structure, so you may find it struggles to rise without either some added gluten or eg some strong bread flour in the mix there, too.
Brett C says
The Bakery was sold out, but we bought their Spelt Flour and made our own. Truly easy, healthy, quick and delicious. We won't buy from the bakery anymore, just make our own. Only comments, we let the buns rise longer, closer to an hour, and baked for less time, just over 10 mins. But otherwise exactly as directed in the recipe.
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them so much! Yes, sometime they need to rise a little longer, depending on the temperature, and bake time can vary a little by the oven, but glad to hear you enjoyed and will be making them again!
sally says
do you knead with hands or with a dough mixer? thanks.
Caroline's Cooking says
You can do either, as suits you best. But these don't need too much kneading so I find by hand works just fine.
Krissy Allori says
I love these spelt rolls! I love the slight nutty flavor and the honey. Thank you so much!
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear! We loved the flavor as well.
Adrianne says
I think it is VERY cool that you made these yourself from scratch!! They look so appealing and I want to grab one for lunch now. Great, easy recipe, thank you!
Caroline's Cooking says
Thank you, they are really so much easier than you might think and delicious too!
Marin says
These were absolutely delicious & perfect! Great recipe, thanks for sharing it.
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you enjoyed and that they worked out well!