Norwich Sourdough Boule baked in Dutch Oven

Norwich Sourdough Boule baked in Dutch Oven

Norwich Sourdough Boule

It’s Hamelman’s Bread‘s Vermont Sourdough, a country white bread.  But I did not pay much attention to white bread recipes then until I stumbled upon Susan’s Wild Yeast Blog where the name and the recipe come from.

I did not have any oven set up to bake bread in different shapes other than the forever boule during the first year of my bread baking.   I became quite good, if I said so myself, at using the available baking tools at hand, namely my two baking pots, and also at shaping and slashing round boules.  Also the first year, I was the sole mixing machine & my elbow grease was wholly responsible for all the bread baked during the said period.

Since my discovery of Susan’s Blog about 2 years ago I’ve become its regular readers.  I love to read Susan’s posts, marvel over her beautiful creations, be inspired and to learn much more about bread baking.

I love this no-failed recipe and its tasty outcome. This recipe makes five small-size batards but here I baked in 2 large boules.

Norwich Sourdough Boules

Follow the recipe’s instruction up until shaping.  Shape into 2 equal boules by weighing the dough or just eye balled it.  Proof in floured linen-lined baskets or couches for a good 1.5 hours at room temperature or until the loaves are light, airy and full of bubbles.

Preheat the oven with two lidded baking cast-iron pots, about 5-6 quart in size, at least 45 minutes before baking.  If your oven is not large enough to fit 2 of such pots so have to bake one loaf at a time, place the unbaked loaf in the fridge while the first loaf is in the oven.  After finishing baking the first loaf as instructed below, do allow time for the oven, the pot and its lid heated for at least 20 minutes before loading & baking the other loaf.

Bake the loaves for 25-30 minutes with the lid on.  Remove the lid and bake for another 20 minutes or so in the pot or remove the pot to bake the loaf in the oven until its crust becomes mahogany dark.  Turn off the oven, crack the oven door open, leave the loaf in for another 5 minutes or so to completely dry out the crust.  Cool on rack before slicing into it, if you can wait.

Don’t you love the mahogany blistered crust?  Even if you don’t normally eat white bread, you would want to try this bread, at least once.   Sorry I don’t have any picture of the crumb but here another picture of the grigne:

Norwich Sourdough's "Grigne"; & Crust

I encourage you to bake this bread, and yes, you can bake it in boules and enjoy it with a much thicker crust, if you are a crusty-type bread eater.

I would like to share this recipe at this week’s Yeast Spotting where bread enthusiasts and amateur bread bakers around the globe posting their marvelous recipes and beautiful pictures; please stop by for a baked treat.

I haven’t baked any bread at all the last few weeks but I finally got hold of my starters (white and rye) and brought them with me to the mountains where I am visiting at the moment.  I hope to be able to bake some bread, wish me luck, at 7200 feet.

Simple Sourdough Loaf

simple sourdough loaf

I got back in the country from my Spring break trip already almost 2 weeks, but I haven’t yet baked any bread.  As soon as  I arrived  2 Saturdays ago, I only had enough time to distribute the gifts, straightened out my luggage, got a few hours of sleep and left the very next day heading up to the mountains –without forgetting to feed my two starters (white and rye)–.

I created this white starter last September and it has since risen consistently many loaves of bread.

white starter, 2 hours away before feeding time

Before I set up the oven with baking tiles & lava rocks for steam I used to bake all my bread in lidded cast-iron & lidded Pyrex pots.

baking vessels

In the beginning of my baking adventure and out of curiosity, I’d tried all sorts of suggested baking method,  including this fairly dangerous one but it worked quite well –I believe by Susan of San Diego posted on The Fresh Loaf –a pre-heated inverted Pyrex bowl over the loaf–.

inverted Pyrex baking method

I am visiting at 7200 feet above sea level so I won’t even attempt to bake any bread even one with commercial yeast; although I must confess  I thought about bread baking quite a bit in the past few days.  To relieve my hunger for baking I am going to post this Simple Sourdough also by Susan SD (stands for San Diego) whose recipe I’d made a number of times and liked it very much.

What appeals to me is its simplicity, from 4 simple & basic ingredients: sourdough starter, white flour, a small percentage of rye/whole wheat flour, salt and water to its flexible mixing, shaping & baking method.  And it tastes delicious.

Of course you can mix in seeds if you know what you are doing and don’t have to bake in a lidded pot.  For this particular loaf I threw in about 3 Tablespoons of ground flax seed and dried blueberry — purchased from Trader Joe’s– for some color as well as taste.

Simple Sourdough Loaf with ground flax seed and dried blueberry

Dough

50 g firm starter,  I use 65%-hydration starter

204 g water

275 g strong bread flour

25 g white whole wheat flour, I use whole rye flour

6 g sea salt

3 Tablespoons blueberry ground flax seed (from Trader Joe’s), optional

Method

Mixed all ingredients minimally by hand and let it rest for 30 minutes.  Do 1 Stretch & Fold, then 2 more S&F at 1-hour interval.

Let it rise at room temperature 70°-72° F until double.  Pre-shape, rest loaf 15-20 minutes, then shape it into tight boule.  Place the loaf in a linen-lined container about 2.5 times larger than its size.  Cover it well with quick saran wrap, and place in the fridge overnight.

Take it out the next day & warm it up for 2 hours at room temperature.  Pre-heat oven with a closed lid cast-iron pot at 475 ° F, at least 45 minutes before baking.  Score the loaf, place it in the pre-heated pot, close the lid and bake for 20 minutes at 450° F.  Remove lid and bake for another 20 minutes.  I take the loaf out of the pot and bake it in the oven for the required amount of time & turning it 180 degrees half way into baking for an even bake.  Turn the oven off, crack the oven door open and leave the loaf in for another 5-10 minutes more.  Cool it on rack for 1 plus hour or so before cutting it.  Enjoy.

Simple Sourdough Loaf: Crumb & Crust

I am sending this bread to this week’s Yeast Spotting.  Go visit the site, even if you don’t bake bread, it’s a feast for the eyes, and maybe you would change your mind afterward.