More bread. This time an Everyday Sourdough Boule. It’s very yummy. And kind of pretty, actually too.
I’ve been playing around a bit more with “right sizing” my bread recipes for the vessel that I am baking them in. Meaning, sorting out the baker’s ratio for a loaf with 3 cups, 4 cups and 5 cups of flour, because those are the 3 Dutch Oven sizes that I have. I’ve made the mistake of having the loaf be too big and it hit the lid causing a strange shaped loaf (though it tasted fine). Photographed here is the biggest loaf that I make, in my 6-quart Dutch oven. It’s way too big for a single person, but that is my measuring starting point. Lot’s of stuff to learn in the bread baking department. My Opa would be proud that I gotten more into bread baking though.
Ingredients
1 cup (227g) ripe (fed) sourdough starter
1 3/4 cups lukewarm water
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 cups bread flour
Directions
Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix and stir everything together to make a sticky, rough dough. If you have a stand mixer, beat at medium speed with the paddle attachment for 30 to 60 seconds. If you don’t have a mixer, just stir with a big spoon or dough whisk until everything is combined.
Transfer to an equally large, lightly sprayed with baking spray bowl or 6-quart food-safe bucket, also lightly sprayed with baking spray. Cover it with the bucket’s lid or a piece of plastic wrap, and let it rise for 1 hour. Gently pick up the dough and fold it over on itself several times, cover it again, and let it rise for another hour. Repeat the rising-folding process one more time (for a total of 3 hours), folding it again after the last hour. Then, place the bucket or bowl in the refrigerator, and let the dough rest for at least 8 hours (or up to 48 hours).
When you’re ready to make bread, turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface, and shape it into a rough ball. Leave the dough seam-side up, cover it, and let it rest on a floured surface for 15 minutes.
Next, shape the dough to fit the vessel in which you’ll bake it: in my case, a 6-quart oval cast iron Dutch oven. Place the shaped dough into a rising basket or even a parchment paper sling. Let the loaf warm to room temperature and rise; this should take about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. It won’t appear to rise upwards that much, but will relax and expand.
With a rack positioned in the middle, start preheating the oven to 450F one hour before you’re ready to bake. Place your Dutch over into the oven to heat as well.
Remove the Dutch oven from the oven carefully — it is screaming hot! — and place your loaf in it. Just before baking, dust the loaf with a fine coat of flour and use a lame or a sharp knife to make one or several 1/2” deep slashes through its top surface. Return loaf to oven and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the cover of the Dutch oven and bake the bread for 10 to 15 minutes longer, until the bread is deep golden brown and crusty, and a digital thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf reads at least 210F. Remove the bread from the oven and transfer it to a rack to cool completely.
