cardamom twist bread.
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christmas in april.
The snow flies in Minnesota again…
Only one thing to do: fire up the oven and bake some bread!
-Samuel
lazy sunday bread pudding.
If you enjoy baking and/or eating sourdough bread, and you’re anything like us, you probably end up with somewhat dry butt-ends (or is “heels of bread” the better term?) of bread loaves in the pantry. Not moldy bread, mind you, but just random pieces that no one felt like eating and are now a bit too dry to present an appetizing snack. This recipe is for you. Taking advantage of the natural sweetness of apples and raisins, this recipe has very little sugar added. I originally tried using dried cranberries, but found that raisins worked better. Enjoy!
a baguette vignette.
I just have to say there’s nothing like the smell of bread baking. The wonderful aroma is just one of the many joys of making sourdough bread, but it seems that I forget about this element of the process in between loaves, only to be pleasantly surprised when the heady, homey smell of baking bread fills our kitchen. With this surprise comes a fresh conviction that making bread at home is truly worthwhile, worth any amount of work (though the work is, truly, not that much).
honey oat bread.
Honey Oat Bread
This mildly sweet bread rises well, stays moist, and offers the nutritional benefits of oats. This recipe makes one 1½ pound loaf, but can easily be doubled to make two.
Author: Samuel
Recipe type: Bread
Serves: 4
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
- 1 c. filtered lukewarm water
- 1 c. activated sourdough culture
- 1½ t. non-iodized salt
- 2 T. honey
- 1 T. olive oil
- 1 c. organic rolled oats
- ½ c. organic whole wheat flour
- 2 c. organic all-purpose white flour
Instructions
- Remove your jar of sourdough culture from storage in the refrigerator and activate it, following the first two steps in the instructions from this recipe. This particular recipe also provides more detailed instructions for the whole bread-making process that may be helpful for you to reference in making this and other sourdough bread recipes.
- In a mixing bowl, combine activated culture, water, honey, salt, and oil. Mix well.
- Add the oats and mix.
- Add in the whole wheat and white flours and mix thoroughly, either with a stand-mixer and dough hook or by hand.
- Cover the bowl with a snap-on lid or cling wrap and let stand for 10-12 hours. The dough should have roughly doubled in size.
- Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes. Shape the loaves and let them rise for 1½-2 hours or until doubled in size.
- Preheat oven to 470 degrees along with a cast-iron or all-steel pan. Slash the loaves just before loading into oven. Place loaves on the upper rack of the oven, then add about 2 cups of ice cubes to the hot pan on the lower rack to create steam.
- Bake loaves for 40 minutes, remove, and let cool on rack before slicing. Once loaves have cooled, store in a plastic or paper bag.
savory rye bread.
Savory Rye Bread
This light rye bread features the complex taste of rye and sourdough mingled with caraway seeds. Perfect for Reuben sandwiches or topped with jam and cheese.
Author: Samuel
Recipe type: Bread
Serves: 4
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
- 1 c. sourdough culture
- 1 c. room temperature filtered water
- 1½ t. non-iodized salt
- ¾ T. caraway seeds (whole)
- 1 c. organic rye flour
- ½ c. organic whole wheat flour
- 2 c. organic all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Remove your jar of sourdough culture from storage in the refrigerator and activate it, following the first two steps in the instructions from this recipe. This particular recipe also provides more detailed instructions for the whole bread-making process that may be helpful for you to reference in making this and other sourdough bread recipes.
- Combine the sourdough culture, water, salt, and caraway seeds in a mixing bowl. Add the rye, whole wheat, and all-purpose flours and mix thoroughly, using your hands or a stand mixer with a dough hook.
- Let the dough rise in the bowl, covered with cling wrap or a plastic lid, for 10-22 hours, until doubled in size.
- Knead on a floured surface for approximately 10 minutes. Shape the loaf and let rise for 1-2 hours, or until doubled in size. For a pretty appearance, just before baking brush the loaf with beaten egg, sprinkle more caraway seeds on the loaf surface, and slash with a bread knife.
