Golden Sourdough Cheese Bread
You are going to love this sourdough cheese bread, baked in a loaf pan. With its crispy, golden crust and a tantalizingly cheesy interior, this recipe promises to be a delightful addition to any sandwich.
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Digital Scales
- 1.5 pound Loaf Pan (10" x 5" x 3" or 25.4cm x 12.7cm x 7.6cm)
Ingredients
- 500 g Bread Flour
- 350 g Water
- 100 g Sourdough Starter
- 10 g Salt
- 200 g Cheddar Cheese (shredded)
Instructions
- Weigh out your flour and make a well in the centre. To this add your sourdough starter, water, cheese and then salt on top (remember you can use discard, instructions for this are both in the post above and the recipe notes).
- Mix the whole lot together to form a dry, fairly shaggy dough.
- Cover your bowl with cling film or a damp tea towel and let it sit for around 1 hour. This process is called the "autolyse" and allows your flour to soak in all the water and become hydrated. You can see how the dough has changed in this photo.
- Bring the dough together into a ball. Pull the edges of the dough into the centre until it's smoother and more formed.You'll notice that the dough is fully hydrated after soaking all the water up. It will be fairly sticky but as you bring it into a ball, it will become smoother and shinier.
- Once the dough has formed into a smooth ball, pop the cling film back on and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Over the next few hours you need to create some structure for your dough by "stretching and folding". Aim to do around 4-6 sets of stretches and folds. For each set, stretch the dough up and over itself 4 times. Leave around 15 minutes in between each set. Again you do not have to be exact with time, but you need to do at least 4 sets over 2 hours.
- Once you've finished your stretch and folds, place the cling film or damp tea towel back over your dough and let it rest and ferment at room temperature until it's risen by around 50% (a plastic cover is a better option for this stage). The dough does contain cheese, but it's perfectly fine to bulk ferment on the counter - do not put it in the fridge for bulk fermentation.
- Once your dough has finished its first ferment, it's time to shape it so that it will fit into your loaf tin. Shaping your dough into a batard is the best for proofing and baking in a loaf tin.I don't use any flour to shape the dough as it isn't sticky, but if you think you need flour, you can use a light dusting.Use a silicone dough scraper to gently ease the dough out of the bowl. You want it to land upside down on your counter so that the smooth top of the dough is on the countertop and the sticky underside is facing up. This will make it easier to shape.All you need to do is roll the dough up into a log - seriously, it's that easy! It's just like when you roll sourdough cinnamon rolls or shape this farmhouse white sourdough loaf.
- Once the dough is shaped, you need to gently lift it into the loaf pan. You need to place it into the loaf tin with the seam on the bottom (opposite to how you would place it into a banneton). I have not used any oil or butter to grease my loaf pan because it's a non stick pan and doesn't need it. If you want to, you can butter your loaf pan.
- Now the dough is in the loaf tin, you need to let it proof. For this sourdough loaf I like to proof it a little on the counter first and then put it in the fridge until I'm ready to bake. As long as it didn't over ferment during bulk fermentation, allow the dough to puff up a bit before you put it in the fridge for cold fermentation. Don't let it go too far though or you won't have any oven spring.
- Once you're ready to bake your sourdough, you'll need to preheat your oven to 200C/392F.
- Now it's time to bake!When the oven is at temperature, take your loaf of sourdough out of the fridge and place it into the hot oven.BAKE TIME:40 Minutes at 200C/392F
- When your sourdough is done, remove it from the oven. Let it sit for a few minutes and then carefully remove it from the tin. Place onto a wire rack to cool.If you wish to soften the crust a little, you can brush the top of the loaf with melted butter if you wish.
Notes
- Notes on Flour: This recipe is written using strong Bread Flour. Bread flour has a higher protein content than All Purpose flour. If you choose to use All Purpose flour you may have a different result because of this. You can read more about the differences between All Purpose Flour and Bread Flour here.
- Notes on Sourdough Starter: This recipe is based on you having an active starter that you have fed a few hours before starting your bake. For info on how to make a sourdough starter, go here. You can also make this recipe using 100g of sourdough discard and 7g of yeast. You will need to adjust the baker's timeline to account for commercial yeast as it will rise much faster once this is added.
- Notes on Stretch & Folds: If you are going to do the stretch & folds on your bench top, spray your surface with water mist rather than using flour. You can leave the dough in the bowl if you want to. Wet your hands to stop the dough sticking - although it shouldn't be too sticky. It will get less sticky as you do your stretches and folds. For more information on how to do stretch and folds, go here.
- Notes on Bulk Fermentation: If your home is warm then your dough will ferment a lot faster and could be done in as little as a few hours. If it's colder, it will take longer. You will know your dough is ready to move to the next stage when it has *just* doubled in size. It will be fairly wobbly and full of bubbles. You should be able to see large air bubbles under the surface of the dough.
You don't want to let it go any further than doubled as it will be over fermented.
You'll find more information on these topics here:
When is my bulk ferment finished? What is the difference between cold ferment and bulk ferment? Why does the amount of starter matter?
- Notes on Loaf Pan: I've used a USA Pan 1.5 pound loaf pan to bake this loaf. It measures 10" x 5" x 3" or 25.4cm x 12.7cm x 7.6cm.
Nutrition
Serving: 100gCalories: 1851kcalCarbohydrates: 372gProtein: 61gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 3904mgPotassium: 501mgFiber: 12gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 10IUCalcium: 88mgIron: 5mg
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