Ingredients
- 2 cups bread flour
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup recently fed sourdough starter
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1-1/2 cups warm water
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt
Preparation
Step 1
n a large bowl combine all ingredients except for the salt. Stir to combine and turn out onto a lightly floured board. Knead until a dough forms, then, wet hands with water and knead for five to seven minutes. If hands get sticky, re-wet them.
Your dough will be well-formed, but sticky and a teensy bit slack. It is important not to add very much more flour to the dough. You will be surpried how much better your bread will be when you knead with wet rather than floured hands.
Allow dough to rest for twenty to thirty minutes on your board.
Upon returning, add salt to the dough and knead (with wet hands) for five minutes more, making sure that the salt gets well incorporated throughout the dough.
Form into a ball and place into a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to double in size, about ninety minutes.
Once dough has risen, either cut into two pieces (to form two smaller loaves, each suitable for dinner for four, or so) or one large loaf.
In my most recent batch (the one photographed above) I split the dough into two and formed one into an oval loaf and the other I braided using Leila's technique.
Form dough and allow to rise, covered, on a prepared pizza peel covered in cornmeal, or on a rimless cookie sheet covered in parchment paper. Let rise for about one hour.
30 minutes into the second rising, begin heating oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit with a baking stone on the bottom rack.
Once loaves are risen, slash loaves, if appropriate, and brush with an egg wash. Immediately place in hot oven on baking stone and quickly close the door (if using the parchment paper technique, just scoot it off the cookie sheet with a few quick movements with your arm. Note that you'll be scooting the bread on the parchment paper onto the baking stone, leaving the cookie sheet empty.)
Bake for 25-30 minutes.
Allow to cool at least an hour or two before eating.