No-Knead Sourdough Artisan Bread

Instructions:

In a large bowl, combine water and sourdough starter with a dough whisk. Add the flour and salt and mix until a shaggy dough forms with no dry streaks of flour. Don’t worry about forming the dough into a ball or smooth shape, it will even out as it rises. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and leave on the counter at least 8 hours, or up to 24 hours. After a minimum of 8 hours you can decide when it works with your schedule to shape the loaf.

Once you are ready to shape the loaf, prepare a banneton or bowl. If using a plastic or glass banneton, spray generously with baking spray then coat with flour, dumping out any excess.

Lightly flour the counter. Use a plastic bowl scraper to pull the dough away from the bowl and onto the prepared counter. Gently pat the dough into a rectangle then roll tightly into a log. Turn the dough so the short edge is facing you and roll the log tightly away from you so that it is more of a ball shape. Pinch the seams together. Place the dough, bottom side up, in the prepared banneton and loosely cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with baking spray. Let rise in a warm place until the dough reaches the top of the banneton, 1 – 4 hours.

Spray a piece of parchment paper or a silicone bread sling with baking spray and place the sprayed side down on top of the dough in the banneton. Flip everything together so that the sling is now on the counter and the banneton is upside down. Gently remove the banneton to release the dough. Score the dough with at least one large slash or any design of your choosing then gently lower the dough on the sling into a 4 or 5-quart Dutch oven.

Place the lid on the Dutch oven then place into the center rack of a cold oven. Turn the oven on to 450 degrees and immediately set a timer for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the Dutch oven from the oven. Lift the loaf out of the Dutch oven using the sling. Lift the loaf off the sling and place it back into the oven, directly on the rack. Lower the temperature to 400 degrees and set a timer for 30 minutes.

Remove the loaf from the oven and check the internal temperature, it should be between 195 – 200 F. Let the loaf cool completely on a wire rack before cutting. Store leftovers in a paper bag on the counter or precut the loaf into slices and store it in the freezer in a zip top bag.

9-Grain Artisan Loaf:

Get the water as hot as your tap goes. Place the 360 grams of very hot water in the bowl and add 1/3 – 1/2 cup 9-grain cracked cereal. Let them sit for at least 5 minutes to allow the cereal to soften. Add the starter and stir with the dough whisk. Continue with the recipe as usual.

Note that when you add heavy mix-ins to the dough it will take much longer to rise, both for the initial rise and after you shape it.