- Place loaf in an oven preheated to 470 degrees along with a heated pan filled with ice cubes to create steam. Bake for 40 minutes and allow to cool before slicing.
-Samuel
hearty whole wheat bread.
Hearty Whole Wheat Bread
This recipe makes a loaf of hearty, nutritious whole wheat bread with a hint of honey.
Author: Samuel
Recipe type: Bread
Serves: 5
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
- 1 c. sourdough culture
- 1 c. room temperature filtered water
- 1½ t. non-iodized salt
- 1 T. softened butter
- 2 T. honey
- 3 c. organic whole wheat flour
- ½ c. wheat germ
Instructions
- Remove your jar of sourdough culture from storage in the refrigerator and activate it, following the first two steps in the instructions from this recipe. This particular recipe also provides more detailed instructions for the whole bread-making process that may be helpful for you to reference in making this and other sourdough bread recipes.
- Combine in a mixing bowl the sourdough culture, water, salt, and honey. Mix these together, then add the butter, wheat germ, and flour. Mix thoroughly, using your hands or a stand mixer with a dough hook.
- Put a lid or plastic wrap on the bowl and let stand, at room temperature, for about 10 hours. (As you become more familiar with the characteristics of your particular sourdough culture, you’ll get a sense of the optimum time.)
- After about 10 hours, your dough should have doubled in size. Turn it out onto a floured breadboard or countertop and knead for about 10 minutes. Form the loaf and let rise for 1-3 hours (or until it has nearly doubled in size).
- About 15 minutes before you are ready to bake the bread, preheat the oven (with a cast iron or all-metal pan inside on a lower rack) to 470 degrees. As soon as your slashed loaf is in the oven, remove the iron pan, pour about a dozen ice cubes in, and return it to the oven on a rack underneath the bread.
- Bake the bread for 40 minutes, remove to a cooling rack, and cover with a light kitchen towel until cool. Enjoy!
playroom.
I never, ever, times ten, in a billion, thought I would be doing what I’ve found myself doing. Especially in this 800-something square foot home our family currently finds ourselves in. But life has it’s surprises, doesn’t it?!
One thing I’ve learned along the way is that if a work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt. So, without further ado, here’s a glimpse into a new and improved 150 or so of those square feet…
my brotform.
This is a little plug, or perhaps a serenade, for one of the handiest little bread baking implements ever. This little fellow originated in Germany and is called a brotform, which translates as “bread mold.” A brotform is traditionally made of cane, and is available primarily as a round bowl (in various sizes), or as an oval-shaped basket (also in various sizes). Round brotforms yield a boule (round) loaf, and oval-shaped a batard (you guessed it, oval-shaped) loaf. Brotforms with a triangular shape are also available, as are long, narrow brotforms which yield a baguette loaf. (Note that all the non-English bread terms, with the exception of brotform, are French in origin, as it seems they hold the market on bread craftsmanship. A trip to France to tour bakeries and experience French bread culture would be quite a treat.)
a beginning loaf.
Now that you have a sourdough culture established (see “starting a culture”), you’re ready to make a loaf of bread. This is a pretty straightforward, simple recipe and I’ve included detailed instructions regarding the process that you can reference in using future recipes.
Light Whole Wheat Bread
This is a simple light whole wheat bread, great for toast or sandwiches. This recipe makes one 1½ pound loaf, but the recipe can be doubled.
Author: Samuel
Recipe type: Bread
Serves: 4
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Ingredients
- 1 c. sourdough culture
- 1 c. room temperature water
- 1½ t. non-iodized salt
- 1 c. organic whole wheat flour
- 2½ c. organic all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Remove your jar of sourdough culture from the refrigerator. Remove the lid, fill it to the top with room temperature, filtered water, and mix well with a plastic or wooden spoon. Pour our and discard most of the mixture, leaving about one inch of culture at the bottom of the jar. Add 1 cup of organic all-purpose flour and enough water to create a mixture with the consistency of runny pancake batter. Mix well. Screw the lid on loosely (or the jar could explode from fermentation-produced gases), and let the jar stand at room temperature for about 6 hours (overnight is just fine, too).
