Here’s a bread that’s just a little tangy, substantial and good.
Sourdough oatmeal bread
PrintYield2 medium loaves
Ingredients
For the sponge
- ½ cup starter (remember to feed your original starter)
- 2 cups warm water
- 3-4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup instant oats
For the rest
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp corn oil, or any other neutral-flavored oil
- Approximately 3 more cups of flour
Instructions
The night before
- Mix the ingredients for the sponge in the order given. It will look like oatmeal. Cover the bowl – plastic wrap works best – and put the sponge away in a warm place overnight.
The next day
- The next morning, the sponge should be light and bubbly. Beat in the salt, sugar, soda, and oil.
- Knead, adding smaller sprinklings of flour, until the dough is smooth – about 10 minutes. Smooth a thin layer of flour over the dough ball, cover it again, and put it away another 2 hours, or until the dough is light again.
- Working gently, cut the dough into two. Knead each half briefly, shaping the loaf you want.
- Allow the dough to rise another half-hour to an hour, or until it’s light and a few blisters are visible under the skin surface of it. Start preheating the oven. I preheat my oven to 475° F (250° C), but lower the temp to 375° F (190° C) right after I’ve put the loaves in the oven.
- Decorate the surface of the loaves by giving them an egg-wash, pressing flakes of oats on top.
- Bake for 1 hour or until a golden-brown.
