You will need: Firebricks / spacer grate
Top heat: approx. 220-250°C
Preheating: approx. 30 minutes
Working hours: 20 minutes
Baking: ca. 60 minutes

Ingredients (for a 2.5 l loaf pan)

The evening before:

For the sourdough:

• 300 ml water (40°C)
• 30 g starter
• 300 g wholemeal rye flour

For the brew:

• 500 ml water
• 200 g sunflower seeds (dry roasted to taste)

On baking day:

For the main dough:

• Sourdough
• Brew
• 400 g wholemeal spelt flour
• 15 g salt
• 20 g beet syrup

In addition:

• Butter for the loaf pan

The evening before:
For the sourdough:
Mix all the ingredients for the sourdough in a bowl, cover and leave to mature at room temperature for approx. 12-15 hours.

For the brew:
Bring the water to the boil and pour over the sunflower seeds.
Leave the stock to cool and soak overnight.

On baking day:
For the main dough:
Grease a loaf tin with butter.

Mix the sourdough, stock and the remaining ingredients together well in a large bowl using a wooden spoon.
The result is a pulpy mass. (Alternatively, you can also make the dough in the mixing bowl of a food processor with a flat beater). Cover and leave to rest at room temperature for approx. 60 minutes.

Pour the dough into the greased loaf tin, smooth it out and cover with water.
Leave to rise for 3-4 hours at room temperature.

Heat the Merklinger to approx. 220-250 °C.

Brush the bread again with water and place the tin on the spacer rack on the firebrick. Bake the wholemeal sunflower loaf for approx. 60 minutes at a slightly lower heat.

For even more wood-fired oven flavor, you can remove the bread from the loaf tin after about 45 minutes and finish baking without the tin.

Remove the wholemeal sunflower bread from the Merklinger and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.