Sourest Sourdough

Photo: flickr user .j.e.n.n.y.

Ingredients

cup Sourdough starter

cup Water

3 cups Bread flour

1 tablespoon Olive oil

2 tablespoons Sugar

1 teaspoon Salt

2 teaspoons Yeast

Preparation

Set starter out on counter and bring to room temperature. Feed as you normally do and allow to become foamy and active. This will take 8 to 12 hours.

Put all ingredients in the B/M and set on the dough cycle. When the cycle is complete, remove dough and squeeze out gases. Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 20 or 30 minutes. (This rest period makes the dough more pliable.)

Sprinkle corn meal on a board and shape dough into two cylindrical loaves.

Place loaves on a cornmeal covered baking sheet or in a special "baguette pan" that can be purchased at a kitchen store. Cover again with the damp towel and put in the refer for 12 to 24 hours. Take dough out of the refer, sprinkle with water, and let it sit out until the loaves are fully risen.

(They will usually rise a little in the refer, too.)

Spray again with water then bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until brown and crusty. If you want a really crusty bread, spray the loaf with water every five minutes while baking. This harder to describe than it is to do ... and the results are worth it!

PLEASE

NOTE: Depending on the temperature, humidity, and the whim of the starter, the bread will vary from batch to batch. Sometimes it is very sour and dense while other times it is mildly sour and fluffy inside. Each batch is unique...but it is always good. I found that using the special pan helped the baguettes keep their shape. The pan is well worth the fifteen bucks.

You can also vary the flavor of the bread by using more or less sugar or by substituting 1 TBL of vinegar for 1 TBL of water. Another variation is to use flat beer instead of water in either the recipe or when feeding the starter. (Be sure to separate your starter into two batches first so that you do not contaminate the orignal pot.)

Everytime I share this recipe, I get notes saying this is the beat sourdough ever!