INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

SPONGE
DOUGH
REMAINING INGREDIENTS
NONSOURDOUGH VERSION
i just munched a thick, toasted slice of this for breakfast while reading
the breakfast thread in the digest....
this is an adaptation of the whole wheat chile bread in mark miller's
*flavored breads* (pp. 50-1). i converted the recipe to one for sourdough
(if you're not a devotee of sourdough, there's a nonsourdough version
below***) and tinkered with the seasonings. this isn't the final version,
but since this list is filled with other tinkerers, i'll go ahead and toss
this out as a point of departure for others. despite appearances, this
really is not a complicated recipe and can be adapted to a variety of
breadmaking approaches. for those who'd like to toss everything in a bread
machine and be done with it, check miller's book for instructions. i don't
truck w/ BMs in my kitchen, for reasons explained below.=A0
a preliminary note: in breadmaking, time equals flavor, and you have
several opportunities in making this bread to slow things down and increase
the flavor: using cool or cold water and decreasing or eliminating the use
of commercial yeast (but be sure to use sourdough if you eliminate it
entirely!) will result in longer proofing (rising) times and much better
flavor. e.g., if you make the nonsourdough version using 1/4 t. yeast
dissolved in cold water, the sponge might need to develop overnight but
will contribute much better flavor to the finished bread than if you used a
full teaspoon of yeast in warm water and proofed the sponge for 2 hours.
and unless you absolutely have to have bread ASAP, DON'T set the dough to
rise in a warm place--it's not necessary for the action of the yeast, and
it diminishes flavor by speeding things up. it might seem that a bread
containing as many additional flavoring ingredients as this one could get
by just fine on fast-acting yeast and a bread machine--and it can: get by,
that is. that's why so many bread machine recipes rely on additional
ingredients: to contribute the flavor that the bread itself is lacking. but
flavorful ingredients don't really make up for tasteless bread, while
flavorful bread catalyzes and intensifies the flavors of whatever you add
to it. you really should taste what happens when all the added flavors in
this recipe combine with those of a well-developed, flavorful-in-itself
bread dough--the rounded complexity of flavors is complete and deeply
satisfying.
to make the sponge, mix the water into the starter then stir in the flour.
if your flour has a high water absorption rate, you might end up with a
dough you can knead; if your starter is fairly liquid, the mixture might be
sticky. either way is fine. (see below*** for the nonsourdough
version--after this step, both versions are the same.) cover with plastic
wrap and let sit at room temperature until risen and puffy. this can take
anywhere from an hour or two to half a day, depending on the liveliness of
your starter. the nonsourdough version will probably go faster, unless you
reduce the amount of yeast--see above).
NOTE: for sourdough purists, omit the yeast and allow more time for the
finished dough to rise.
DOUGH: stir the honey into the water, then sprinkle the yeast over the
surface and let stand for a minute or so. stir to dissolve. add this
mixture to the sponge and stir or squish together with your hand to
combine. then
continued in part 2

A Message from our Provider:

“Don’t let your worries get the best of you. Remember, Moses started out as a basket case”