100% whole wheat polenta rosemary porridge sourdough

This is my first blog entry and porridge sourdough.

I have started baking bread for less than a year and they are almost all no-knead overnight artisan bread. Since the start of this year, I have been trying my hand at sourdough as I successfully made a starter at the first attempt. Though, as a year 1 student, time is not something I have a lot to sparse so all of my loaf are essentially no-knead, stretch and fold type. 

This is my first trial of porridge sourdough inspired by the Polenta and Rosemary Sourdough from The Perfect Loaf.

100% whole wheat polenta rosemary porridge sourdough

For polenta

40 g stone ground cornmeal (medium grain)

200 g water

Bring the water to a boil and pour the cornmeal to the pot. Take the pot off the fire and let stand covered for an hour. pour the mixture through a sieve and remove as much starchy liquid as possible by swirling it with a spoon. Let cool to room temperature or refrigerate until needed.

For Dough

All of the polenta 

190 g whole wheat flour

190 g water (don't add all at once. I always substitute all with whey since I have leftover from homemade yogurt)

20 g 100% hydration sourdough starter (mine is half whole rye and half whole wheat)

1 tbsp vital wheat gluten (omit at own risk)

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp rosemary

extra cornmeal for dusting

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl with a large spoon util roughly combined, adjust the whey/water added accordingly. Let sit overnight for 14 hours (my house is very warm at the moment at 24°C so your dough may take longer to be ready, alternatively, you may increase the % of starter used). 

Gently take the dough out of the bowl with the help of a scraper and stretch and fold it for 2 rounds. Let rest for 20 minutes. Perform 3 sets of stretch and fold over a 1.5-3 hour period, depending on the room temperature (mine take only 1.5 hours), leaving the dough untouched for at least 0.5 hour. After the last round of stretch and fold, shape it into your desired shape and roll it over a cornmeal dusted table. This dough is more structurally weak than other dough I worked with before so I supported it with a linen cloth. Preheat the oven at 250°C  with a cast iron pan and an additional pan.

Score and mist the dough and transfer it to the preheated cast iron pan. Bake at a 250°C/480°F oven with steam (I pour half a cup of water in a hot baking sheet) for 10-15 minutes. Remove the pan (one for creating steam) from the oven the turn it down to 220°C/430°F and bake for a further 10-20 minutes or util the bread reach a minimum of 200°F.

 The crumb is very moist and chewy with distinctive rosemary aroma. The crust is extra crunchy with the cornmeal.

Since I slightly over hydrated and proofed the dough, my scoring failed so I am not attaching a crust photo.