Kaf Sourdough Starter Food

CARAMELIZED ONION SOURDOUGH BISCUITS FROM KAF

Steps:

• Combine butter, onion and sugar in pan over medum-low heat.
• Cook onion, covered for about 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes; they should be nicely caramelized.
• Transfer onions to a bowl to cool to room termperature, then refrigerate until well chilled at least 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Grease or line baking sheet with parchment.
• Combine flour, baking powder and salt.
• Work butter into flour until mixture is unevenly crumbly.
• Toss in chives and caramelized onions.
• Cut in starter until dough becomes cohesive.
• Trun dough out onto a lightly floured surface and use a bench knife or bowl scraper to fold over on itself five or six times, until it comes together.
• Pat into a 1" thick disk.
• Use a sharp 2 1/2" biscuit cutter to cut rounds.
• Pat the scraps together and cut additional biscuits.
• Bake biscuits for 15-18 minutes until they're just turning golden.
• Remove from oven and serve warm.
• TIP: Brush biscuits with butter before baking if desired for extra color and flavor. You can brush them again once they come out of the oven for over the top richness.+.

SOURDOUGH ENGLISH MUFFINS

Steps:

• Night Before:.
• Combine starter, 2 c flour & milk in a large bowl.
• Stir to combine, cover & let stand 8 hours or overnight.
• Baking Day:.
• Stir in sugar, salt & baking soda.
• Add the last 3/4 c flour.
• Knead for 4 - 5 minutes.
• Roll to 3/4" & cut into 4" rounds, knead scraps together & cut or shape last muffins.
• Place on cornmeal or semolina dusted wax paper, dust tops.
• Cover & let rise 1 - 2 hours.
• Heat lightly greased griddle/pan to medium heat, cook 6 - 10 minutes per side.
• Muffins should be a nice golden brown & cooked through.
• Cool on wire rack.
• Fork split & package.

MAKING A SOURDOUGH STARTER (LEVAIN) FROM SCRATCH

Steps:

• In an immaculately clean bowl, combine a scant cup/4.2 ounces/120 grams organic rye flour and ½ cup/4.2 ounces/120 grams bottled water. With a clean hand or spoon, stir until the flour is moistened and a stiff dough is formed. If there are still loose flour particles after 2 minutes, add more water by the droplet. Scrape the starter into the 4-cup container. You will have about 1 cup/8.5 ounces/240 grams. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap (it's fine to use the ring that screws onto the canning jar to keep the plastic wrap in place) and place it in a cool area (65°F) for 48 hours. (If you don't have a cool area, let it sit for only 24 hours [until Day 2] and feed it the same way as described for Day 3.)
• There will be no visible change in the color or texture of the starter.
• The consistency of the starter will now resemble a thick pancake batter and there may be a few bubbles in the surface. With a clean spoon, remove and throw out about half of the starter (about ½ cup/4.5 ounces/120 grams).
• Stir in: a scant ½ cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bread flour and ¼ liquid cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bottled water.
• You will again have 8.5 ounces/240 grams of starter, but it will have expanded in volume from just under 8 fluid ounces to about 10 fluid ounces. Cover again tightly with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature (70° to 75°F) for 24 hours. (After 12 hours, the starter may have increased by one and a half, to 14 fluid ounces, and have lots of bubbles. Don't be concerned if it then deflates and falls.)
• The starter may give off a faint citrus aroma. With a clean spoon, again scoop and throw out about half of the starter (about ½ cup/4.25 ounces/120 grams).
• Stir in: a scant ½ cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bread flour and ¼ liquid cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bottled water.
• You will again have 8.5 ounces/240 grams of starter, about 10 fluid ounces in volume. Cover it with plastic wrap, but not tightly, as gases should now be forming that need to escape. Leave it at room temperature (70° to 75°F) for 24 hours.
• If the starter is active, it will have increased in volume to at least 3 cups, or even 4 cups. It will dome and then start to recede. (If it is not yet at this point, continue throwing out half the starter and feeding it with the scant ½ cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bread flour and ¼ liquid cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bottled water every 24 hours until it reaches this state of activity.)
• With a clean spoon, again remove and throw out about half of the starter (about ½ cup/4.25 ounces/120 grams).
• Stir in: a scant ½ cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bread flour and ¼ liquid cup/about 2 ounces/60 grams bottled water.
• You will now have about 1 cup/8.5 ounces/240 grams of active starter. (You may feel the impulse to give it a name. Give in to it: I named mine Billo.) Cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit at warm room temperature (75 to 80°F) for about 4 hours or until it has almost doubled. You can now "expand" it (feed with flour and water) for baking bread or refrigerate it overnight and start expanding it the next day. If you don't plan to use it for several days, feed it again to double it, let it sit for 1 hour, and then refrigerate it.
• This starter will mature over the next couple of weeks, gaining in strength and flavor. For the first 2 weeks, store at least 1 cup (8.5/240 grams) of it and feed it at least three times a week. After two weeks of regular feeding (equal weights flour and water or, by volume, 1 ½ times flour to water, to at least double it; when the jar gets half-full, pour off half), at least three times a week, the culture is mature and bread made from it will be more mellow and complex. You can now switch to once-a-week feeding if you only make bread once a week.
• Once your starter is mature, all you need to store is enough for 1 or 2 loaves plus enough to start the next batch (about a full ¾ cup/7 ounces/200 grams). If you plan to bake in larger quantities, simply increase the amount you store by throwing out less of it before each feeding.

