Friday, June 28, 2013






My employee Jodi made pizzas with her 13 year old daughter last night.  She used the pizza recipe from our Classic Sourdoughs Revised A Home Baker's Handbook.  She put all the ingredients in the bread machine and let it do its work.  Then when it was done, she put some olive oil on the cookie sheet, patted out the crust, put olive oil on the outer edges of the crust and piled on the goodies.  She then baked it at 400° for 20 minutes (she did not pre heat the oven).  It depends on how many goodies you add to your pizza, you might need to increase the baking time.  This is an easy way to do pizzas if you are in a hurry.  Enjoy!!!

Friday, June 21, 2013

Here is another recipe for you. Sounds like a great one for summer!!! Please try it and let me know what you think.

MALT BEER BREAD

Makes two 1 1/2 pound loaves

Experiment with different beers for making this bread. I've used dark beers from Germany and Scandinavia to complement the rye flavor, but many of the local beers now produced by American microbreweries are as good.

2 3/4 cups white... flour
2 cups rye flour
2 cups cold liquid culture
1 1/4 cups malt beer
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Combine the flours and mix well. To make the working culture, mix the liquid culture with 1 cup of the flour mixture and 1/4 cup of the beer in a large mixing bowl. Proof 12 hours at room temperature (68° to 72°) or 6 hours in a proofing box at 85°.

Mix and knead 1 cup of the flour mixture and 1/2 cup of the beer into the culture. Proof 8 hours at room temperature or 4 hours in the proofing box. After proofing, this is the fully active culture.

Punch down. Mix together the salt, sugar, butter, and the remaining 1/2 cup beer. Add to the dough and mix well. Reserve 1 cup of the flour mixture for flouring the board. Mix and spoon knead the remaining 1 3/4 cups flour mixture into the dough 1 cup at a time. When too stiff to mix by hand, transfer to the floured board and knead in the remaining flour.

Form 2 pan loaves, and proof at the same temperature used above until the dough rises about 1 inch above the pan tops (2 1/2 to 3).

Bake in a preheated oven at 375° for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from the pans and cool on wire racks.

Enjoy and have a great summer!!!

Friday, June 7, 2013

Summer is here!!! The flowers are blooming so what a better way to celebrate summer than with a sourdough bread. We have a great recipe for you to try!!!

Sunflower Bread

This recipe produces a light-textured yet dark and nutty bread. Use raw sunflower seeds, not roasted, for best results. Makes one 1 1/2 pound loaf.

1 cup (240 ml) Sourdough Culture
1 cup (240 ml) milk, plus more as needed
1... teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon (15 g) melted butter
1/2 cups (50 g) raw sunflower seeds
1 1/2 cups (210 g) whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups (210 g) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as needed

Dough Proof~ Mix (knead) all the ingredients for a maximum of 25 minutes in the bread machine, until the dough is smooth and satiny. Watch the dough form for the first 3 or 4 minutes and adjust the consistency as needed with more milk or flour, added 1 tablespoon at a time.
Proof the dough overnight (8 to 12 hours) at room temperature, about 70° F (21° C), in the machine pan (taken out of the machine and covered with plastic wrap secured by a rubber band). It should rise to the top of the machine pan.

Loaf Proof and Baking~ To bake in the machine, mix the proofed dough for 30 seconds and allow it to rise in the machine for 2 to 4 hours, until it again comes to the top of the pan. Start the bake-only cycle and bake for the time programmed in the machine for white bread.
To bake in the oven, knead the proofed dough in the machine for 1 minute to form a ball. Gently transfer it to a floured board, let rest for 30 minutes, and shape first into a ball and then into a loaf. Place the shaped loaf, seam side down, in a bread pan or on a baking sheet and proof for 2 to 4 hours, until it reaches nearly to the top of the pan or doubles in bulk. Proof for the first hour at room temperature and then at 85° to 90° F (29° to 32° C) in a proofing box.
Put the pan in a cold oven, then turn the temperature to 375°F (190° C) and bake for 70 minutes. When the loaf is baked, remove it from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.

This is one of the many wonderful recipes from our Classic Sourdoughs Revised A Home Baker's Handbook.

Happy baking and please share your pictures, other recipes, and your sourdough stories with us!!!!