BRAIDED SOURDOUGH

Posted in Breads by sallybr

First things first, credit goes to Sophia, an amazing sourdough baker I found by accident looking at pictures on Instagram. If you like to gild the lily as far as baking bread is concerned, definitely look at her page on IG (click here). She is also super helpful and I am grateful for the feedback she gave me when I had some issues trying to reproduce her masterpieces. Without further ado, my first braided sourdough inspired by one of her many creations.

For this version, I used my default formula for sourdough, but increased the total flour to 700g, so that I separated it in 400g (main bread), and 300g (for four strands with 75g each). Looking back, I did not need so much dough for the braid, but I was worried and did not want to take risks. Do your math, scale any recipe you are fond of and go from there.

I always allow my bulk fermentation to go for about 5 hours at room temperature and then shape and retard in the fridge overnight. So that’s what I did: fermented the whole 700g at room temperature, divided into two portions, shaped one as a boule and kept the 300g in another container, waiting to be twisted next morning, still cold from the fridge.

Each twist will have two strands, one covered in black sesame seeds, one left plain. I could have done a better job with the amount of seeds to be more homogeneous over the dough, but it is hard to get it all right on the first time… It is also important to twist both ropes to the same extent, in my case one had more twists than the other.

Of course, you can do a real braid with three strands, and I intend to go for it in the near future. No matter the little boo-boos, I love the way this bread turned out.

The crumb will be a little tighter than normal, because the rope will prevent full expansion, but that is not a serious problem…

Make sure to visit Sophia’s page, and be ready to get seriously inspired!

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16Sep2025

CROISSANT SOURDOUGH BREAD

Posted in Breads by sallybr

I first saw this cool recipe over at Karen’s Kitchen Stories, and I knew I had to bake a loaf for us. After making it I’ve noticed that many bloggers and bakers are talking about it, so apparently it is one of those baking adventures that went viral. I hate the term “viral” but will reluctantly put it to use. It conveys the right picture, I guess. Without further ado, my take on this tasty bread.

For the recipe, visit Karen’s blog with a click here.

It is a straightforward sourdough formula, the trick is to incorporate frozen grated butter in the second half of the bulk fermentation. The dough is rich, and the addition of so much fat slows down the fermentation a bit, so it won’t rise during fermentation as much as a ‘normal’ sourdough will.

This is the dough all soft and bubbly before you add the butter….

The frozen butter is added (in two steps), and the dough folded over to enclose it….

After shaping and retarding it in the fridge overnight, you are ready to slash and bake…

The bread smells amazing as it bakes and the addition of butter somehow made it develop a very nice golden crust…

It has wonderful taste and texture, and it is not “greasy” at all. Toasts beautifully also… I don’t normally make stuff for us that has a lot of butter, so this was a special indulgence. If you like to bake sourdough bread, definitely consider this recipe for a change.

A huge thank you to Karen for the inspiration!

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3Sep2025

SOURDOUGH STENCIL FUN

Posted in Breads by sallybr

I got a new gadget, in fact a set of four cute gadgets to help decorate sourdough bread. It comes from Sourdough Fever, and you can get your own set here. Three different sets with four stencils included. I must say the set with heart shaped pattern ones is calling my name, and I might get it at some point. Before Valentine’s Day says hello.

SMALL BOULE SOURDOUGH BREAD
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

240g water
70g starter at 100% hydration
7g salt
270g white bread flour
80g whole wheat flour

Make the levain mixture about 6 hours before you plan to mix the dough. It should be very bubbly and active.

When you are ready to make the final dough, place the water in the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer and dissolve the starter in it, mixing with a spatula briefly, then add the two types of flour, and the salt. Turn the mixer on with the hook attachment and knead the dough for 4 minutes at low-speed all the time. If the dough is too sticky, add a maximum of 1/4 cup flour, you want the dough to start clearing the sides of the bowl, but still be sticky at the bottom.

Remove from the machine, and transfer to a container lightly coated with oil, cover lightly with plastic wrap and allow it to ferment for 2 hours, folding every 30 minutes or so. After the fourth folding cycle, let the dough sit at room temperature for another 2 hours. Shape the dough as a ball, and place, seam side up, in a lightly floured banetton. Place in the fridge overnight, from 8 to 12 hours or even longer, if you prefer.

Next morning, heat the oven to 450F. Invert the dough over parchment paper, carefully place the stencil on top, and dust with flour. Make sure to rub the flour well into the design, a small brush is helpful. Lift the stencil and place the dough in a Dutch oven.

