About this bread
This easy-to-make sourdough bread recipe, adapted from Tassajara Bakery. I made it with white flour instead of the whole wheat used in their recipe and is so delicious. My sourdough bread recipe is more tender than some sourdough loaves but still has a lovely crunchy crust. The sourdough starter (sponge) is so much easier than in any recipe I’ve ever run across and doesn’t require the crazy daily feedings. Discarding half the starter each day drove me nuts. I hate wasting. Plus, I never knew what it was supposed to be watching for.
Starter from the Tassajara Bakery Cookbook is so easy. You mix it up and then stir once a day. That’s it! And it tastes amazing.
The Starter
Like any sourdough bread recipe, you have to begin with a starter. This is what gives the bread the sour taste and helps it to rise. My recipe cheats a bit and uses yeast, and I am fine with that. It beats the messy and complicated job of “feeding” the sponge by throwing away a cup and a half of starter every day, then mixing in more flour and water, or some such thing. Begin a week before you want to bake your bread. It takes five days to ferment.
Sourdough Starter
Ingredients
- 2½ cups white flour
- 2½ cups warm filtered water I use filtered water because our water tastes awful, plus, if you have chlorine in your tap water, it may inhibit the starter.
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar or honey
Instructions
- Mix all starter ingredients until you have a smooth batter.
- Poor into a good-sized crock or bowl. The starter will expand. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for five days to ferment.
- Stir the starter daily. Don't worry if the liquid rises to the top. Just stir well.
- At the end of 5 days it is ready to use.
- Store in the refrigerator.
Easy Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
The night before
- 5 cups white flour
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast (optional) I add the extra yeast as insurance, but I've left it out and it still turned out nice
- 1½ cups starter
- 4 cups lukewarm water
In the morning
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 4-5 cups flour
Instructions
The night before
- Put flour in large mixer bowl. Add starter without mixing.
- Slowly add warm water, mixing well, until you have a thick batter.
- Mix well for about 5 minutes (I use my KitchenAid mixer with the flat beater.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap and set aside overnight.
In the morning
- Replenish the original starter by removing 1½ cups of the sponge mixture and putting back into your original starter mixture. Mix well and keep in the refrigerator.
- To the remaining sponge, add oil, salt, and two cups of flour. Mix well. Add more flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. You want a soft, slightly sticky dough.
- Knead the dough 5 minutes, or mix in your stand mixer with a dough hook.
- Divide the dough in half. Form into a circle and place on a parchment-covered baking tray. Let rise two hours.
- Preheat the oven to 425° F.
- Make slashes on the top of the loaves, being careful not to cut too deep. Brush with water if you want a crusty loaf. Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 375° F. I usually give my loaves another brush of water. Bake for another 20-30 minutes. If using a thermometer, the internal temperature should be about 195° F.
- Cool on wire rack.
Other delicious bread recipes:
- The BEST banana bread- Moist and full of walnuts
- Pain de Campagne – a delicious country loaf. The added rye flour gives it more flavor.
- Delicious English Farl
