I love sourdough bread, especially that unique and authentic sourdough smell and flavor. Oftentimes I see sourdough with all the frills but it does not have to be complicated with the fancy score lines and flour dusting — it can be simple too.
I love sprinkling a little food history here and there because I am simply fascinated by it. So let’s talk sourdough. When yeast was in short supply in the 18th century, they propagated yeast using water and malt. They also used barm which is the yeast that floats atop ale and beer that they would get from the local brewer or leaven which is a piece of dough that was saved, cured in salt and stored until the next time they were making bread. The way we cultivate wild yeast to make sourdough today is a little different but has the same principles. In the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897 to 1899, the Stampeders carried sourdough with them because flour was important to have on the trail so they would have something to eat and easily conformed to them making it easy for them to pack. Sourdough uses wild yeast from the air to create a sponge that we can easily turn into an array of yummy things like bread, even our honey oat sourdough bread or cinnamon raisin sourdough bread (recipe coming soon). There are even some people that have sourdough starter from 1897 which I think is so cool!
I have tried this honey oat sourdough bread recipe a few times until I got it to work just right! This particular dough recipe does not have any added commercial yeast, just the sourdough starter, so that makes this type of dough a little tricky. And everyone’s starter will respond differently as will the types of flours used. I am going to share my fails so I can better explain what went wrong so you do not make the same mistakes as I did as well as my successes so you can make this yummy loaf too.
To start, if you are not sure how “alive” the starter is, drop a spoonful of starter in a glass of cold water. If it floats, it’s ready. If not, it’ll produce a dense, heavy loaf – just feed it again, or wait a bit if you’ve just fed it.
Let’s get started!
Attempt 1:
My first attempt, the dough seemed good, but did not rise much in the pan even after a couple hours of proofing, and it was flat once baked. It was dense and appeared raw inside even though it was not. It was gummy, very heavy and very chewy — almost inedible to be honest. The loaf split horizontally which means the dough itself could have been too dry. I added the rolled oats straight to the dough and that naturally removed the moisture from the dough causing it to split when baking as the steam was escaping.
So lesson here: is dry dough equals splitting down the side. Depending upon the cooking vessel, you may need to add a pan of water to the oven.
Attempt 2:
The second time the dough was much softer, but when I was shaping this loaf as well as Attempt 1, the dough was quite cold, like it came out of the fridge kind of cold! It seems as though it wanted to rise, but ending up sinking in the centre and it was gummy once again. It literally felt like a brick it was so heavy, and it was completely inedible. To help remedy this mishap, the bread needs to be baked at a higher temperature. If you get huge holes by the crust and dense in the centre, the oven was not hot enough. That was exactly this attempt. I baked it at 350F which unfortunately may have created this stone… I mean loaf of bread (if that is what I can even call it!). I have learned this the hard way! So lesson here is bake at a higher temperature.
Another lesson learned is about proofing. Overproofing is bad and I explain that in more detail a bit later, but having the dough rise in a warm spot is very important because if the dough is too cold, the dough will not proof properly and you’ll get a brick like I did with both Attempts 1 & 2. Making the dough in the early morning is much better than overnight so you can keep an eye on the proofing process, both with the temperature and being sure the dough is not overproofed.
One more lesson I want to share is about kneading. Gluten development is important in bread making and develops as we knead the dough but kneading sourdough too much can result in a tough dough that does not rise properly since it cannot expand. Different flours may require different amounts of kneading. It really goes by feel. The more you make dough, the more you will get to feel when you have kneaded the dough enough. In my experiences, the more I knead, the tougher the bread was and the less it rose.
Attempt 3:
My last attempt was a complete success!! Yay! WOOHOO! I was absolutely ecstatic! I adjusted the recipe each time and now I have a recipe that I feel is absolutely amazing and one you can make again and again!
There really are so many different factors and variables when making sourdough that has no added commercial yeast, and has added ingredients like oats or raisins. Now that I have scared you (no need to be scared though, bread making really is a process of trial and error), let’s make that bread! I’ll explain more as we go along!
We are using simple ingredients – oats, water, salt, honey, oil (you can use butter instead), sourdough starter and flour. Just simple, wholesome ingredients. That’s what bread should be!
Place oats in large bowl with salt, oil, honey and hot water. The water should be very hot, but not boiling. I use raw honey so I melt it slightly so it’s pourable. Stir well. Let sit 10 minutes until mixture is just warm. Soaking the oats will hydrate the oats which will prevent it from removing moisture from the dough. This will help prevent the bread from splitting on the side.
Add sourdough starter and stir well. The starter should be bubbly. If not, feed it and let it sit 8 hours before trying again. You can do the float test as I mentioned earlier to determine how active the starter is.
Add 1-1/2 cups of flour and stir.
It should look a bit sticky at this point, so add the remaining 1/2 cup flour. If the dough after this is still sticky, add a bit more flour, a tablespoon at a time, and stir. When it’s harder to mix the flour in, this is when I begin to knead the dough.
Knead until the dough is no longer sticky, about 5 to 8 minutes. The dough may be slightly tacky but should not be sticky. This dough is soft. I do not over knead because when I do, the bread is often tough and does not rise well.
Form the dough into a ball. Drizzle dough with oil. This will help the dough from drying out. Drizzle a bit of oil in the bowl so the dough does not stick.
