So… I have a new proofing basket – an oval/oblong one! I have had it for a while (Thank you, Santa) but I haven´t got round to using it until now! Also, I decided that this would be a great opportunity to try out a new flour combination for my sourdough breads, so here is my recipe for a wholemeal sourdough baton!
What flour did I use to make this Wholemeal Sourdough Baton?
For this version of sourdough bread, I used ⅔ strong wholemeal flour and ⅓ strong white flour. My classic white sourdough bread is made with 375g of flour, so this bread contains 250g of wholemeal and 125g of white flour.
This gives the bread a lovely, dark colour you recognise from a wholemeal bread. Wholemeal flour contains less gluten, making the dough harder to work with, which is why I didn´t use just wholemeal flour, but used some white flour, too. Using wholemeal flour makes it harder to knead and build up the gluten and results in a heavier loaf. The wholemeal flour, however, makes the bread higher in nutrients and fibre, keeping you fuller for longer!
How to make a Wholemeal Sourdough Baton
For one, you will need your sourdough starter to be active and bubbly. Feed it about 4 hours before baking and leave it at room temperature to become nice and active. If you haven’t made your own sourdough starter yet, check out my baking basics post on How To Make A Sourdough Starter.
You will also need an oblong proofing basket to make this wholemeal sourdough baton. The shape, is completely optional though, and a round proofing basket or small bowl would do the trick, too.
All you need is time…
Finally, all you need is a little time. I tend to make my dough at around 5-6pm in the evening. Then I leave it for a few hours and shape it just before I go to bed. In the morning, all that´s left to do is to heat the oven, turn out your lovely bread, score and then bake it! And there you have freshly baked bread for breakfast or lunch!
More Sourdough Bread Recipes
Experimenting with my sourdough starter is one of my favourite things to do! So why not check out some of my other sourdough bread recipes?
Serve with a bowl of homemade soup…
Serve a slice of this delicious wholemeal sourdough baton (toast and let the butter melt on it!) with a bowl of homemade soup!
– Roasted Cauliflower Soup
– Grandma´s Thick Vegetable Soup
– Leek and Potato Soup
– Red Lentil Soup
Wholemeal Sourdough Baton
Recipe
Ingredients:
- 250g sourdough starter (active)
- 125g strong white flour
- 250g strong wholemeal flour
- 10g salt
- 140ml lukewarm water
- A little oil, for kneading
Method:
- First, weigh out 250g of your active sourdough starter (read about my feeding instructions for your starter prior to baking here) into a bowl.
- Add the two types of flour, salt and water to the bowl and mix with your hands until it the ingredients start to come together in a dough.
- Lightly oil your work surface to prevent the dough from sticking and knead the dough for 10-15 mins until smooth and stretchy. You may find you can´t get it as stretchy as when you use just white flour.
- Lightly oil the bowl (no knead (excuse the pun) to wash it), place your dough into it and cover with clingfilm. Leave the dough to prove for 4-5 hours.
- Generously flour your proofing basket with flour.
- Once it has finished its first proof, turn the dough out onto your work surface and knock it back (this means to know the air out of the dough by squeezing down on it with your knuckles). Shape the dough into an oblong loaf. To do so, I first shape it into a flat rectangle before folding the long edges towards the midline of the rectangle. I then turn the dough by 180° so that the seam faces down and tuck in the ends of the loaf to neaten up the ends. Then I gently roll the dough back and forth and leave it to sit on the bench for a few seconds until the seam has closed.
An overnight prove and then you´ll have fresh bread in the moring!
- Place the dough into your proofing basket, cover, and then leave to prove overnight (about 8 hours).
- Place a roasting tray into the oven and fill it with water. Then preheat the oven to 220°C.
- Once the oven is hot, turn out the dough from the proofing basket onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Use a sharp knife or razor blade to create four or five slashes along the top of the loaf, about 1cm deep.
- Bake the bread for 30 mins, before turning down the temperature to 200°C and baking it for a further 20-30 mins. You can judge if the bread is ready by its colour and if the bread sounds hollow when tapped from below.
- Leave your Wholemeal Sourdough Baton to cool completely before cutting.
