This sourdough sandwich bread recipe is the perfect recipe for soft sliceable bread - perfect for french toast, sandwiches, and more! This is a great beginner sourdough recipe.
205.5grams100% hydration sourdough starterfed and active
161.5gramswhole milk
32.5gramsunsalted butterat room temperature
15.5gramshoney
8.1gramssalt
Instructions
Your sourdough starter needs to be fully active before you begin.
Warm the milk either on the stoveop or in the microwave until it is about 100 F. Stir in the butter until it is melted.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, starter, warmed milk, honey and salt.
Mix at low speed until the ingredients are well incorporated. If the dough is too dry, add a tablespoon of water. The dough should feel slightly sticky at this stage.
Switch to the dough hook on your mixer and continue mixing for about 5-6 minutes. You want the dough to be smooth, supple, and not overly sticky.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled container, cover, and let it rest for 1 hour.
Give the dough a few stretch and folds. Keep the dough in the bowl. Grab one side of the dough and stretch it up high above the bowl. Fold the end to the middle of the dough. Turn the bowl a quarter turn to your right and do it again. You will want to repeat for all sides of the bowl, or for four stretch and folds. This will help to strengthen the gluten. Make sure you wet your hands for this to help reduce the sticking.
Return the dough to the bowl, cover, and let rest for 1 hour.
Do another round of folds, return to the bowl, cover, and let it rest for 1 hour. The dough should feel more elastic and airy, and be quite smooth and supple.
Check your gluten structure by doing a window pane test. Take a small piece of dough and stretch it between your fingers. You should be able to stretch the dough quite thin without it breaking, to the point where you can see light coming through it, like a window pane. If it is not done yet, do another series of stretch and folds and let it sit an additional hour.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured counter and prehape it. Pat it into a rectangle and then fold the long edges into the middle like a brochure. It should look roughly like a cylindar. Be gentle with the dough so you don't push out the air.
Let rest, covered, for 25 minutes.
Generously butter an 8.5"x4.5" loaf pan.
Reshape the dough more tightly into a loaf shape by pushing it into a rectangle (don't push out the air. You don't need to roll it out, just pat it into a general rectangle) Tightly roll the dough to form a log and tuck the ends down. Place it seam side down into the prepared loaf pan.
Cover with a damp kitchen towel or an oiled sheet of plastic wrap and let rest for 3 hours, or until the top of the loaf has risen to about 1.5 inches above the edge of the pan. If your house is colder, this could take longer. If your house is warmer, this could take less time. Watch your dough, not the clock. You will know it is fully proofed when you can gently dent the dough with your knuckle and it springs back.
Preheat the oven with baking stone in it, to 425F.
Get an oven safe pan and fill it with water. You are going to place this in the oven on the rack below your bread, this will help to create steam in the oven which helps keep the bread soft and will help you develop a golden crust later. Make sure to use a pan that is easy to move when filled with water.
Place the loaf into the oven on the baking stone and reduce the temperature to 400F.
Bake for 15 minutes with steam.
Remove the steam from the oven (be careful! it is hot!) and bake an additional 10 minutes.
Remove the bread from the loaf pan and place it directly on the baking stone and bake for an additional 20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.
Remove the bread from the oven. Cool on a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.