Sourdough Bread

[LeadDog]

1 Cup of sourdough starter

1/2 Cup of warm water

1 Cup of all purpose flour

Pinch of Salt (optional) Salt helps strengthen the gluten in the flour.

1 Teaspoon of oil or melted butter (Optional) Alters the texture and flavor of the bread

A sprinkle of sugar or a squirt of honey if you have honey in a squirt bottle. (Optional)

Stir the ingredients together and keep adding a half a cup of flour until the mixture begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Sprinkle about 1/4 of a cup of flour on the dough and start to knead the dough with your hands. Knead the dough for about 10 mins. Add some more flour if it is to sticky. When you are kneading the dough you will notice that it will change and feel different. To test that you can stop kneading is to poke the dough with your finger and if it springs back at you then you have kneaded it enough.

Set the dough on a clean surface and clean the bowl. Dry it very thoroughly.

Rub the inside of the bowl with butter or oil.

Form the dough into a ball. Roll it into the bowl and coat it with the butter or oil. This prevents the dough from drying out and getting crusty.

Cover the bowl with a clean cloth or plastic wrap and place in a warm area. Let the dough raise until it has doubled in its size. This can be anywhere from an hour to eight hours.

The poke test will now leave an indentation in the dough ball.

Make a fist and punch the dough down. This pops all of the bubbles inside of the dough.

Squeeze and work the dough with your hands.

You can put the dough in oiled bread pans or just make a ball and place it on an oiled cooking sheet. Cover and let it raise again, 20 mins to an hour and a half.

Bake for about 30 mins at 350°F in your KK. That is what you bought your KK for isn't it?

Optional: You can cut slashes in the top of the bread so it doesn't tear as it cooks.

Optional: I put a few cubes of ice in a tray on a lower rack in my KK. I have read here that a little moisture in the first half of the baking helps the bread.

Test for doneness: The bread is done when a tap on the bottom of the loaf makes a hollow sound.

[Curly]

Love sour dough (who don't), and that looks good.