Beginners Artisan Sourdough Bread Food

BASIC ARTISAN SOURDOUGH BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Two nights before bakingFeed mature sourdough starter using the levain formula above.
• The night before baking, around 6:00PMMix all of the ingredients in a large bowl, cover with a plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Thirty minutes to one hour later, around 7:00PMPerform a set of stretch and folds. Cover and let rest.
• Around 7:45PM and 8:30PMPerform two additional sets of stretch and folds. Cover and let rest.
• Around 10:00PMDepending on your ambient temperature, the dough should double in size by around 10:00PM. In my case, at around 66F - 67F ambient temperature the dough doubles in size in about 4 hours. If not, wait until it does, about an hour or so.Turn the dough over onto a flat, smooth surface. Divide into two equal pieces, pre-shape, flip and let rest for 20 minutes.
• Around 10:20PMFold the loaves one more time, pinch the seams (optional), dip into sesame seeds and place into 14" oval proofing baskets, seam side up. Cover with each with a piece of paper towel, then wrap with a piece of plastic wrap. Proof in a cool place (around 66F or lower) overnight.
• The morning of baking, around 7:00AMPlace the baking stone on the rack about 3 positions from the top. Place a kitchen towel in a bread pan, or a small cake pan, fill with hot tap water and place on a rack below the baking stone, to the side of the stone. Preheat the oven to 500F.
• Around 7:45AM - 8:00AMPrepare two pieces of parchment paper slightly bigger than the proofing baskets. Turn the dough pieces onto parchment paper. Score with a serrated knife. Using a pizza shovel, transfer the dough into the preheated oven. Using a water spray, spray some water on the sides of the oven to create some extra steam, and quickly close the oven door. Drop the temperature to 475F and set the time to 20 minutes.
• 20 minutes laterRemove the bread pan with water from the oven. Drop the temperature to 450F and continue baking the bread for an additional 25 minutes.
• 25 minutes laterRemove bread from the oven and set on a cooling rack to cool down for an hour. Then slice and enjoy.

BEGINNERS ARTISAN SOURDOUGH BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Make the STARTER AHEAD (This can take up to a week or more) AND DO NOT USE UNTIL IT IS ACTIVE ENOUGH TO FLOAT A TEASPOON ON A CUP OF WATER.
• This process balances your starter for best rise. Feed 100 grams starter with 100 grams flour and 100 grams warm water.
• Let sit overnight.
• It should pass the float test in 8 to 12 hours.
• If it does not repeat feeding.
• Pour the water into a large bowl.
• Add the ripe balanced starter to the water and mix thoroughly with a whisk or by hand until the floating cloud of starter is mixed completely into the water.
• Add the flour to the leavened water and mix with the dough bowl scraper or other spatula. At the end use wet hands to form a shaggy dough ball.
• Let it rest (autolyse stage) about an hour. This stage can be extended without worry up to four hours.
• After autolyse, add the salt to the bread dough. Use your hands to pinch and stretch the dough gently until the salt is mixed into the dough.
• Using your wet hands pull the dough from under the dough ball up and stretch it gently as you pull it over the dough ball top. Release. Repeat this process as you give the bowl quarter turns until the dough is stretched and pulled from each quarter of the bowl.
• Over the next 2 1/2 hours repeat the stretch and fold every 30 minutes for a total of FOUR times. The dough will change from a slimy ropy mass to a billowy dough with many air pockets and definite body as you stretch and fold it. DO NOT PUNCH DOWN THE DOUGH AT ANY TIME. Those air bubbles create the excellent crumb and flavor.
• The dough should become an elastic resilient dough that passes the window pane test. IF your dough is still breaking before it goes transparent when pulled. Do ANOTHER stretch and fold.
• Allow the dough to bulk rise IN THE BOWL at room temperature an hour or SO until it rises by 30 percent or so.
• Cover the bowl of dough with a plastic bag and set it in the fridge for 12 to 15 hours (Or overnight). It should continue to rise slowly so give it room in the bowl.
• Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit on the counter in the bowl for two hours or until the dough reaches room temperature (or pretty close). The dough will soften and gently rise (a tiny bit) as it warms.
• On a clean unfloured counter pour out the dough into a large mass. Flour the top of the dough lightly but evenly.
• BEING CAREFUL NOT TO OVERWORK THE DOUGH-Form each half into a dough ball. The most efficient way to do this is to use the counter as your pivot point. Scrape in a circle around the dough (leave it unturned, flour side up). The unfloured counter will hold the dough center and create tension as you circle the dough with the scraper forming a ball. Repeat to form two dough balls. The DOUGH edge should be round and the dough ball should have some form and resilience to it.
• Let the dough balls rest for 20 to 30 minutes. They will spread out but should not fall off at the edge of the pancake. If they do, reform the loaves and bench rest them again to build the structure of the dough better.
• Gently slide the dough scraper under one of your dough balls and flip it over so it rests on the floured side.
• Now gently stretch and pull the dough over from the bottom to 1/3 up the loaf. Stretch and pull the dough from the sides to the dough middle. For the final stretch take the dough from the top of the ball and pull it all the way down to the bottom. Form a seam. Pinching the seam as necessary. (view the video for help here)
• Place the dough seam side up in your rice floured, cloth lined banneton or bowl.
• Rise in the fridge 2 to four hours.
• Set a baking stone (if you have one) on your oven bottom rack. Set your dutch oven with it's lid on next rack up (lower third of oven). PREHEAT oven to 450 degrees F. for at least 30 minutes.
• Keep the formed loaf in your banneton in the fridge until you actually need to place it in your preheated dutch oven. Cold dough will aide the oven spring.
• Remove one banneton from the fridge. Place the dough in your preheated dutch oven. I do this by flipping it into the dutch oven as gently as possible seam side down.
• Alternate method: Place high heat safe parchment paper over the banneton. Turn the banneton upside down so the dough falls gently onto the parchment paper.
• Score the loaf with your lame knife or a razor blade or sharp scissors. Scoring helps the dough rise better.
• Now pick up the scored loaf with the edges of the parchment paper, if using, and gently and carefully place it into your VERY hot dutch oven.
• Put the lid on the dutch oven and return it covered to your preheated oven.
• Bake 30 minutes at 450 degrees.
• Now REMOVE the lid (and parchment paper if using). Steam should come out. Hopefully the bread is a light golden color with a nice rise and set crust. Bake an additional 10 minutes UNCOVERED or until the loaf thumps hollowly and the surface gets dark(Caramelized darker than you are used to maybe) and the scored areas look shiny. (To prevent over browning turn the parchment paper (or foil) upside down over the loaf as it finishes in the oven.)
• Remove the dutch oven. Place the finished loaf on a cooling rack. Do NOT cut it for at least an hour to set the crumb.
• Return the dutch oven (with lid on) to the oven at 450 degrees F and preheat for 15 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining loaf.
• To tell if your bread is properly done. Use your digital thermometer and insert it into the center of the loaf. It should read about 205 degrees.
• Other TELLS: Look at the crust and LISTEN to it cool. The crust should be 'shattery' which means as it cools it will crack. You can see it and hear it. This is bread music :) also a dull sounding bread is probably not completely baked. When you cut the loaf is should have a creamy but springy crumb with lots of aration.

