Baking Sourdough

Once my sourdough starter was bubbly and sour I was ready to bake—or so I thought. I still needed a few added kitchen tools for my bread endeavor. First off, I wanted to buy a mixer, otherwise I was going to have to mix this bread by hand. I went the hand mixer route because I didn’t want to shell out three hundred bucks for a Kitchen Aid stand mixer. That’s why people get married, right? To have fancy kitchen accessories purchased for them? I went over to my little hardware store on Grand Street and looked for one. They had one model for fifteen bucks and it looked like a toy. I needed something that was going to be as robust as a stand mixer but at a fraction of the price. After some Internet sleuthing and a slight bout of online analysis paralysis—do I get a Kitchen Aid or Cuisinart—I went with the Kitchen Aid 5-speed hand mixer with dough hooks and a puree attachment for $39.99 at Macy’s. (PS: Don’t get the 7-speed. It’s just souped-up version of the 5-speed with a “chrome” exterior and is twice the price.) Next I needed a bread stone (aka pizza stone), a dough cutter, and a spray bottle. I found all at Target, and the stone was only ten bucks! Wondering what the spray bottle was for? In order to create the perfect crust on bread, I needed to mist the oven a few times during the baking process. (PPS: It really works!)

I followed this recipe, because it was a rustic sourdough from Nancy Silverton. Baking these two loaves took me most of the day, between letting the dough rest for about four to five hours, in addition to baking and cooling times. Upon tasting, I decided this: I wished my bread were sourer and saltier. The texture was good. It had a sourdough consistency and held its shape when sliced. But after consulting my bread master, Evie, she mentioned that my recipe was more of a ciabatta than a sourdough. And with it’s dappled outside, it did look a little more Italian countryside than foggy San Francisco. She also noted that this recipe called for milk and olive oil, which is characteristic of a ciabatta. Either way, after I slathered a little salted butter on that bread, it felt like a success, though there is plenty of room for improvement. I want to modify this recipe slightly (i.e. more sourdough starter, more salt) and maybe try a honey whole wheat next!