- When you are ready to mix up your dough (see the ingredient list above), measure out one cup of the sourdough culture, which should be bubbly by this point and have a heady, fruity smell with a hint of alcohol. (If you have just started your sourdough culture, and at this point the smell is foul, it is likely contaminated with some undesirable organisms. Simply pour out most of the mixture, add flour and water, and ferment for about 6 hours, repeating this process until the mixture has a more healthy aroma.)
- Pour the cup of sourdough culture into a mixing bowl. Use a bowl large enough to allow the dough to double in size without overflowing. Add the water and salt (it is important to use non-iodized salt, as the iodine can interfere with the activity of the sourdough organisms), and mix. Add in the all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour, and mix well, using either your hands or a heavy-duty stand mixer with a dough hook. (If using a stand mixer, don’t mix for too long, as this can heat up the dough excessively).
- Put a lid or plastic wrap on the mixing bowl, and let the dough rise at room temperature for 10-11 hours. (70 degrees is about optimal temperature. If you are in a hot climate where the indoor temperature is 90 degrees, either put the bowl somewhere cooler, or shorten the rising time by a few hours). During this first rise, or “proofing,” the wild yeasts and lactobacilli in the sourdough culture will be multiplying and “feeding” on the sugars in the flour in order to leaven the bread dough and yield a scrumptious sourdough flavor. (If this sounds unsettling or unappetizing, never fear. The process is safe and the results are delicious.
- At the end of your 10-11 hour “proof”, the dough should have doubled in size and be filled with air pockets. Turn the dough out onto breadboard or counter well-dusted with organic all-purpose flour. Knead the dough by hand for about 10 minutes, adding small amounts of flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to your kneading surface. To test whether the dough is sufficiently kneaded, tear off a small piece and try stretching it into a small sheet. If it stretches and holds together so that you can see light through it, you are ready to shape your loaf.
- To make a loaf in a typical rectangular loaf pan (about 4 inch by 9 inch), oil the pan. Shape the dough into a rectangle slightly longer than the bottom of the pan, roll, tuck the ends under, and place seam side down in the pan. (Everyone has their own trick for shaping loaves, and it’s not an exact science. If using a banneton or brotform for the final rise, flour well before placing the dough inside.)
- Let the dough rise, covered with a thin cloth kitchen towel, in a warm place for 1½ to 2½ hours, or until the loaf has doubled in size. (Wild sourdough cultures from different regions are unique and vary in regards to sourness and activity level. You may find that your culture causes loaves to rise very quickly, or more slowly.)
- Preheat your oven to 470 degrees about 15 minutes before you are ready to bake the loaf. Place a cast-iron pan or all-steel casserole dish on the bottom rack of the oven when you first turn it on. If you are using a rectangular loaf pan, slash the loaf as desired using a serrated bread knife (cuts should be about ½ inch deep), and slide the pan onto the top rack of the oven. If you used a banneton or brotform to proof your loaf, turn the loaf out onto a baking stone or sheet sprinkled with cornmeal or covered with parchment paper, slash as desired, and slide into the oven. Whatever shape your loaf is, quickly remove the cast-iron pan or casserole from the oven, scatter several ice cubes into it, slide it back onto the bottom rack, close the oven, and set a timer for 40 minutes.
- At the end of 40 minutes, remove the bread from the oven (the crust should be a nice golden-brown), turn the loaf out of the loaf pan (if using one), and let cool on a cooling rack, covered with a kitchen towel. Let the loaf cool for at least an hour before slicing into it (difficult as this may be). This will allow the bread to “set up” a little, rather than collapse during the slicing process.
- Lastly, enjoy!
-Samuel
