6 c Flour (all-purpose or bread) 2 3/4 c Warm (105-115 F) water
1 tb Buckwheat flour 1 tb Malt extract, powdered &
1 tb Bran -unflavored
1 pk Yeast (1 Tbsp) 2 ts Salt
2 c Sourdough starter
Make a yeast sponge by mixing the starter with 1 cup warm water and 1
1/4 cups flour. Cover the bowl with a towel and place in a warm spot
for 24 hours. At that time, stir down the sponge and put 1/2 of it
back into a jar and store in the fridge for your next baking.
To make the bread: mix the yeast with 1 1/2 cups of warm water and
allow to proof for 10 minutes. (Note: I sometimes use a mixture of
beer and water to proof the yeast in, as it adds to the flavor of the
bread.) Add the yeast mixture to the sponge, add the buckwheat flour,
bran, malt extract, and salt. Mix well, then add the flour a cup at a
time to form a soft dough. (Note: the 6 cups includes the 1 1/4 cups
used in the sponge, so you will be adding 4 1/2 to 5 cups to make the
dough) After adding 3-4 cups, turn the dough out on a floured surface
and knead for 12 minutes adding the rest of the flour as the dough
gets sticky. The dough should be soft and elastic, add only enough
flour to get to this point where the dough is no longer sticky.
(Note: malt extract can be found at stores selling home-brewing and
wine making supplies as well as some health food stores.)
Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat; let rise in a warm
spot until doubled in bulk. Punch down the dough, remove from the
bowl and knead for a couple of minutes. Let the dough rest for 5-10
minutes, then cut in half and shape into 2 oval loaves.
Cover the loaves with a towel and let rise until doubled or more (1-2
hours). Allow the dough to rise in a cool spot for several hours to
develop more of the sourdough flavor.
Bake the bread in a preheated 400 F oven for 15 minutes, then lower
the heat to 350 F for the next 15-20 minutes. Then reduce the oven to
325 F for the final 15-25 minutes until the loaves are done. This
lowering of the heat attempts to duplicate the falling heat in a
baker’s wood fired oven. Test the loaves for doneness by rapping on
the bottoms, it is done when it sounds hollow. Cool on a rack before
storing (if it lasts long enough to store!)
Yields
2 lg loaves