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Reviving the Oldest Wheat Variety in North America
| | by James Cowlin
When I got the email about a workshop on wheat, I nearly hit the delete key. But it was from the Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, an organization with which I am familiar, so I read on. Turns out the workshop was featuring some very interesting people talking about how they use White Sonora Wheat for baking and beer brewing. Being both an amateur baker and brewer, I signed up and spent a fascinating couple of hours learning about this heritage grain, its history and how it has been brought back into production.
The grain that has come to be known as White Sonora was first planted in the southwest by Spanish missionaries in the middle of the 17th century. Its cultivation quickly spread throughout the region and by the time of the American Civil War it was one of the primary varieties of wheat grown in the United States. However, the "Green Revolution" in the late 20th century ushered in new hybrids that replaced White Sonora. This was unfortunate since the hybrids required more water and fertilizer and produced grain that was much less favorful.
Fortunately the good folks at Native Seeds/SEARCH in Tucson had preserved seeds of White Sonora. The local food movement turned its attention to grains and a regional collaboration of bakers, brewers, tortilla makers and millers helped bring it back into production.
 The fisrt presenter at the workshop was Don Guerra of Barrio Bread. Don specializes in naturally leavened artisan organic breads. He uses sourdough techniques to harvest wild yeast for his breads. Lately he has been experimenting with White Sonora Wheat. He notes that the sweet, earthy flavor of the flour adds another ingredient to the organic flours he is currently using. He also uses the whole wheat berries to add a nutty texture to his artisan breads.
 Next we heard from Mark Bianco, the in-house baker for Pizzeria Bianco, an award winning restaurant in Phoenix. He has been working with Hayden Flour Mills to produce flour from White Sonora that he uses in making the restaurant's pasta. He raved about the high quality of the flour and encouraged the workshop attendees to experiment and see how it will enhance their recipes.
 Blake Collins, the brewmaster at Borderlands Brewing Company, discussed his experience in using White Sonora wheat berries in a special experimental beer. Borderlands is committed to sustainable brewing practices and locally sourced ingredients whenever possible. I haven't had a chance to sample their new wheat beer but I'm looking forward to it. I am also looking forward to brewing my own using White Sonora. I'll let you know how that works out.
 Finally, Emma Zimmerman talked about Hayden Flour Mills production of flour from White Sonora Wheat and their collaboration with local bakers. The millers at Hayden have revived the tradition of its historic namesake to produce stone ground flour from locally grown grains.
The revival of the cultivation of White Sonora Wheat has been made possible by a grant from the Western Sustainable Agiculture Research and Education program. It is a collaboration among several organizations including Native Seeds/SEARCH, Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, Hayden Flour Mills, Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, Cultivate Santa Cruz, Tubac Historical Society, Amado Farms Joint Venture and Avalon Organic Gardens and EcoVillage. They are working with small-scale farmers as well as low-income tortilla makers and bakers to increase the region's food diversity.
 One of the missions of the US Route 89 Appreciation Society is to bring attention to the efforts of communities along the highway to promote sustainable local businesses and industries. The revival of White Sonora Wheat is an outstanding example of what is possible. If you would like to try baking with White Sonora, visit the Native Seeds/SEARCH store in Tucson or order it online.
Many thanks to Vanessa Becktol of the Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance for organizing the workshop. And if you are in Tucson on a Saturday morning, head for Plaza Palomino at the corner of Swan and Ft. Lowell Roads between 10 and 11:30 to buy a loaf or two of Don Guerra's wonderful bread.
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Baking Bread with White Sonora All-Purpose Flour
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| by james Cowlin
For several years I have been baking bread using the no-knead technique popularized by Jim Lahey in his book, My Bread. I use bread flour with a higher protein level than all purpose which creates more gluten structure in the dough. White Sonora on the other hand is a softer, lower protein flour. In talking to Don Guerra of Barrio Breads, he suggested that the no-knead method might be good for making bread from White Sonora because of the minimal handling of the dough. So I decided to give it a try and here is how I did it.
 The basic recipe calls for 3 cups (14.1 oz.) of flour, 1 ¼ teaspoons of table salt and a ¼ teaspoon of active dry yeast. After mixing the dry ingredients, I added 1 ½ cups of water which produced a really sticky dough.
The dough was covered and left to ferment on the kitchen counter for 18 hours. I then turned the dough out onto a floured cutting board and shaped it into a round loaf.
I have found that the dough can be hard to handle because it is rather sticky. Instead of putting the dough on a tea towel for the second rise as Lahey advises, I put it on parchment paper dusted with wheat bran and set in a 10-inch frying pan.
The bread was allowed to rise for another two hours. About a half hour before the end of the second rise, I placed a dutch oven in the oven and preheated it to 475°. When the oven was up to temperature, I transferred the bread to the dutch oven and here is where the parchment paper really helps. I dusted the top with wheat bran, lifted the lid from the dutch oven, grabbed two corners of the paper and carefully set it in the dutch oven. I put the lid back on and set the timer for 30 minutes.
The steam that is generated in the dutch oven keeps the crust soft allowing the bread to fill with gas bubbles and develop a wonderful texture. After 30 minutes, I removed the lid and let the bread brown and the crust to crisp up for 15 minutes.
 As expected, the bread did not rise much during baking. However, the texture is fine and moist. What most surprised and delighted me is the taste. It is very nutty and slightly sweet. The aroma lingers long after eating a slice and keeps calling me back to the cutting board for another piece. I can understand how White Sonora became so popular. Thanks to everyone involved in bringing it back into production.
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