Sourdough Whole Wheat

This happens to me one of the most delicious whole wheat breads I've ever had! I took this recipe from my Seedless Jewish Rye and changed just a few things. Light and airy with the heavy taste of whole wheat!

Sourdough Whole Wheat

Ingredients: 
1 1/2 cups pieces of previous (whole wheat) bread
3 cups fed whole wheat starter (click here for recipe)
1-2 tbsp molasses
2 tsp yeast 
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vital wheat gluten
3+ cups unbleached or bread flour

Directions:
1) Soak old loaf pieces in water and squeeze out water. Place them in the bowl.
2) Add starter, molasses, yeast, and salt to bread pieces. Mix until well-incorporated.
3) Add flour to mixture one cup at a time until mixed. Do not over-flour.
4) Mix together thoroughly. If too dry, add water a tablespoon at a time. If too wet, add flour a tablespoon at a time.
5) Knead by machine for at least 8 minutes.
6) Place dough in lightly-oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit 1/2 hour only.
7) On floured surface, punch down dough and separate into two loaves for bread or into 6-8 smaller rolls if preferred. Shape how you pretty much want it.
8) Let rise in oiled pans 1/2 to 3/4 hour only.
9) Cut design and add egg wash if desired.
10) For Bread loaves:
    Bake in preheated oven at 350 F for 25-30 min.
    For Rolls:
    Bake in preheated oven at 400 F for 10-15 min.
11) Let cool on wire racks.

To Keep Moist:
While still slightly warm, place in bread bag and tie it off.

For Better Slicing:
Let sit in refrigerator overnight.

Remember that this bread has no preservatives and requires refrigeration if you intend to keep it longer than a day. This bread freezes well and should taste fresh after a month.

Sourdough Cream-Infused Rolls

I had the idea to make these rolls last minute and they came out great! They are a variation on the Basic Sourdough Bread. I wanted different-sized rolls so I did not portion them evenly. It gave me sixteen varying rolls, the recipe really makes 8 hamburger bun-sized rolls.

Sourdough Cream-Infused Bread

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups bread flour
1 1/2 cups sourdough starter (fed)
1/2 cup cream
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 tsp yeast
1 tablespoon honey (optional)
1 tsp salt

Directions:
1) In measuring container dissolve honey in warm water and activate dry yeast for five to ten minutes.
2) Mix cream, milk, and starter together using the folding motion.
3) Add the starter to the activated yeast and mix together.
4) Sift the flour and salt together into mixing bowl.
5) Dig a well in the middle of the flour and pour in the starter mix.
6) Use the hook attachment on mixer to mix ingredients then knead for five or more minutes until it passes the window-pane test (look up on YouTube for explanation). Add more flour or water as needed.
7) Let rise, in the refrigerator for six or more hours (punching down if needed after the first hour).
8) Punch down, separate and shape dough into rolls, pulling top in to tighten it. Slice an "X" into the top with a very sharp knife. Let rise a second time for an hour or until doubled in size again in warm place.
9) Baste with egg-wash, oil, milk, or water depending on what kind of crust you would like.

Baking:
For loaves: Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes or until tapping on the bottom sounds hollow.

For braided bread: Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-25 minutes or until tapping on the bottom sounds hollow.

For rolls: Bake in a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes.

Yield:
Two loaves.
OR
Two medium-sized braided loaves.
OR
Eight hamburger-sized buns.
 
Remember that this bread has no preservatives and requires refrigeration if you intend to keep it longer than a day. This bread freezes well and should taste fresh after a month.

Sourdough Cornbread

I decided last night that I wanted to make some yeast cornbread. I didn't quite end up with what I was planning, but I like what I got at any rate. These are really good. I am editing the recipe from what I actually did down from two eggs to only one. This was a suggestion from my fiance and I think it is worth a try next time I make these. I might also add some butter to it.

Starter after mixing:

Here is the starter after 12 hours:

The baked muffins!

And, I needed another pan so I used my doughnut pans. These gave us ideas for sweet cornbread doughnuts with cream cheese glaze to try making in the future!:

Sourdough Cornbread


Ingredients:
1 to 2 cups sourdough starter fed or unfed (or more)
1 1/2 cups cornmeal
1 cup milk (I prefer equal parts powdered milk and water)
Additional water as needed for consistency
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
1 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil (or equivalent)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda



Sponge:
1) Mix the starter, cornmeal, milk, water (if needed), and sugar or honey in large bowl. Mix until they are a slightly thick consistency adding more milk or water until consistency is achieved.
2) Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit out on the counter for 12-24 hours.

Directions:
1) In a small bowl, mix the egg, oil, baking soda, and baking powder, together stirring vigorously until creamy consistency.
2) Fold egg and oil mix to sponge mixture. DO NOT STIR. (See YouTube videos for explanations on folding batter.)
3) The batter will immediately begin to grow and fluff to almost double in size. Fluffy and airy is optimal. Do not stir it down.
4) Scoop by 1/3 cup-fulls into a greased muffin or doughnut pan.

Bake:
1) Pre-heat oven to 350 F and bake for 15 minutes or until tops are golden brown.
2) Cool  on wire racks. If they do not come out right away, allow them to cool briefly in the pan and carefully scrape them away along the edges with a rubber spatula.

Yield:
Approximately 20 muffins or doughnuts.

Storage:
These should freeze well for a month.