EASY SOURDOUGH ARTISAN BREAD

Steps:

• Place starter, flour, and salt, and honey in a large, glass or wooden bowl.
• Add about half the water and mix the dough and keep adding small increments of water until it becomes shaggy and you can shape it into a ball. I can be a little tacky but shouldn't overly stick to your hands.
• Turn dough out to a lightly flour dusted surface and knead for about 10 minutes until it is smooth.
• Return dough bowl cover with plastic or towel and let rise for about 2 hours.
• Turn the dough out on a lightly flour surface and fold the dough over on itself a few times.
• Line your bowl with a paper towel or dish towel heavily floured so the dough doesn't stick when you are ready to turn it out and slash before baking.
• Place the dough back in the bowl. Give the top a good dusting of flour. Cover with plastic or towel.
• Let rise a second time until it doubles in size. Times may vary according to your kitchen temperature or a slow rise in the refrigerator the night before. Bread should be a room temperature before you bake it. Factor that time in.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees and place a cast iron dutch oven with lid on in the oven to preheat for ½ hour.
• When oven and dutch oven have preheated place a plate lined with parchment paper over your bowl and gently turn your bread out upside down on the plate...gently.
• Gently pull off the paper towel or dish towel.
• Slash your bread into a pretty pattern with a lame, razor, or sharp knife to allow the steam to escape.
• Pick the bread up by the parchment paper and place into the dutch oven covering with the lid.
• Bake 20 minutes and remove the lid.
• Continue to bake at 450 degrees until the bread browns or is 210 degrees in the center.
• Remove from oven and cool on wire rack before slicing.

ARTISAN SOURDOUGH GARLIC BREAD

Steps:

• The Sponge: Combine the sponge ingredients in a large plastic bowl, cover with plastic wrap and keep in a warm place for 18-20 hours.
• When ready the sponge should have expanded and smell pleasantly sour and bubbling. (at this point you may wish to refrigerate for up to 7 days, just remember to bring back to room temp).
• Bread: Place sponge and all other ingredients except garlic in mixing bowl, mix well and let rest 20-30 minutes.
• Mix again for 5-10 minutes, then cover and allow to rise 2-3 hours.
• Turn out onto lightly greased surface and flatten like you would cinnamon rolls .
• Sprinkle the garlic cloves evenly over the dough and roll up in cinnamon roll fashion pinching the sides in as you make a long oblong shaped loaf.
• Allow the loaf to rise covered with a towel for 2 hours or till almost doubled in size.
• Preheat oven to 475°F.
• Slash the top of the loaf 4 times with a sharp knife.
• Spritz loaf and oven with water.
• Bake in 475°F oven for 3 minutes spraying 2 more times.
• Turn the oven down to 375°F (if it is baking to fast try 350°F).
• Spray often with the water and watch for the bread turning brown too fast. If it does, cover with a foil tent.
• Bake approx 30-40 minutes or till nicely browned and bottom thumps hollow.
• This bread can be a little temperamental, just watch the coloring and adjust temp and cook time as needed.