Bake at 450F for 45 minutes, preferably covered for the first 30 minutes to retain steam. Cool completely over a rack before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the way these stencils work. They lay nicely on the surface of the bread, but do not stick too badly, so you can easily lift it and preserve a nice image. In the set I got, you can have the four styles shown below.

For my second loaf, I used the same recipe, but sprinkled regular white flour instead of tapioca on the surface. The contrast is a little less dramatic, but still visible.

If you like to decorate your sourdough loaves, consider these plastic stencils as a nice option. The company is locate in the UK. I bought them long before the tariffs were in place, so I am not sure how things are working at the present time.

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22Aug2025

GLUTEN-FREE RED LENTIL BAGELS

Posted in Breads, Breakfast & Brunch, Small Dishes by sallybr

And now for something completely different… Do I need to avoid gluten? No. Do I like experimenting with recipes that cater to that need? Big yes. Haniela is my guru cookie decorator, as you might know if you follow my baby blog (can you call a blog a baby when it is 4 years old?). But she is also a fantastic cook and her blog covers a whole range of recipes, from cakes to breads and savory stuff. Check it out by clicking here. She bakes these bagels often, and I had them on my list of things to try for quite some time. Here I am to share her recipe and urge you to make them. Simple and very delicious! They freeze well too…

GLUTEN-FREE RED LENTIL BAGELS
(from Haniela’s blog)

2/3 cup dry red lentils (150 grams)
1 ¼ cup boiling water to soak lentils (300 ml)
1 tbsp lemon juice
scant ¼ cup psyllium husk (20 grams)
2 tbsp olive oil (20 grams)
1 tbsp lemon juice (15 ml)
¼ cup almond meal (30 grams)
1/3 to 1/2 cup water for the dough (120mL)
¼ tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
½ cup mixed seeds ( pumpkin, sunflower, sesame)

Pour 1¼ cup( 300 ml) boiling water over red lentils, add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, stir it and soak for 12 hours. Rinse soaked red lentils well under running water.

Into the food processor add rinsed, soaked red lentils, about 1/3 cup of water for the dough (reserve the rest of the water in case the dough is too stiff). Blend for about a minute or two, until lentils are broken up into a somewhat runny paste.

Into the blended red lentils add psyllium husk, almond flour, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons (20 grams) olive oil and 1 teaspoon table salt. Blend until well combined and thick, somewhat sticky dough forms.
If the dough is too dry add a little more water. Lastly add 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, give it about 5-10 pulses.

Invert the slightly sticky dough onto the work on a plate. Lightly wet your hands and shape the dough into a ball, flatten it slightly. Cut it into 4 equal parts. Shape each piece into a ball, flatten slightly, dip both sides into the seeds and place buns onto a baking sheet lined with parchment. Repeat for other balls of dough. Make a hole in the middle of each bun. Use a back of a wooden spoon. Make the hole bigger than you think it should be, dough will spread a little in the oven. Bake red lentil bagels at 375F for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool before serving.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The only thing to remember is to soak the lentils the day before you want to make the bagels, other than that it is a very fast and straightforward recipe. They are hearty without being overly heavy, and perfect with toppings such as smoked turkey, or ham and a little mustard. Smoked salmon with cream cheese would be great too, or a simple spread of avocado, drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice. Salt. Definitely salt.

The recipe makes only four, but it can be doubled, so keep that in mind.
Check Hani’s blog for variations, I will try them soon.

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28Jul2025

SOURDOUGH FEAST

Posted in Breads by sallybr

A few ideas for decorating your sourdough bread, no matter the recipe. My default favorite is this one.

RAZOR BLADE + SCISSORS + CHOPSTICKS

I love how you can mix different methods to score the surface. The steps for this one are shown below. I use a string to mark the four quadrants, the straight lines and leaf pattern are made with a razor blade. Scissors come to made the cuts on the crossed lines, and finally chopsticks make small holes to finish the decoration.

It is simple and effective….

Another version relying on razor blade + scissors…

The scoring is quite straightforward, following the steps in the diagram below…

.

STAR SHAPE + LEAVES

For this one only a razor blade was used, after marking the different sections with a string.
Steps are shown below.

STENCIL + AIR-BRUSHING

I had a little problem with the air-brushing. The stencil was small and some of the edges of the bread were hit with a little spray of red. Something to keep in mind if you use this method, make sure to protect the surface before applying color. You can see the problem more clearly before baking.

LACE DESIGN

After proofing the bread overnight in the fridge, I inverted it and placed a lace fabric on top, showered with tapioca flour, made a central slit and baked it.

SIMPLE SLITS