SOURDOUGH BREAD

Dub Egbert

Equipment:      Crock for Starter.  Large rising bowl with nearly vertical sides.  Damp towel.  3 - Pastry canvases.  3 - U shaped bread pans or four long rolling pins.  Peel.  Cornmeal.  Oven stone.  Water sprayer.  Cooling rack. 

STARTER:

1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups All-Purpose flour
1 package dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F)

Heat the milk and add the water, and cool to lukewarm.  Sir in the sugar, salt, and flour, and beat until well blended.  Turn into a large crock, allowing ample room for expansion.  Cover with a cloth or cheesecloth and let stand in a warm place 3 to 5 days, or until the mixture is bubbly and has a sour aroma.  Dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup warm water and beat into the starter.  Cover with a damp cloth and let stand at room temperature for a week, stirring down each day.  If it separates, don’t worry; stir.  At the end of the week remove the cloth and cover the crock with a lid.  The starter is now ready for use.

SPONGE:

1 cup warm water
1 cup starter
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups Bread Flour

The night before, or several hours before baking, combine the ingredients for the sponge and beat with a wooden spoon to blend well.  Cover with foil or plastic wrap and allow to stand at room temperature until doubled in bulk. 

BREAD:

1 package dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
Sponge
1 1/2 to 2 1/2 cups Bread Flour



Mix the warm water and yeast and let rest for 5 minutes.  Combine yeast mixture, sponge and 1 1/2 cups of the Bread Flour.  Mix and kneed adding flour as needed.  Knead until elastic and smooth - about 10 minutes.  (This can be done in a hefty mixer with a dough hook.)

Form dough into a ball and let rise in a vertical bowl, covered with damp towel, until double in size (approximately 2 hours).  Place rising bowl in a room temperature, draft-free area.  Punch down and knead a few times and form into a ball.  Return to covered bowl and let rise until double in size (approximately 2 hours). 

Punch down.  Cover and let rest 2 minutes.  Cut dough into thirds.  Roll each into a loaf about 12 inches long and 2 inches in diameter.  Place dough in floured canvas covered U shaped bread pans.  (Or use four rolling pins and the flour covered canvas to form three U shaped cavities and place loaves in each cavity.)  Cover with damp towel.  Let rise until double in size (approximately 1 1/2 hours).  Using the canvas as a holder, gently roll each loaf onto a peel that is covered with cornmeal - place the loaves at the edge of the peel.  Slash loaves with a very sharp razor - make slashes about 1 inch deep.  Spray the top of the loaves with water.  Gently shake the peel to make sure the loaves are free to move.  Using the peel slide the loaves onto the oven brick that has been preheated at least 30 minutes at 425o.  Throw 4 or 5 ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven.  Spray the side of the oven with water (don’t spray the oven light) when bread is first put in and every 2 minutes thereafter for a total of three times.  After 15 minutes, rotate the bread 180 degrees on the oven brick for more even browning. Bake for a total of 30 minutes or until golden brown.  The bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped with the knuckles.  Cool on a cooling rack.  Do not cut until bread is completely cooled.  To freeze (after completely cooled), place in plastic baggie.

NOTE: 

As the starter is used, always replenish it by stirring in, for each cup removed, 1 cup flour and 1 cup lukewarm water.  Even if no starter is used, it should be stirred once a day and  1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup lukewarm water added once a week.  If the room temperature is above 85 degrees, store the starter in the refrigerator.  Also refrigerate it if you do not use it every 2 or 3 days.