Spelt plaited loaf with honey and almonds

Spelt plaited loaf made with spelt flour, milk and butter, sweetened with honey instead of refined sugar and baked with flaked almonds. Family-friendly for breakfast over the holidays, 249 kcal per slice.

At a glance

• Serves 12
• Prep time: 30 min
• Cooking time: 35 min
• Total time: 65 min
• Calories: 249 kcal per serving
• Protein: 8 g
• Fat: 8 g
• Carbs: 35 g

Ingredients

• 500g spelt flour
• 25g flaked almonds
• 60g honey
• 70g butter
• 240ml milk
• 1 unwaxed lemon
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cube of fresh yeast
• 1 pinch of salt

Method

You’ll need: oven · baking tray · chopping board · knife · mixing bowl · grater

1. Warm the milk until lukewarm and set aside 2 tbsp of it for brushing. Crumble the yeast into the rest of the milk and stir it with 1 tsp of the honey.
2. Leave the yeast milk to stand for 10 minutes until it foams. Meanwhile, melt the butter and finely grate the lemon zest.
3. Put the spelt flour, salt, lemon zest, the rest of the honey, the egg, the butter and the yeast milk in a bowl. Knead everything for 8 minutes into a smooth dough, then cover and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
4. Roll the dough into three strands, 40 cm long, and plait them. Leave the plait to rise on a baking tray lined with baking paper for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan).
5. Whisk the egg yolk with the milk you set aside, brush the plait with it and scatter over the flaked almonds. Bake at 180 °C for 30–35 minutes, until golden brown.
6. Leave the loaf to cool on a wire rack and cut it into 12 slices.

Good to know

For many people, a sweet plaited loaf is part of Christmas morning. This one gets by with spelt flour and honey, and grated lemon zest gives it its fragrance. You can knead the dough the evening before and let it rise overnight in the fridge.

Swaps

Spelt flour → half wholemeal spelt flour (stronger flavour). Honey → maple syrup. Milk → oat milk. Flaked almonds → chopped hazelnuts.

Cooking tips

The loaf is done when it sounds hollow when you tap the underside. If it browns too quickly, lay a piece of baking paper over it after 20 minutes.

Storage

Keeps for 3 days in a tin or wrapped in foil; sliced and frozen, for 2 months.

Allergens

Contains gluten (spelt), milk, egg and almonds (tree nuts). Suitable for children (no honey for babies under one year old) and in pregnancy too, because the egg and yolk are baked.

Frequently asked questions

Can you freeze a spelt plaited loaf?

Keeps for 3 days in a tin or wrapped in foil; sliced and frozen, for 2 months.