Mock Sourdough Bread Recipes

Steps:

• Heat yogurt to lukewarm (110 degrees F).
• In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water, stir in yogurt, sugar, salt, oil and 2 cups flour, and beat until smooth.
• Stir in enough additional flour to make dough easy to handle.
• Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes, adding more flour as necessary, to obtain a firm, non-sticky sough.
• Place in oiled bowl, and turn to oil top of dough.
• Cover, and let rise in warm place until doubled in volume.
• Punch down dough, divide into 8 equal parts, knead each one, and flatten into a 4"x6" rectangle.
• Roll up, beginning on one of the long sides, excluding any air bubbles.
• Pinch edge of dough firmly into roll to seal, press each end firmly to seal, and fold ends under.
• Place loaves, seam side down, on greased cookie sheets sprinkled with cornmeal.
• Brush or spray tops with cold water, and cut three diagonal slices across top of each loaf with a sharp knife or razor blade.
• Let rise until doubled, about 30-40 minutes.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Brush or spray loaves with cold water, and sprinkle pepper into slashes if desired.
• Bake until loaves sound hollow when rapped on the bottom or when they reach an internal temperature of 190 degrees F on an instant reading thermometer, about 35 minutes, brushing or spraying with cold water every 10 minutes.
• Cool on wire rack before wrapping.
• Recipe can be doubled successfully, and bread freezes very well.
• Thaw to room temperature and heat unwrapped in oven to restore the crisp crust.

Steps:

• Heat yogurt in a microwave-safe bowl in a microwave or on the stovetop until lukewarm.
• Dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in yogurt, 2 cups flour, sugar, oil, and salt. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.
• Turn dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Place in a greased bowl and let rise in until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Shape dough into 8 loaves; brush each lightly with cold water. Cut 3 diagonal slashes across the top of each loaf with a sharp knife. Let rise until doubled in size, about 25 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Brush loaves with cold water.
• Bake in the preheated oven until they sound hollow when tapped, 30 to 35 minutes, brushing with water twice during baking time.

Steps:

• Proof yeast in warm water with sugar. (Pour warm water in a warm bowl. Sprinkle sugar over water, stir to combine. Sprinkle yeast over sugar water. Let it sit undisturbed for 10-15 minutes, and allow it to bubble / froth. ).
• Add starter to yeast, with the salt and melted butter. Stir in the 3 cups of flour. (I suppose you could use a mixer for this - its so simple to do by hand that I never have.) If your starter is very thin, you may need additional flour. The dough should be soft, but handleable.
• Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead for 5 minutes or so. Form a roll and place in well greased loaf pan or two.
• Cover with a lightweight towel or paper towel, etc. and allow to rise in a warm place. I turn my oven on warm for 5 minutes, turn the oven off, and stick the bread in to rise. This will take anywhere from 1-3 hours, depending on your starter, and the temperature of your rising place. It is done rising when the loaf begins to peak over the top edge of the pan.
• Preheat the oven to 375* F. Bake the bread for about 10 minutes, or until the crust has reached your desired color. Cover the loaf with a tinfoil tent (leave it a bit loose so that the bread can continue to rise.).
• Bake an additional 30-40 minutes, until the loaf is done. The internal temperature should be 190-200, and it should sound hollow when thumped. I find it easier to stick a thermometer in, than to remove the loaf of bread to thump the bottom.
• Immediately brush the top with butter, so keep the crust moist. I like to use an electric knife to slice the bread and get beautiful, even slices.

Steps:

• Measure out starter into a bowl. Add water, salt, and bread flour. Mix until ingredients are well blended into a very sticky dough. Cover with aluminum foil; let rest 4 hours at 70 to 75 degrees F (22 degrees C).
• With wet hands, fold dough over on itself 3 or 4 times. Cover with foil and allow dough to ferment for 2 more hours.
• Generously dust a bread form with rice flour (see Chef's Note for banneton substitution).
• Scrape dough out onto a lightly floured work surface (you can use bread flour or all-purpose flour). Shape into a ball with a smooth, unbroken surface, using just enough flour on the surface to keep it from sticking. Transfer smooth-side down to banneton. Pinch together the rougher edges of the surface toward the center to smooth them and maintain the round ball shape.
• Cover and refrigerate 12 hours to slow the fermentation process.
• Remove loaf from the refrigerator and let it rise in a warm spot until the dough springs slowly back and retains a slight indentation when poked gently with a finger, about 3 to 5 hours.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Dust surface of dough with flour. Gently invert banneton over the baking sheet and transfer dough onto parchment paper. Gently brush off excess rice flour. Score the top of the dough about 1/8-inch deep with a sharp knife to create a shallow slit running across the center. Mist entire surface lightly with water.
• Bake in the center of preheated oven until beautifully browned, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Transfer to a rack to cool completely (do not slice loaf while it is still warm).