San Francisco sourdough with a Bucharest feel
Ever since I started baking sourdough bread, I knew that San Francisco sourdough would be my favorite recipe, especially after reading the glowing reviews Dsnyder and Codruta (codrudepaine) have given it. Having tried it a few times now, I reckon it's presentable enough for the tough judges on the Internet, so there goes my first post on TFL. :)
Everyone who has tried it loves this bread. The complexity of the flavours is just amazing, especially given that it's basically just a white loaf: the crust is nutty, whilst the crumb tastes sourly sweet. It's definitely an all around favorite.
The crust starts cracking as the loaf leaves the oven and it's a delight to just sit there and listen to it. That's if you can resist the urge to eat it, of course.
Getting down to business, I used Dsnyder's recipe to start off with and then adjusted it just a bit by replacing some of the flour with spelt:
Stiff levain | Bakers' % | Wt (g) for 1 kg |
Bread flour | 95 | 78 |
Medium rye flour | 5 | 4 |
Water | 50 | 41 |
Stiff starter | 80 | 66 |
Total | 230 | 189 |
1. The starter is dissolved into the water and then the flours are added and mixed thoroughly. I used my hands to make sure all the flour is incorporated properly.
2. Leave to rest for 12 hours.
Final dough | Bakers' % | Wt (g) for 1 kg |
Strong white wheat flour | 80 | 370 |
Spelt Flour | 20 | 93 |
Water | 73 | 337 |
Salt | 2.4 | 11 |
Stiff levain | 41 | 189 |
Total | 216.4 | 953 |
3. Mix the flours with the water and leave to autolyse for 30 minutes. Add in the stiff levain and salt and mix thoroughly until all the flour is incorporated and the gluten is moderately developed (window pane test).
4. Bulk fermentation: 2:30 hrs (my kitchen was quite hot) with SF after each 45 minutes
5. Pre-shape the loaves and leave to rest for 15 minutes
6. Shape them and place them in well floyred bannetons and keep them refrigerated for 10-12 hours
7. Remove from fridge and bake at 240 C for 40 minutes (15 minutes with steam, last 25 dry)
8. Open the oven door and leave the loaves to rest in the cooling oven for 5 minutes more
9. Remove the loaves from oven and adore them. :)