Medieval Bread

Bread was the most basic component of the medieval diet. No true recipe for bread thrived from the Middle Ages. This could be because they were lost or the it could be because bread baking was so common that recipes were passed down orally and by direct experience from one generation to the next. 

The basic ingredients for bread have remained the same. They would use a powdered starch (usually a flour made from wheat, spelt, rye, barley, or other grains), a liquid (usually milk or water), salt, and an ingredient to make the bread rise. Old dough or ¨barm¨ (fermenting grain mash into beer) were used to start bread dough rising. Besides the basic ingredients nuts, oats, dried fruits, and even beans were added into the bread for flavor and to act as fillers when grain was in short supply. 

Large institutions, such as castles or palaces maintained their own ovens allowing them to bake their own bread. Most people of the Middle Ages did not own their own ovens. Most people had to take their bread to a communal oven for baking. The ovens of the Middle Ages were usually large, domed structures, tall, and made of stone, clay, or brick making it difficult to own one in a house. The expense of maintaining it and keeping up with the wood supply for the fire would have been very difficult for an average Middle Age person. 

References:

1. Daily Life in the Middle Ages - Paul Newman. Pag. 15.