August 12, 2010 - 4:29pm
Today's Basic Sourdough
A nice recipe from Northwest Sourdough for a basic white sourdough, using 100% hydration starter, final dough in recipe is 65% hydration. 
I baked these loaves on my pre-heated oven stones and used the lava rock/iron pan steaming method and adjusted my oven
for baking temperatures and times better suited for my oven. I made 3 loaves. These will come in handy!
Sylvia
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Hi Sylvia!
I'm actually folding my sourdough at the moment... I've added Kalamata Olives in my loaves... I will bake mine off first thing!
Happy baking!
LeeYong
Geezz, I'm always saying I will make a Kalamata loaf...I was lucky to get these done...the pest control service was here today....California is on a giant ant hill...they can really become pesty, if you don't keep them under control, they get on the move when things warm up here and want to move in where it's cool. At least the bread baking and dogs were kept clear and done so it didn't interfer...I'll bake anytime,,,HA!
Sylvia
Your really caught the light reflecting off the gelatinized crumb. Neato!
David
I finally got some baking done when there was still daylight for photos : ) they come out so much better.
Sylvia
Wish they were on my counter - too hot to turn on the oven and only have one loaf left in the freezer!
Just back to some basic's for survival baking and enjoying the lazy summer days. One loaf left...I've been there several times, I don't know who eats all this bread : ) We have been extremely lucky, this summer has been so far mostly in the 70's and now it's warming up into the 80's...low average for this time of year, thank goodness.
Sylvia
They look like a classic pain au levain. Simplicity and yum....
Larry
Just so there is no confusion I corrected it to read as 100% hydration starter, 65% hydration dough! I can't talk to Mike and post at the same time :) ... You started this 'pain au levain baking' with a few of us, with your posting your own formula : )
Sylvia
Love that shine on the crumb! And the grigne - like big smiles of affirmation. Can imagine a thought bubble rising outta those two beauties containing the line: "Hey, you got me right, baby!"
Cheers
Ross
It does look like a smiley face : )
Sylvia
David is right the light is perfect and your slashing is so nice. You have some lovely loaves. c
Sylvia
Forgive me, but isn't an all white flour loaf devoid of most of a wheat's vital nutrients? Why are we still consuming all white bread although science has proved more than once that refined foods are one of the causes of many degenerative deseases? Iam no advocate of healthy foods, iam one of you home bakers, but trying to talk some sense in here.
Perhaps you could start a forum discussion on your questions!
Sylvia
IMO, it would be sensible to consider white bread in the context of total diet and lifestyle, rather than in isolation.
For example: My partner and I grow as much as possible of our vegetables and all our herbs in the backyard using only 'organic' growing methods. I cook everything from scratch every meal, using fresh ingredients (apart from canned tomatoes in some pasta sauces and the occasional frozen vege). We rarely eat out, except when travelling, and hardly ever buy takeaways. We use only extra virgin olive oil, and cold processed other oils. Very little red meat. Quite high fish content. I bake all our bread. We buy only free range chicken. etc etc.
Lest I give the wrong impression, we also drink wine with just about every evening meal, and I have a weakness for chocolate and cream and butter and baked yummies and CHEESE godammit (oh yeah!)...so, there are some bad habits in there - but hell, life's fer livin', even if in livin' it you risk shortening it a little!
Given our overall diet, is it going to harm us to sometimes have all-white home-baked SD bread? I don't think so (although I rarely make all-white, mostly because we prefer the more complex flavours of other grains mixed into the dough...but that's beside the point here). Perhaps all-white SD won't add much nutrition to our diet, but I'm confident we get more than ample 'good stuff' anyway.
From what I've gleaned of Sylvia's lifestyle, she also has access to plenty of good organic produce in her patch of California (am I right, Sylvia...seem to recall you mentioning fruit trees and farmers' markets?). So, as long as diet and lifestyle is healthy, I don't think there's anything to worry about with all-white home-baked SD bread, especially if it's just one of a variety of breads you enjoy.
Cheers
Ross
I'm not very good with words and you about summed it all up...our lifestyle is very much like yours...also I love juicing, used to drink quarts of green juice daily, not so much anymore with access to so much more fresh now that we are not living in the desert anymore, I'm 65 yrs. old and have no health problems...that my doctor can find....as for my husband...well he's a cyclist and rides more miles in a week than what I put on my car in a month or two.
Sylvia
Sylvia,
Lovely loaves---Excellent scoring, beautiful crust and crumb. You are getting sooo good! Charlene really likes sourdough white bread. I'll definitely give this one a try.
Howard
Thank you for the nice compliment! Mike likes it too...finally got him into sourdough and still working on some of his other taste buds. It's a fairly new one from Teresa at NWS for a 100% hydration starter...fun to make these loaves and also came in handy for testing some oven temps I've been adjusting.
Sylvia
BTW, nice Boule, SYLVIA, never meant to degrade your bake. I myself get the urge every once and a while to bake All white sourdough, but think of nutritional value of such a loaf. Anyway, you seem to have a valid point there Ross!
Very Nice bake!
Khalid
I completely understand where you are coming from, My knowledge of nutritional value in our diets is a lot more than what my baking can sometimes express. "LOL" if it's any consolation we had fresh wild caught salmon with an assorted fruit and nut salad and green iced tea for dinner...Mike had a slice of the SD and I enjoyed my dinner without bread.
Sylvia
Sylvia,
I was staring at your bread for a while.... That is truely beautiful bread as much as I want to put it on the frame. It is very nice ear and bloom and moist and shiny crumb that I admire!!
Thank you for showing the pictures!
teketeke
Sylvia
They would be most welcome at my table!
Sourdough rocks!
This one does rock and very easy to add a little of this or a little of that for some flavor changes.
Sylvia