Sourdough Sandwich Bread
Lovely & soft. :)
When you think of sourdough bread, you probably envision a crusty, chewy, artisan-style loaf. But this bread, made with levain (an overnight starter based on sourdough starter) is a richly flavored, soft-textured sandwich loaf, perfect for all of your favorite sandwich fillings and for breakfast toast as well.
LEVAIN
1 cup + 1 tablespoon (128g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (128g) cool water (60° to 70°F)
3 tablespoons (44g) ripe (fed) sourdough starter
DOUGH
5 1/4 cups (631g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (OR mixed flour*)
6 tablespoons (42g) nonfat dry milk powder (OR sub evap. milk*)
1/4 cup (50g) sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons (15g) salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups (340g) water (70° to 80°F)
all of the ripe levain
1 cup + 1 tablespoon (128g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (128g) cool water (60° to 70°F)
3 tablespoons (44g) ripe (fed) sourdough starter
DOUGH
5 1/4 cups (631g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (OR mixed flour*)
6 tablespoons (42g) nonfat dry milk powder (OR sub evap. milk*)
1/4 cup (50g) sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons (15g) salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups (340g) water (70° to 80°F)
all of the ripe levain
LEVAIN:
Mix all of the levain ingredients together and place in a covered container with room for the levain to grow. It will almost double in size, and will take about 12 hours to ripen (ferment)at room temperature (70°F). When perfectly ripened, there'll be large bubbles (mostly below the surface) creating a somewhat rippled effect. It'll appear almost fluffy. If the levain is covered with a froth of tiny bubbles, it's a bit over-ripened; but don't worry, you can still use it.
DOUGH:
Mix and then knead together all of the dough ingredients, including the levain, to make a smooth, supple, and not overly sticky dough.
Place the kneaded dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for 1 to 2 hours, until doubled in size.
Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into 8" logs. Place the logs in two lightly greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" bread pans. Cover the pans with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the loaves rise until they've crowned about 1" over the rim of the pan, about 1 to 2 hours.
Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 375°F.
Bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the sides of the loaf feel firm. Remove the loaves from the oven, and turn them out of the pans onto a rack to cool. Let them cool completely before slicing.
PREP 25 mins
BAKE 30 to 35mins
TOTAL 16 hrs
YIELD 2 loaves
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour, an excellent resource.
* NOTES: I substituted 3/4 cup of evaporated milk for 3/4 cup of the water I substituted 1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour & 1/2 c. rye flour & the bread was beautiful.
SOURDOUGH STARTER maintenance:
50 g starter
50 g water
50 g flour (a bit of rye flour encourages good microbes)
Feed every 12 hrs
OR as I usually do, feed once week or longer, refrigerate, then feed 2x in 24 hrs at room temp, use in recipe, then feed starter & repeat. It's very forgiving.
I left mine in the fridge undisturbed for 2 months; stirred it up & after 3 feeding/maintenance cycles, it was bubbly & ready to roll, good as new.
How to Dry Emergency starter culture
Spread 2/3 cup active, bubbly starter on a sheet of cooking parchment paper (or similar), let dry completely until it is brittle; usually takes only a day or two if you live in dry old Alberia. Crumble & store in a small glass jar. To rehydrate, barely cover flakes w/ warm water, let sit a few hours, stir till smoothish, add a bit of flour to feed, keep warm & feed/water it until it is bubbly. Then proceed as normal starter instructions.
For in-depth rehydrating info: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2015/05/01/putting-sourdough-starter-hold
REFERENCE for perfect, easy sourdough loaf
https://www.baked-theblog.com/everyday-sourdough-bread/#mv-creation-98-jtr
Mix all of the levain ingredients together and place in a covered container with room for the levain to grow. It will almost double in size, and will take about 12 hours to ripen (ferment)at room temperature (70°F). When perfectly ripened, there'll be large bubbles (mostly below the surface) creating a somewhat rippled effect. It'll appear almost fluffy. If the levain is covered with a froth of tiny bubbles, it's a bit over-ripened; but don't worry, you can still use it.
DOUGH:
Mix and then knead together all of the dough ingredients, including the levain, to make a smooth, supple, and not overly sticky dough.
Place the kneaded dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for 1 to 2 hours, until doubled in size.
Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into 8" logs. Place the logs in two lightly greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" bread pans. Cover the pans with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the loaves rise until they've crowned about 1" over the rim of the pan, about 1 to 2 hours.
Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 375°F.
Bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the sides of the loaf feel firm. Remove the loaves from the oven, and turn them out of the pans onto a rack to cool. Let them cool completely before slicing.
PREP 25 mins
BAKE 30 to 35mins
TOTAL 16 hrs
YIELD 2 loaves
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour, an excellent resource.
* NOTES: I substituted 3/4 cup of evaporated milk for 3/4 cup of the water I substituted 1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour & 1/2 c. rye flour & the bread was beautiful.
SOURDOUGH STARTER maintenance:
50 g starter
50 g water
50 g flour (a bit of rye flour encourages good microbes)
Feed every 12 hrs
OR as I usually do, feed once week or longer, refrigerate, then feed 2x in 24 hrs at room temp, use in recipe, then feed starter & repeat. It's very forgiving.
I left mine in the fridge undisturbed for 2 months; stirred it up & after 3 feeding/maintenance cycles, it was bubbly & ready to roll, good as new.
How to Dry Emergency starter culture
Spread 2/3 cup active, bubbly starter on a sheet of cooking parchment paper (or similar), let dry completely until it is brittle; usually takes only a day or two if you live in dry old Alberia. Crumble & store in a small glass jar. To rehydrate, barely cover flakes w/ warm water, let sit a few hours, stir till smoothish, add a bit of flour to feed, keep warm & feed/water it until it is bubbly. Then proceed as normal starter instructions.
For in-depth rehydrating info: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2015/05/01/putting-sourdough-starter-hold
REFERENCE for perfect, easy sourdough loaf
https://www.baked-theblog.com/everyday-sourdough-bread/#mv-creation-98-jtr