Chanterelle Sourdough Bread
Levain:
3 tbsp ( 45 mL) mature wild yeast starter 11⁄ 3 cups organic bread flour 1 cup water
Dough:
1 cup ( 315 mL) levain 5 ½ cups ( 1.3 litres) organic bread flour 1 cup ( 250 mL) whole wheat flour 3 ¼ cups ( 775 mL) water 4 tsp ( 20 mL) Kosher salt
Chanterelle filling:
1- 2 cups ( 250 to 500 mL) chanterelles 1 cup ( 250 mL) dried chanterelles Unsalted butter
Combine your wild yeast starter with 11⁄ 3 cups ( 315 mL) organic bread fl our and 1 cup ( 250 mL) water in a small bowl. Rest 4- 8 hours at room temperature covered with a damp cloth. Combine 1 cup ( 250 mL) of the prepared levain with 3 cups ( 750 mL) of water ( left over levain can be kept to continue on your starter ). Lightly stir together to incorporate. Combine fl ours and slowly add to the levain- water mixture while stirring with your hand. Ensure there is no dry fl our left in the bowl. Lightly mix dough to incorporate. Allow to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature covered with a damp cloth. ( Use cold water to wash off bread dough from your hands. Hot water will cause the dough to gum up and be harder to remove.) Dissolve the salt in the remaining ¼ cup ( 60 mL) of water. Add this to the dough and squish with your hands. The dough will break apart and then reform. Mix until you can form a dough ball. At this stage, you can bulk proof ( rather than divide) the dough at room temperature. After 1 hour into the bulk proof, give the dough a few good folds over itself to help develop its gluten structure. Meanwhile, roughly chop chanterelles and dry sauté in a pan to release any water. Lightly sauté with minimal butter, remove from heat and set aside. Do not use any salt . Grind dried chanterelles in a coff ee grinder, blender or food processor into a fi ne dust. ( Pieces are OK.) Once you have a proofed dough ( roughly double), turn it out onto a lightly fl oured counter. Using a bench scraper or a sharpish knife, cut dough in half. Gently roll dough into two balls, being careful not to knock out too many bubbles . Dust lightly with fl our and cover with a dry cloth. After 30 minutes, fl ip each dough ball upside down on a lightly fl oured surface. Gently pat into a loose rectangle. Sprinkle half the chanterelle powder on each, followed by half of the sautéed chanterelles. Think of it like a pizza — cover as much as possible. Roll the dough over itself lengthwise like you would a jelly roll or cinnamon bun. At this point you can decide what shape you would like to fi nish with. If you are using a Dutch oven or large pot with heavy lid for baking your bread, create a ball shape by rolling dough from end to end again. Lightly fl our the ball of dough and place into a lightly oiled medium sized bowl or a fl oured wicker banneton. You can also use a tea towel dusted heavily with fl our set into a bowl to mimic a banneton. Cover lightly with a cloth and allow to proof for 2- 4 hours at room temperature or 8- 12 in the fridge. If you proof in the fridge, remove 1- 2 hours before you want to bake to take off the chill. The dough is unlikely to double, but it will noticeably grow in size. ( Proofi ng over a longer period of time in the fridge increases fl avour as well as time required to allow the bread to proof. 4 hours at room temperature or 8- 12 hours in the fridge will produce a nicely risen dough. ) Prepare your oven. Set to 500 F ( 260 C). Use either a baking stone or a Dutch oven to bake bread with — a sheet pan can be used in a pinch. In either case, heat the oven with either the stone or pot inside. This helps to give the bread a properly hot environment as soon as possible. When ready to bake, remove either the baking stone or Dutch oven from your oven. Lightly dust the top of a dough ball with fl our. Check around the edges to make sure none of the dough is sticking to your bowl. Invert the bread onto the stone or into the Dutch oven, being careful as everything should be hot. ( This takes some fi nesse — try to make it a fl uid motion.) Using a sharp knife, score the top of the loaf. Popular patterns are a square or diamond. Scoring the bread allows it to rise in a somewhat controlled way with no explosions out the side. Make sure not to score too deeply — about ½ an inch ( 1 cm) angled parallel with the surface is correct. If using a Dutch oven, place the lid on top. Quickly get the bread into the oven and shut the door. If using a baking stone, mist the inside of the oven with water if possible. This steam helps to create a moist environment where the bread can rise without drying out too fast. If you are using a Dutch oven, the interior environment is well sealed, so you do not need to steam. Turn the oven down to 450 F ( 230 C). Bake for 30- 40 minutes. Check halfway through and remove the lid to allow the loaf to release its moisture for a better crust. The loaf should be well browned and sound hollow if hit on the bottom. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack or stand the loaf on its side. Allow to cool. Set oven to 500 F ( 260 C) in preparation for the next loaf. Enjoy! Sourdough bread lasts much longer than bread made with commercial yeast. You can expect it to last 5 days if kept in an air- tight environment. Do not keep bread in the fridge.
Makes 2 loaves