Makes 1 large traybake
INGREDIENTS
- 360-370g water at 27˚C
- 100g bubbly, lively starter
- 400g organic white flour (13% protein)
- 100g organic stoneground wholegrain flour (11.5% protein)
- 10g fine sea salt
- Butter, ghee or coconut oil, for greasing
- 250g mushrooms, sliced
- 1 tbsp olive oil, for drizzling
METHOD
MIX
1 In a large bowl, whisk together 350g of the water and the sourdough starter. Refresh the remaining starter in your jar and put to one side.
2 Add the flours and salt to the bowl and mix vigorously using a strong spatula for about 2 minutes. It will form a stiff ball. Leave to rest for 30 minutes, then mix in the remaining 10-20g water using the bassinage technique. This should take less than 1 minute. Leave to rest for a further 30 minutes.
PROVE
3 Grease and line a 23cm square tin with baking parchment. Arrange a few of the sliced mushrooms in the base of the tin. Place the dough in the tin and lightly press it outwards to reach the sides. Top with the remaining sliced mushrooms, then cover the tin and leave to prove on the kitchen table overnight.
BAKE
4 By morning, your dough will have increased in size by at least 50 per cent. Preheat your oven to 220˚C/Gas Mark 7 for 30 minutes and place a shallow baking tray in the bottom of the oven.
5 Drizzle the olive oil down the sides of the dough before putting it in the oven. As you place the bread in the oven, reduce the temperature to 180˚C/Gas Mark 4 and carefully throw a little water or some ice cubes into the hot tray at the bottom. Close the door quickly to trap the steam this creates.
6 Bake for about 45-50 minutes. Everyone’s oven is slightly different, so check your bake towards the end of the baking time: it should have a beautiful, burnished golden crust.
7 Remove from the oven and leave to set in the tin for about 5 minutes before removing from the tin and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack. Your starter should now be ready to put in the fridge until you next want to prepare it for baking.
8 This is best eaten on the day it’s made — it’s perfect for supper.
This recipe is taken from 10-Minute Sourdough: Breadmaking for Real Life by Vanessa Kimbell, published by Kyle Books (£18.99)