Sourdough Whole Wheat Bread from AB&P
In my continuing search for whole wheat breads to add to my list of favorites, today I baked the “Sourdough Whole Wheat Bread” from Michel Suas' “Advanced Bread and Pastry.” I had previously baked the Honey Whole Wheat from AB&P, [1] but still prefer Peter Reinhart's 100% Whole Wheat from BBA [2] to it.
Most of my bread baking is with sourdoughs, and I want to have a sourdough whole wheat bread that I really enjoy in my repertoire. The one I have made - I can't remember where I got the formula - was not to my taste. I just didn't like the combination of sourdough tang and whole wheat flavor. On the other hand, I have enjoyed other sourdough breads with a high percentage of whole grains, so the AB&P formula seemed worth trying.
Levain |
|
|
Ingredients |
Baker's % |
Wt (oz) |
Bread flour (KAF) |
95 |
2 3/8 oz |
Medium rye flour (KAF) |
5 |
1/8 oz |
Water |
50 |
2 oz |
Starter (stiff) |
80 |
2 oz |
Total |
|
5 7/8 oz |
Final dough |
|
|
Ingredients |
Baker's % |
Wt |
Bread flour |
40 |
5 7/8 oz |
Whole wheat flour |
60 |
8 ¾ oz |
Water |
76.6 |
11 1/8 oz |
Yeast (instant) |
0.16 |
1/8 tsp |
Salt |
2.53 |
3/8 oz |
Levain |
40 |
5 7/8 oz |
Total |
|
2 lb |
Yes. I know it's not “pure” sourdough, and it's not close to purely whole wheat, but if Chef Suas wants to call it “Sourdough Whole Wheat,” who am I to quibble?
Procedure
-
Mix levain ingredients and ferment at room temperature for 12 hours.
-
Mix all ingredients to medium gluten development. The dough should be quite tacky.
-
Bulk ferment for 2 hours.
-
Divide into 2 equal pieces and preshape for boules or bâtards.
-
Let the pieces rest, covered, for 20-30 minutes.
-
Shape as desired.
-
Proof en couche or in bannetons for 60 to 90 minutes.
-
Bake at 450ºF for 35 minutes with steam for the first 12-15 minutes.
-
Cool completely before slicing.
I mixed the dough in a KitchenAid stand mixer for 3 minutes on Speed 1 and about 7 minutes on Speed 2. After bulk fermentation, the dough was still tacky but very extensible. I rested the loaves seam side down after pre-shaping. This was a mistake. There was enough flour on the seam side to interfere slightly with final shaping. (See my boule tutorial.) I recommend proofing seam side up.
I think I slightly over-proofed (90 minutes) and got less oven spring than I thought I should get with this bread.
The crumb was quite chewy. The flavor was rather simple – A very slight sourdough tang and a straight ahead whole wheat flavor with no grassiness or bitterness. I look forward to tasting the bread as toast in the morning and as a sandwich for lunch tomorrow.
David