KAF SOURDOUGH CINNAMON APPLE FLATBREAD

Steps:

• Combine all of the dough ingredients, and mix and knead them - by hand, mixer, or bread machine - to make a smooth, fairly soft dough.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, and let it rise for 1 hour. Gently deflate it, and allow it to rise for another hour; it should have at least doubled in bulk, or come close to it. While the dough is rising, prepare the topping.
• For the topping: Core the unpeeled apples, and cut each into 8 wedges; an apple corer/slicer works well here. Cut each of the wedges into 3 pieces; you'll have 7 to 7 1/2 cups (about 27 ounces) of apple chunks.
• Put the chunks in a shallow microwave-safe bowl, and drizzle with the boiled cider and maple syrup. Don't have boiled cider or maple syrup? Drizzle with 1/3 cup honey, 1/4 cup agave syrup, or the sweetener of your choice.
• Microwave the apples till they've softened, but still hold their shape. In our microwave here, that took about 9 minutes.
• Drain the apples, reserving the juice. Set them aside to cool while the dough is rising.
• Lightly grease an 18" x 13" rimmed baking sheet (half-sheet pan), or two 9" x 13" pans. Drizzle olive oil atop the spray; the spray keeps the bread from sticking, while the olive oil gives the bottom crust great crunch and flavor.
• Gently deflate the risen dough, then pull and shape the dough into a rough rectangle, and place it in the pan. (Or divide it in half, and put in the two smaller pans.) Pat and stretch to fill the bottom of the pan. The dough will shrink back; as soon as it doe, cover it and walk away for 10 to 15 minutes. Return, and pat it towards the edges of the pan again. You may have to give it another rest; that's OK. Your ultimate goal is to stretch the dough to cover the bottom of the pan, with perhaps just the very corners uncovered.
• Arrange the apple chunks atop the dough.
• Mix 1/4 cup of the reserved syrup with 1/4 cup Baker's Cinnamon Filling or 1/4 cup cinnamon-sugar. The Baker's Cinnamon Filling will yield a richer, creamier topping. Drizzle the syrup over the apples.
• Cover the bread, and let it rise for 1 hour, till it's nice and puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Uncover the bread, and sprinkle with coarse white sparkling sugar, if desired. Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, till the crust is golden brown around the edges and feels set in the center. Remove it from the oven, turn it out onto a rack, and serve warm.

SOURDOUGH POPOVERS FROM KING ARTHUR FLOUR

Steps:

• In the microwave or in a small saucepan, warm the milk until it feels just slightly warm to the touch.
• Combine the warm milk with the eggs, sourdough starter and salt, then mix in the flour. Don't over-mix; a few small lumps are OK. The batter should be thinner than a pancake batter, about the consistency of heavy cream.
• Heat a muffin or popover pan in the oven while it's preheating to 450°F.
• Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven, and spray it thoroughly with non-stick pan spray, or brush it generously with oil or melted butter. Quickly pour the batter into the cups, filling them almost to the top. If you're using a muffin tin, fill cups all the way to the top. Space the popovers around so there are empty cups among the full ones; this leaves more room for expansion.
• Bake the popovers for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven heat to 375°F and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, until popovers are golden brown.
• Remove the popovers from the oven and serve immediately.