Simple Sourdough Bread

Is there anything better than the aroma of fresh baked bread lingering in the air? It is one of those soul comforting scents. I am surprised someone hasn’t come out with an aromatherapy candle in a yeast scent. Until that happens, the only way you’re going to get your house to have that unbelievable fragrance is to bake your own bread.

You are asking yourself, “How am I supposed to make ALL of the bread my family eats?” I know for the average person, the idea of making all of the bread for your household is out of the question. Making bread is not hard, it’s just time consuming. You are looking at a minimum 2-3 hour time investment, and for most, this is not a commitment that can be made on a daily basis.

How to get started making your own bread

Yes, even I buy most of my sandwich bread at the grocery store. But have you looked at the ingredient list on a bag of commercial bread? I know that sometimes it is unavoidable, but I hate eating foods that have ingredients that I cannot pronounce. So, when I get a chance, I love making a loaf of white bread for grilled cheese sandwiches. On a cold day, when you are stuck in the house anyway, it’s an awesome little project/treat.

My favorite bread to make is sourdough. There is something about the bite of sourdough that makes it amazing with any meal, and I love not using a bread pan so that it has that “free-form” artisan bread appearance. The only ingredient that most of you won’t have is sourdough starter, but this is recipe is a great reason to “grow your own” starter so you can make this all the time.

Simple Sourdough Bread

Ingredients:

• 2 ¼ tsp. active dry yeast

• 1 ¾ cups warm water, (hot water from the tap is usually perfect, but if you have a thermometer try to get it to 110°)

• ¼ cup sourdough starter

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil

• 2 Tbsp. sugar

• 2 tsp. kosher salt

• 4+ cups flour

• 1 egg

• 1 Tbsp. milk

1) In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the water and yeast. Let it stand for about 10 minutes, or until the yeast blooms (gets foamy).

2) Add the starter, olive oil, sugar, salt, and 3 cups flour to the yeast. Using a dough hook, mix all the ingredients until they are all combined. The dough is going to be very sticky. Start adding more flour, ½ cup at a time, until the dough just starts to pull away from the sides.

3) Turn the dough into a well-oiled stainless steel or glass bowl. Make sure to turn the dough over several times to completely coat it with the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour in a warm place. (*A little trick I use when my oven is empty is to boil a couple of cups of water and put it in the cold oven with the dough. It creates the perfect warm humidity to let the dough rise.)

4) Once risen, punch the dough down and turn it onto a well-floured surface. Turn and knead the dough 7-10 times, or until it is no longer sticky.

5)On a parchment lined sheet pan, form the dough into a free-form loaf. Cover with a towel and put back into a warm place to rise for another 30 minutes.

6) Preheat your oven to 400°. Whisk the egg and milk together until light and frothy. Brush the egg wash over the entire top and sides of the dough. Place pan in the oven and bake for 15-20 or until golden brown.

This recipe makes a large loaf of bread, and anytime that I have left-over I like to use it to make homemade croutons and occasionally bread pudding. It also works great for grilled cheese to go with my Creamy Tomato Basil Soup recipe.

How convenient is that? You get fresh bread, which you control the ingredients in, for your family’s meal and an ingredient to use for another dish. THIS is simply a genius idea!