This has to be the easier sourdough bread recipe ever!
Following the Elaine Boddy method, from her book THE SOURDOUGH WHISPERER, this sourdough bread recipe has to be a “no fail” process.
Elaine’s best tip, I think, is:
Just keep going. It doesn’t have to look like mine. Every dough is different.
The recipe, which is just flour, water, and salt, starts out as a sourdough starter, with the wild yeast forming and digesting the glutens and carbohydrates of the flour, develops into a dough with the addition of more flour and water, and turns into a loaf of bread during the baking.
It’s that simple.
The Elaine Boddy Method
formed, stretched, fermented, proofed all in the same bowl
no kneading on the counter required
rests in the fridge, allowing you to select the time to bake
goes into a cold oven - no preheating required
no “remove the lid” baking time required
My Adaptations
I enhance the basic recipe with the nutrients of kale.
Last summer, I harvested and freeze-dried kale. I, then, take a handful and crumble it or grind it to a powder and mix it in with the flour when making my dough.
I also like to use garlic-infused salt instead of regular salt. The garlic-kale was an experiment at first but, now, is my go-to combination.
Also, for this particular loaf, I used the last of the milk I had in the fridge as part of the water (liquid) added into making the dough.
My timing
Because I want to bake my bread first thing in the morning, my timing looks like this:
Day Before:
5 AM feed starter (5 AM because this is when I start my day)
9 AM: create dough
10 AM: stretch and fold
11 AM: stretch and fold
12 noon: stretch and fold
1 PM: stretch and fold
1-10 PM: the long ferment/proof, covered, on the counter
10 PM: shape, place into banneton and put in the fridge until ready to bake
Day Of:
5 AM remove from fridge and bake it (I can remove the dough from the fridge at any time. I could leave it for a lunch or supper/dinner bake)
6 AM: let cool
7 AM: fresh bread for breakfast
7:01 smile from my stomach to my face
I think that I’m on loaf #10 using this method and have yet to fail. Even my dough that seemed like goo turned out to be a good loaf of bread! Just keep going.
Thanks, Elaine! - Debbie
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