Ingredients
- 240 g warm water about 80°F
- 110 g sourdough starter
- 20 g extra virgin olive oil
- 20 g honey
- 415 g King Arthur bread flour
- 10 g kosher salt
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- In a large mixing bowl, combine the warm water and the sourdough starter. Use your fingers or a Danish dough whisk to dissolve the sourdough starter into the water.
- Add the olive oil and the raw honey to the bowl. Whisk to incorporate.
- Pour in the bread flour and the kosher salt. Use a wooden spoon or your hands to incorporate the flour into the wet ingredients. The dough will be shaggy, but that's ok. Use your hands to pinch the dough to combine. Knead the dough for a minute in the bowl, then cover with a clean shower cap or plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Stretch and fold the dough. This is a gentle form of kneading the dough and developing the gluten. Start by lifting up one corner of the dough as far as it will go without tearing, then fold it over the dough. Rotate the bowl and repeat with the next side of dough, working your way all around the bowl. Cover the dough and let it rest for another 30 minutes.
- Do one more set of stretch and folds. The dough should be much smoother this time.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a shower cap and let it proof at room temperature for 4 to 5 hours until it is relaxed and puffy.
- Spray a 9x4-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray, making sure to spray the sides.
- Lightly flour your work surface and pour the dough out. Pat the dough into a rectangular 9x12-inch shape. Roll the dough up into a log and pinch the seam shut, as well as the ends of the loaf. Place the shaped loaf into the prepared pan, seam side down.
- Cover the loaf pan with the shower cap and let the loaf proof for 10 to 12 hours at cool room temperature, ideally overnight.
- The next morning, preheat the oven to 375°F. Spray the top of the loaf with water. Place 6 to 8 ice cubes in the bottom of the oven to create steam. When the oven is hot, bake the loaf, spraying extra water inside the oven as you place the pan inside to create even more steam.
- Bake the bread for 35 to 45 minutes until the top is deeply golden brown. Allow the loaf to cool completely, then slice and enjoy.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
This recipe makes one 9x4-inch loaf. To double, scale every ingredient by 2 and use two loaf pans. The recipe came to me from a sweet friend along with my starter Pearl.
Measure every ingredient out before you start mixing — it saves you from second-guessing what you added. Get your starter to peak before you mix; that's when it's at its most active. Do not skip the steam — the ice cubes and water spray are what give this loaf its beautiful crusty exterior.
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