Carol asked me to make some sourdough sandwich bread to use with some leftover smoked chicken. I based it on the master recipe for American sandwich bread in Cook’s Illustrated The Best Recipe. It turned out well and was very tasty, although it was a bit more crumbly than optimal. It made very good smoked chicken sandwiches.
Here is the original recipe and how I modified it to incorporate some of my sourdough starter, which is 50/50 flour and water by weight. I made this over three days, but it could have been made in a shorter time by not refrigerating the dough. It made one 9 inch by 5 inch loaf.
Original recipe
15.2 oz. bread flour
2 tsp. salt
1 cup warm milk (~110 degrees)
½ cup warm water (~110 degrees)
2 Tbs. butter, melted
3 Tbs. honey
2-1/4 tsp. (1 packet) yeast
Modified recipe
5.3 oz. sourdough starter
12.6 oz. bread flour
2 tsp. salt
1 cup warm milk (~110 degrees)
2 Tbs. butter, melted
3 Tbs. honey
2-1/4 tsp. (1 packet) yeast
Mix together in the bowl of a standing mixer the flour, salt, and sourdough starter (if using). In a separate small bowl, mix together the milk, water (if using), butter, honey, and yeast. Add the liquids to the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl and mix with a dough hook until all the flour is moistened. Cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes (i.e. autolyze). After the rest, mix with the dough hook until it forms a smooth dough. Put the dough into a doubling container to rise until it is about double. (I did this slowly, having it first rise slowly overnight in the refrigerator and then more quickly the next day on the counter.) When doubled, put the dough on a lightly floured work service and pat it into a rectangle. Working with the short side, fold the right third of the dough over the central section, and then fold the left third of the dough over the central section. Then fold the top section towards the middle, and the bottom section toward the middle and pinch the seam together. Grease a 9 inch by 5 inch loaf pan. Massage the folded dough into a cylinder slightly less than 9 inches long and put the dough seam side down into the greased pan. Spray the top with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap to double in the pan. For a quick rise, leave it on the kitchen counter, and for a slower rise put it in the refrigerator overnight and then finish the rise on the kitchen counter.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place a cast iron skillet on the bottom oven rack. Put the loaf pan in the oven on the middle rack and put 2 cups of boiling water in the cast iron skillet. Quickly close the oven door to trap the steam. Bake for 40-50 minutes until the internal temperature of the loaf is 195 degrees.
Let the bread cool about 5 minutes in the pan on a cooling rack, and then remove from the pan and allow the bread to fully cool before slicing it. (Slicing it too soon while it is still hot will create a gummy interior.)