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| To match Sparkling Syrah... Under Construction Buckwheat-Olive Sourdough A very distinctive dark and dense loaf for the lovers of heartiness - I n g r e d i e n t s - Sourdough Starter - approximately one and half cups Non-fat Milk - one cup at room temperature Water - one and a half cups, see olive brine substitution Buckwheat Flour - one and a half cups Spelt Flour - one and a third cups Soy Flour - two thirds cup Green Ripe Olives - one can, 6 oz. dry weight (see notes) Kalamata Olives - one cup before chopping, pitted Active Baking Yeast - one tsp., not rehydrated Yellow Onion - a little more than 1/2 med. onion, finely chopped Whole Wheat Pastry Flour - three cups Dark Rye Flour - one cup Unbleached White Flour - enough to make the dough not sticky Coarse Sea Salt - one slightly rounded Tbls. - T o o l s - A large mixing bowl about 14 to 16 inches in diameter Measuring cup and Tablespoon - Rubber scrapper with a stout handle Clean kitchen towel - small round baking dishes - Kitchen knife & cutting board Spray bottle that is only used to spray water - Cooling rack - T h e B i g P i c t u r e - If you know buckwheat, and you like it, be sure and try this recipe. And if you aren't sure you like buckwheat, try making buckwheat pancakes or some blini, which are crepes made with buckwheat flour and then stuffed with non-fat sour cream and home smoked salmon. These crepes are much simpler to make and they will let you know if you are a lover of the very specific (and wonderfully hearty) flavor buckwheat gives. There is a recipe from Gourmet magazine at epicurious.com which needs a lot of adaption to make it healthy enough to eat, but it will give you an idea of where you are headed (search on blini). There is another thing that you should know before you start. Can you get Green Ripe Olives? They are always canned, sometimes called 'cured homestyle', and are marketed under the Graber or Lindsay trademarks (The Graber olives are typically much more expensive and not usually pitted). These olives are Americana and they are seasonal, which is counter-intuitive for a canned product, but the companies only make so many of them and then they run out until the next crop. We always have them on hand because they are the secret ingredient to my mother's 1,000 island dressing. If you can't find them try the Internet: lindsayolives.com So don't assume that just because this recipe has two kinds of olives in it that it's olive bread, it's not. It is the rustic pumpernickel-like loaf that makes you take pause, sigh, and remember how great-bread can transport you to the grandest of times. - T h e I n c r e a s e - Sometime in the early part of the morning, or the night before if you like it even more tangy, put the approximate 1 1/2 cups of Sourdough Starter in the large mixing bowl. Add the 1 cup of Non-fat Milk and the 1 1/2 cups of Water. Make sure they are at room temperature with the help of the microwave. I have never done this, but I will try it the next time I make this recipe and promptly report to you. I'll bet substituting the olive brine from the ripe green olive can for water and then decreasing the salt later will make for yet another layer of exotica in the bread. Then mix in the 3 flours: 1 1/2 cups Buckwheat Flour, 1 1/3 cups Spelt Flour, and 2/3 cup Soy Flour. Why so many flours? Yes, the recipe has 5 altogether. Well... a big part of the answer is because we make so many different kinds of bread they are on-hand and convenient. But the other parts of the answer is nutrition and it gives the bread, like some wines, more complexity of flavor when skillful blending goes on. You know, when you have been bitten by the sourdough bug, this does make sense. In any event, and with your encouraged substitutions, mix well all the ingredients, cover, and leave at cool room temperature overnight, or at least until it starts to bubble and it does its specialized fermentation. - the R e s t of the S t o r y - When you and the Increase are ready, mix in the can of coarsely chopped Green Ripe Olives, 1 cup of pitted Kalamata Olives coarsely chopped too, and a little more than 1/2 of a Yellow Onion, finely chopped, which should come out to about 3/4'rs of a cup. Now, just for the flavor, and not for the leavening action, put in 1 tsp. of Active Baking Yeast, but don't follow the package instructions and do not rehydrate it. After all of that is stirred in and 1 cup of Dark Rye Flour and 3 cups of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour. Now it should be ready to knead with the help of a little White Unbleached Flour. The trick that I use is to take a small sieve/strainer with a handle and dip it into the flour jar and sprinkle it over the dough until its stickiness decreases to the point you can handle it. Knead it in the large bowl until the elasticity starts to develop. At this point, add the 1 slightly rounded Tbls. of Coarse Sea Salt, a sprinkle at a time while kneading for two or three minutes more. Now it is ready to form into loaves. But first get four round baking pans or two cookie sheets, or a combination thereof, ready by spraying them with oil. Now if you haven't gotten enough aerobic exercise today, try this. Cut the total dough into four and take a piece and form it into a ball. The funnerest way to do this is to throw it up into the air a few inches with a little spin on it. Keep tossing and compressing until it is a nice ball and then gently put it in or on where you are going to bake it. If you use round baking dishes, they should be sized so the initial ball is one inch away from the edges. This will give it some room to rise without the loaf getting too tall. Let them rise for 2 to 4 hours, or at least until they are half again as large as they were. - I n t o t h e O v e n & T o t h e T a b l e - Pre-heat the oven to 400 F and put in the loaves when it comes to temperature. They should be checked in 20 to 25 minutes to observe their progress. They are too dark to use browning as an indicator of being done... so rely on the thump with the thumb that sounds hollow. Do not err on the side of over-done with these loaves, don't let them dry out. You will definitely want to spray them with water upon taking them out, and maybe even once while they are still in the oven. Let them cool for at least an hour covered with a kitchen towel that is very slightly damp. When they are ready, cut thinly. We use this bread as a starter course with the Sparkling Syrah. Make a spread for it using pan toasted walnuts, non-fat cream cheese, and enough Marsala to make it spreadable without breaking the sliced bread. So enjoy, knowing that... You will be the only kid on the block with a loaf like this 3x5 Card Printable Version Next Page |