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 Sourdough Bread | Status Approved | | Name | Sourdough Bread | | Category | American, The Bakery | | Serves/Yields | 2 2lb loaves | | Source | Kate | | Difficulty | Easy | | Prep. Time | Refer to recipe | | Cook Time | 40 to 45 minutes | | Introduction | | In the days of chuck wagons and cattle drives the cooks were often called "Sourdoughs" for the starter that they relied on to make biscuits and pancakes for the cattle men. The starter was usually kept in a sealed crock and the cooks would sleep with it if there was danger of freezing.
My late brother in law Bill Nannini always asked me to make several loaves of this bread for horse camping trips because it kept so well on the trail.
This is a really old recipe and you need to start the day before you plan on baking bread. A really active starter can climb out of the bowl so always make sure to use a big bowl. | | Ingredients | |  For The Starter
1/3 cup of original starter (from your jar)
2 cups all_purpose_flour
2 cups warm water (105 F)
2 Tbsp granulated_sugar
For The Bread
3 to 3 1/2 cups all_purpose_flour
1 pkg active dry yeast (not rapid rise)
2 tsp kosher_salt ( preferred )
1 1/2 tsp baking_soda | | Directions | | Step: 1 |  In a large glass or crockery bowl combine the starter, 2 cups of flour, the warm water and the sugar. Beat until smooth with a wooden spoon.
Cover with a cotton tea towel or waxed paper and place the covered bowl in a warm place away from drafts and let stand at least 18 hours undisturbed.
The finished starter should be bubbly and have a slightly sour smell,. Remove 1 cup and add back to your starter jar. I always keep at least two cups of starter in my jar in case I forget to reserve the 1 cup! | | Step: 2 | In a small bowl add a little (3 Tbsp) warm water(105F-110F ) and a pinch of granulated_sugar. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let sit so the yeast can dissolve. Mixture will look foamy. .
Add the yeast mixture, salt ,baking soda and 1 cup of flour to the starter mixture and beat well with a wooden spoon.
Continue adding flour to the bowl, about 1/2 cup at a time and beating well after each addition until you have a moderately stiff dough. You may have flour left over or need a little more depending on the weather the day you bake this bread.
If you have a heavy stand mixer with a dough hook the dough can be placed in the bowl to be kneaded about 15 minutes on medium high power.
To knead by hand, place the dough on a lightly floured board and knead until smooth and elastic, about 20 minutes. .
Divide the dough into two balls of equal size and work to make each a smooth round ball. | | Step: 3 |
Place each ball on a greased baking sheet and make three slashes across and two down the top of each loaf (like a tic tac toe game)
Cover the loaves with a clean cotton tea towel and place into a warm and draft free place to rise 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until the loaves have doubled in size. At this stage take care to not bang the pan around as this can make the dough fall.
Place the risen loaves into a 350 F pre heated oven and bake until loaves sound hollow when tapped and are a nice golden brown, about 40 minutes. Place loaves on wire racks to cool before slicing.
For an extra crunchy crust, brush the loaves with water before placing in the oven. |
Time submitted: Sunday, June 21. 2009 at 09:16:09 Contributed By: Kate
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