Wonder Bread

What makes this bread wonderful is a combination of flours – bread, spelt, rye and amaranth. Makes the crumb very soft and silky and crust – thin and delicious. And VERY HEALTHY!

Ingredients:

100 gr of active starter
Water (room temperature) – 350 gr
Bread flour – 350 gr
Whole wheat or spelt flour – 50 gr
Rye flour – 20 gr
Amaranth – 30 gr
Salt – 10 gr
Optional: seed mix (flax, sunflower, pumpkin) – 60 – 80 gr or finely chopped olives

Directions (mostly the same as here https://stellarkitchen.net/?page_id=747):

Pour water into a big bowl
Add your active starter, mix well
Add flour, salt and garnish (seeds or olives)
Mix well, cover and put in a warm place ~75 °F
Repeat 4 foldings every 30-45 minutes (using the technique shown here: https://stellarkitchen.net/?page_id=747).
Let your dough sit for 3-4 hours, it should raise ~ 70%.
Form the bread and place to the raising basket or towel covered form ( sprinkled with flour).
Let it proof for another 2-3 hours, depending to your room temperature, it should raise about 20-25%.
Put the formed bread into the fridge for cold fermentation overnight.
Bake in preheated to 500 °F oven in dutch oven or some over bread vessel with lid for 20 minutes
Remove lid, reduce temperature to 450 °F and bake another 20-25 minutes till you see golden crust.
Remove, cool completely and enjoy

Active starter, bread, spelt, amaranth flours

Sourdough Olive bread

No special equipment or technique required, just your hands and some planning ahead. To have a freshly baked loaf on Saturday morning you need to start the process Thursday evening by waking up your starter. Then on Friday you mix, fold, pre-shape and shape. Sounds like many verbs, but each action takes under 5 minutes, fermentation and proofing takes time. But the result is so rewarding!

Ingredients:

Active leaven – 100 gr
Room temperature water – 350 gr
All purpose flour 450 gr
Whole wheat sprouted (spelt) flour – 50 gr
Chopped olives (2-3 tbsp)
Salt – 10 gr

Directions:

Mix 20 gr cold starter with 50 gr water and 50 gr all purpose flour into a jar (or tall container)
Leave on a counter top overnight (10-12 hours at least or till it raises 2.5-3 times in volume)
In a bowl mix your active leaven with room temperature water
Add flour, salt, chopped olives
Mix everything with spatula just to incorporate
Cover with plastic wrap and leave in warm place for 30-40 minutes

Fold the dough 4 times every 30-40 minutes (depending on how warm is your house). You should feel the dough elasticity increase with every folding.

Leave it on the counter top for the bulk fermentation for a couple of hours.
After 2 hours (the dough should raise about 40-50%) put the dough onto working surface lightly dusted with flour.
Using the scraper pre-shape the dough onto a ball by pulling a dough from each side and flipping each side into the center (letter fold) Leave your ball sim side down to rest for 15-20 minutes

Prepare your proofing bowl or basket, it can be any bowl lined with tea towel sprinkled with flour (rice flour is best for that, but any flour will work).
Make a final shaping into a boule or batard and put the dough inside your vessel seam side up.

Leave on the counter top to proof for another 2-3 hours till your dough rises about 20-30%
Put it in the fridge overnight for cold fermentation.
The next morning place your heavy pan (dutch oven works best) into the oven and heat it for about 20-30 minutes to 500° F
When the oven is pre-heated pull your dough from the fridge, flip it over the piece of good parchment paper.
Using very sharp knife make a cut in the dough so it can raise
Sprinkle with some herbs or spices of your choice (optional), I use bread dip blend
Using gloves very carefully remove hot pan from the oven, open the lid. Quickly place your dough inside, cover the lid and put the pan back into the oven.
Bake on 500° F for 20 minutes, then remove the lid and bake for another 20 min (or till your bread is golden brown)
Remove the bread from the pan and put on the rack to cool. Let it coll completely before cutting.