Sourdough Bread
Submitted by patty.davy
Combine yeast, Herman starter, and flour into a simple dough that rises twice before baking into a golden loaf with sourdough tang and soft sandwich texture.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
20 minREADY
60 minHerman starter (that sweet sourdough you keep feeding on the counter) transforms into proper bread with just yeast, flour, and a bit of oil.
The double rise develops gluten structure while the starter adds complexity beyond what plain yeast bread can achieve.
You get a tender loaf perfect for toasting or sandwiches with minimal hands-on time.
Kitchen Tips
- Herman starter should be at room temperature and recently fed for best results
- The dough is ready when it springs back slowly when poked during the second rise
- Brush the top with melted butter right out of the oven for a soft, glossy crust
Ingredients
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
1 cup Herman Sourdough Starter
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
Directions
In a small mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the Herman Starter, oil, 2 cups flour and salt; mix well. Add the remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, stirring after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Lightly grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a loaf. Place into the prepared pan. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the top of the loaf is golden brown and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.
Comments
I am in he process of making my own sourdough culture from scratch, using only whole wheat, rye and spelt flours. You culture the flour over a period of up to ten days, coaxing the natural organisms that are already in the flour to multiply to make a viable culture. But to make it work, you have to discard half your culture every 12 hours, and add fresh flour to feed it til it becomes active enough to use in baking bread. That is a lot of wasted flour I thought. Why not put the discarded dough to good use. So I put the discarded dough that smelled ok into a container, and put it in the fridge. After I collected about two cups worth, I made this sourdough bread recipe, adding two cups of white all purpose flour, the yeast, salt, and oil. It rose beautifully thanks to the sourdough conditioned dough, and made perfect bread with that authentic sourdough flavor. Granted, it's not a true sourdough, but a hybrid sourdough/yeast bread, just like the one above; but with half whole grains and half white flours. It was a success that I was much pleased with. And now I can continue my sourdough culturing without any waste!