Calendar 2024 | August Bread
This month's bread puts the spotlight on scoring! I love how the leaves crisped up and pulled away from the dough during baking.
For the best results when attempting this score, ensure your dough is well-proofed and shaped. Use kitchen twine to mark the 'leaves' on the dough before scoring. I’d also recommend placing the dough in the freezer for 30-45 minutes just before scoring. This quick chill will firm up the dough, making the scoring much easier to perform. Snip the leaf edges with small scissor for that perfect finish.
Full scoring tutorial can be found on our YouTube channel.
Ingredients
Yields 2 loaves
160g active starter/levain
640g white bread flour
160g whole wheat flour
630g water (+10g)
16g salt
Steps
STEP 1 | Autolyse
In a large bowl, combine the flour with 630g water and knead until there is no dry flour left. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
STEP 2 | Add starter/levain
Add 160g active starter/levain and knead until fully incorporated. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 min.
STEP 3 | Add salt
Add 16g salt and 10g water and knead for a few minutes until the dough is smooth and supple. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 min.
STEP 4 | Bulk fermentation
Perform one stretch and fold, rest the dough for 30 min, then perform four sets of coil folds, each 30 min apart.
Once you complete the last coil fold, cover the bowl and wait until the dough increases in volume by about 100%.
STEP 5 | Pre-shape
Transfer the dough onto a work surface, cut it in half with a bench scraper and pre-shape each part into a round. Cover with a towel and let the dough rest for 30 min.
STEP 6 | Shape & cold proof
After the 30-minute bench rest, shape the dough and transfer to the proofing baskets. Cover with a towel and let the dough rest for about 12 hours in the fridge.
STEP 7 | Score & bake
The next morning, score the dough, transfer to your baking dish, cover with the lid and place in the oven.
Bake for 25 minutes at 250°C/480°F, then remove the lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes at 230°C/450°F.
Once baked, repeat with the second loaf.
Happy baking!
If you require more detailed recipe instructions, refer to our Beginner’s Sourdough Recipe.
And if you haven’t baked sourdough bread before, or need more guidance, check our New To Sourdough Baking section, where you can find details such as how to make your starter from scratch or the tools required to bake your first loaf of bread (including some of the tools we personally recommend).
What’s Next?
Skip the intricate scoring and transform your sourdough bread with our unique stencils. They are easy to use and will add a special touch to your loaves. Visit our store to see the full range.
We also highly recommend keeping a record of your process, timings, ingredients and techniques. Our Sourdough Fever Record Keeping PDFs will help you do all that and more. This 4-page PDF includes a record-keeping page, a basic sourdough recipe with instructions, and troubleshooting notes. You can download and print it at home. Click the photo below to find out more!
And finally, try out our custom-built Baker’s Percentage Calculator. The intuitive design and instant results will allow you to easily work out grams or percentages for your sourdough bread recipe. Get access to the calculator or read more about it.
