Here’s another little bread recipe: I realized that I had no bread in the house last night, and I am a “toast for breakfast kind of person”, though I am not an early breakfast eater. That means that this loaf making was perfect as I started my day baking and ended up having a few slices near mid-day. Great all-purpose bread, from breakfast to sandwiches.
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk, room temperature
3/4 cup water, room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoon Honey
2/3 cup Active Sourdough Starter
2 tablespoons Oil (Sunflower, Canola or Light Olive)
3 1/3 cups bread flour
1/2 cup shelled sunflower seeds, unsalted, lightly toasted, divided
1 tablespoon tables salt
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, dissolve milk, water, honey and starter. Add oil and flour and mix until a rough and shaggy dough forms, about 4 minutes (low speed if using an electric mixer). Cover with a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
Add salt and 1/3 cup sunflower seeds and mix until a slightly soft and elastic dough (which easily pulls away from the sides of the bowl) forms, 6-10 minutes by hand or about 2-4 minutes on medium speed with an electric mixer. Transfer dough to a large lightly oiled bowl, turning dough to coat all sides in oil.
Cover with plastic and let rise in a warm place until puffy, about 30 minutes. Punch down the center of the dough and fold all four sides into the center. Flip dough upside down, cover and let rise again, another 30 minutes. Repeat the punch and rise a total of four times (2 hours). The dough has properly proofed when a light push with a finger leaves an indentation that does not spring back.
Remove proofed dough from the bowl and place on a floured work surface. Gently stretch into a 10-inch rectangle. Fold the top of the dough to the bottom and lightly seal with the heel of the hand. Rotate the dough 90 degrees then fold the top of the dough to the bottom and lightly seal with the heel of the hand. Cup both hands around the dough and pull towards the body until the seam of the dough is on the bottom. Cover and let rest 15-20 minutes. Uncover the dough and cup with both hands. Gently push and pull the dough forwards and backwards, right and left, while applying gentle pressure to create a tight and smooth outer
skin. Line a proofing basket or bowl with a clean towel lightly covered with flour. Place dough seam-side-up in the towel-lined basket or bowl, cover and proof until puffy and an indentation does not spring back, 60-90 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat an oven to 450F. On the center rack along with a cast iron Dutch oven with a lid. Make sure the oven and Dutch oven preheat for at least 30 minutes.
When the dough is ready to bake, remove the hot Dutch oven from the preheated oven. Gently remove the dough from the proofing basket or bowl, flip the top to the bottom and very carefully lower the loaf into the hot Dutch oven. Gently score the top of the loaf with a few slashes using a lame, razor blade or very sharp knife. Lightly mist or brush the top of the loaf with water and sprinkle with the remaining toasted sunflower seeds. Place the hot lid on the Dutch oven and return to the hot oven. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the lid of the Dutch oven and continue to bake until the crust is browned, about 10 more minutes.
To ensure doneness, gently remove the bread from the pan and tap the bottom of the loaf–a hollow sound should be audible. Using a probe thermometer, test for a final interior temperature of 200-210F.
Let cool completely before slicing.