Place towel over top and let sit 7 to 10 hours or until doubled in size. Be sure to set it in a warm place. If it is too cold, the dough will not properly rise. I placed the dough in the warm oven, door closed and light off. I checked it every few hours and heated the oven up slightly if it was too cold.
This dough proofed for only 7-1/2 hours. And that was plenty. Attempts 1 & 2 may have been overproofed which resulted in dense, gummy loaves. If you poke your finger in lightly and it springs back slowly and you can see a slight indent, it’s ready. If it springs back too quickly, it’s underproofed. If it does not spring back, and the indent stays it’s overproofed.
I then shaped it and let it rise in the bowl covered with a tea towel (a flour sack towel I always use for breads). Let rise 1 hour in a warm spot. I left it in the bowl to rise as I was baking it in the Dutch Oven.
Here is the dough after 45 minutes. I did the poke test and it was ready — you do not want to overproof dough, especially sourdough – the bread will definitely not rise higher or be lighter if it proofs longer. In fact if it proofs longer, it actually makes a dense, yucky loaf that no one will want to eat. Attempts 1 & 2 highlight this since I proofed it over night. I do not recommend that as you cannot be sure the bread is in a warm spot and the risk of it overproofing is much higher. My kitchen was warm today with all the cooking I was doing, so it proofed in less time, just 45 minutes.
Heat Dutch Oven in a 400F oven.
Lightly oil hands. Place dough in Dutch Oven carefully so as to not get burned. You may have to reshape it slightly. A banneton basket would come in handy – then you could just flip it into the pan. Brush the dough with beaten egg and sprinkle with oats.
Place the lid on the Dutch Oven and place in 400F oven for 25 minutes. The bread should be a light golden color. Remove lid and bake another 10 minutes. It will be a deep golden brown. Do not over bake.
Remove from oven and drizzle with honey.
Let cool slightly before removing the bread to cool on a cooling rack. I removed the bread with my oven mitts so it would not continue to cook. The Dutch Oven stays hot for a very long time. Let cool completely before slicing. Slicing when the bread is hot, though tempting, can result in a doughy loaf. This is the hardest part!
Does this not look amazing!?!
I am so pleased with how the bread turned out! It’s soft and the crumb is tender. Though it’s dark on the bottom, it’s still soft, with a lovely crisp and chewy crust that is quite enjoyable. It has a light sourdough flavor and is slightly sweet from the honey. It would make a delicious sandwich with ham, especially a honey ham with some mayo, cheese, lettuce and any other of your favorite veggies like cucumber or tomato.
It’s yummy with butter and honey too!
Here is the recipe:
Honey Oat Sourdough Bread
2/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
3 tbsp oil
1 cup hot water
1 cup sourdough starter
2 cups flour
In a large bowl, add oats, salt, honey and oil. Pour hot water (not boiling) over top and stir well. Let sit 10 minutes. Add starter and mix. Add 1-1/2 cups flour and mix well. Add the remaining 1/2 cup flour and stir. Knead for 5 to 8 minutes. Dough should be tacky but not sticky. If too sticky, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time. Shape into a ball and drizzle dough and bowl with oil. Cover and place in a warm spot for 7 to 10 hours, making sure the area stays warm. Check dough after 7 hours with poke test. Shape into a round loaf and let rise 45 minutes to 1 hour. Drizzle Dutch Oven with oil, place lid on and set in oven while oven preheats. Heat oven to 400F. Once heated, remove Dutch Oven and carefully place dough in. Brush with egg and sprinkle with oats. Place lid on and place in oven. Bake at 400F for 25 minutes, remove lid and bake another 10 minutes. Drizzle with honey, let cool slightly before removing to cool on a cooling rack. Let cool completely before slicing.
Sourdough Lessons
Active sourdough starter. Having an active starter is important to having a bread that rises properly. Testing the sourdough starter is simple by dropping a spoonful in a glass of cold water. If it floats, it is ready to bake with. If it sinks, feed the starter again and leave for 8 hours before baking.
Dry dough will result in splitting down the side. Depending upon the cooking vessel, you may need to add a pan of water to the oven.
Soaking add-ins like oats or raisins is important in not drying the dough out. If these are not soaked first, the oats (and dried fruits) will take moisture from the dough to hydrate resulting in a dry bread that splits and ends up being gummy in the centre.
If you get huge holes by the crust and dense in the centre, the oven was not hot enough during baking. Bake at a higher temperature.
Proofing in a warm spot. The dough should rise in a warm spot which is very important because if the dough is too cold, the dough will not proof properly and you’ll get a dense brick once baked like I did. Making the dough in the early morning is much better than overnight so you can keep an eye on proofing temperature.
Proofing. You want to be sure that the dough is not overproofed or underproofed when you go to bake it. Overproofed dough will result in dense, gummy loaves. If you poke your finger in lightly and it springs back slowly and you can see a slight indent, it’s ready. If it springs back too quickly, it’s underproofed. If it does not spring back, and the indent stays it’s overproofed.
Kneading. Kneading dough too much can result in tough bread that does not rise. If the dough is overworked, there is no space for the air to expand and therefore you end up with a tough bread. If the dough is not kneaded enough, it can be dry and crumbly since it does not have the elasticity or strength to capture the gases needed to rise. I often knead just until the dough is tacky but not sticky.
I have failed at bread making more than once! Do you have any bread fails to share? I would love to hear them in the comments.
enjoy from Our City Homestead to yours