Tasty Tuesday - Sourdough Bread

Well, here is my first sourdough recipe to use with the starter I posted about last week. I have been making this recipe 1-2 times a week and have been having great success with it. If this is the first time you are using your starter, your bread might not turn out as well as you would like. The first time or two my bread didn't rise very well, but the starter gets better with age and the more you use it, so don't give up!

First you will need to take out 1 1/2 cups of your starter and let it come to room temperature. Don't forget to replace it with flour and warm water and let your starter sit in a warm place again before returning it to the fridge.

After your starter has warmed up, you are ready to begin! First mix 2 cups of bread flour and 1 package (or 2 1/4 tsp) of active dry yeast in the mixer. Then add 1 cup of very warm water (120-130 degrees) and your starter. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. Then mix on high speed 2 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally. Next, add 1 tsp of salt and 1 1/4-2 1/4 more cups of flour, enough to make a soft dough. I have found that my bread turns out better if I leave the dough fairly sticky and should look like this:

If you have a mixer with a dough hook, that is the easiest way to knead your dough. Let it knead for 2 more minutes. If you don't have one, knead on a lightly floured surface for about 8 minutes. Then place in a greased bowl and turn to grease the top. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and place in a warm place 30-60 minutes or until double. Grease 2 loaf pans and sprinkle the bottoms with cornmeal. Punch the dough down, knead it for a minute or two, and divide in half. Roll each piece in to a 18x9 rectangle on a floured surface.Roll tightly beginning on a 9 inch side then pinch the seams and ends to seal. Cover loosely with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray and let rise in a warm place 30-45 minutes or until double.

Before rising:

Heat your oven to 400 degrees and carefully cut three or four 1/4 inch diagonal slashed in the top of each loaf with a serrated knife. Bake the loaves for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

I hope yours turn out how you like them, but if not, don't give up! Keep trying until you get it, it is worth it! Next up to share with you will hopefully be a sourdough cracker recipe that I tried and loved, and soon I want to try a whole wheat sourdough bread recipe and will share how that goes once I do.