Due to be published in Spring 2022, I am so excited to share news of my upcoming book with you.
Whether you want to begin, continue and/or enhance your sourdough making, you’ll find it all here, but the biggest thing you’ll discover is how to manage and manipulate your sourdough making so that it works for YOU, in YOUR home, to YOUR timings. You’ll discover how YOU can be fully in control of every aspect of the process, not the other way round!
The book is packed with everything I could physically download from my sourdough brain onto the page. You’ll find hints and tips that I haven’t shared anywhere else, you’ll find new timetables, new ideas, lots of step by step photos, PLUS 40 recipes all ready for you to enjoy. I cannot wait to see what you think, I really hope you will all like it xx
Below are links from sites all over the world, in no particular order, if you find any others, please let me know and add it too…thank you.
“Elaine is truly The Sourdough Whisperer. She is always there holding your hand through each step. Trust her and go with it. The results are beautiful and take away the fear of making sourdough. A must have book for everyone.”
Joudie Kalla, author of ‘Palestine on a Plate’ and ‘Baladi’
🌟 please note that publication and delivery dates may be subject change, which is very sadly out of my control 🌟
After years of seeing other people making beautiful pumpkin shaped breads, this year I finally decided it was my turn! It’s great fun, and the baked loaves look so cool, have you tried it yet?
I’ve made them now with plain doughs and flavoured doughs, using my baby master recipe quantities, banneton size and baking times, but you could also scale them up to full size. I’ve added step by step photos below of how to create the shape, plus the details of the flavoured versions.
My butternut squash purée, pumpkin seed and dried barberry pumpkin loaf, details below
If you do join in and make one, be sure to tag me if you post your bake online…I’d love to see it!
NOTE: You will need butchers twine string, and a cinnamon stick, or a stalk from a pepper/capsicum/squash/pumpkin.
To make your pumpkin loaf: follow my master recipe process up to step 6. By this step your dough should be in your banneton and have had several hours in the fridge to prove and firm up. When you are ready to bake, cut 4 strings long enough to tie across the dough.
Lay the strings to create equal spaces over the dough.
Remove the cover from your banneton. Lay the strings evenly over the top of the banneton as above.
Place your parchment paper or pan liner over the top of the banneton and strings, and your pan over the top of both. Use both hands to turn it all over, keeping the strings in place.
As I have used a baby master sized dough, the banneton is 17-18cm diameter and 9cm deep. You can use any size pan, I used my 20cm diameter enamel pan, lined with a cake tin liner found online.
Remove the banneton and prepared to tie the strings.
Making sure you are using corresponding ends of the strings, tie each one across the dough and tie firmly on the top.
Tie in bows that you will be able to undo later.
You can now score or not, totally up to you, see the version below for a scored option, then put the lid on your pan and bake as usual.
Once baked, remove the loaf carefully from the pan, place on a rack and undo the strings. Place the loaf back into your pan and bake, covered or uncovered, for a further 5-10 minutes to ensure it is baked through.
*from being compressed I have found that the loaves can be slightly undercooked if baked for the standard amount of time only, the extra time minus the strings ensures it’s not damp inside the ‘wedges’.
Add a ‘stalk’ for a fun presentation.
My baby master dough quantities:
30g starter
210g water
300g strong white bread flour
Salt to taste.
Made as per my standard process. Baked for 40-45 mins with strings, 5-10 mins extra once removed.
The following loaves were the result of experiments with making doughs with added butternut squash purée. You could also use pumpkin purée, bought or made. I made my butternut squash purée by cutting the squash in half, roasting the halves until the flesh was completely soft. Once cooled I scraped the flesh out into a blender and blended it to a smooth paste.
The dough for this loaf was made with:
30g starter
100g butternut squash purée
175g water
300g strong white bread flour
30g roasted and cooled pumpkin seeds
30g dried barberries (can be subbed with dried cranberries)
Salt to taste.
Made and baked as per my master recipe. Baked for 40-45 mins with strings, 5-10 mins extra once removed.
This was so good! The dried fruits become soft and full in the dough and add bursts of succulent joy in every bite, it’s virtually a fruit bun in each wedge, just add butter, cheese, or both!
The loaf below was made slightly differently, with less purée and added spices; next time I’d merge the two as I think the version above would be fabulous with the added spices.
Made a baked as per my master recipe. Baked for 40-45 mins with strings, 5-10 mins extra once removed.
Both of the doughs made with the added purée grew to wonderfully billowy doughs overnight. The one with spices took longer to fully prove as is typical when cinnamon is added to a dough, allow it sufficient time to prove fully.
1 tsp Mediterranean herbs – or herbs of your choice
1 firm pear – peeled, cored and chopped but don’t do this until you are ready to add to the dough after bulk prove.
50g walnuts chopped
35-40g Stilton cheese
Method:
1. Follow Elaine Boddy’s master recipe process adding the herbs with the flour at the initial mix stage.
2. At first stretch and fold add walnuts.
3. Continue as the master recipe.
4. After bulk prove laminate the dough. Lightly spritz your board/worktop with water or lightly flour and proceed with lamination to add the pear and stilton cheese. For guidance, please refer to Elaine’s video tutorial.
5. Sprinkle the crumbled stilton and diced pear onto the outstretched dough.
6. Carefully fold the top of the dough to the middle and then bring the bottom half over the top half. Bring the left half over to the middle and then the right over the top of that.
7. Using your dough scraper flip over the dough so the seam is on the bottom and then bench shape into a boule or batard.
8. Place in the banneton seem side up and into the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours.
9. Bake as for a baby foodbod master recipe recipe: 45 mins from cold or 40 mins from a hot start at 220C fan
1 whole egg plus 1 egg yolk, 75g canned pumpkin plus enough milk to equal 350g liquid in total
75g soft butter
50g honey
500g strong white bread flour
9g salt
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Filling:
160g cranberries (cooked) *I used whole cranberry sauce with the syrup rinsed off. Fresh cranberries could be used par boiled with water and sugar or maple syrup to suit your sweetness level. Drain liquid water before using.
45g chopped pecans
Method:
Mix starter, eggs pumpkin, honey and milk until smooth.
Add butter, flour, salt and pumpkin pie spice.
Mix to shaggy dough.
Leave it to sit for an hour then do first stretch and fold.
Do three more sets of stretch and folds at intervals, and leave dough to double.
*Be sure to give dough time to double it takes awhile!
When dough has proved, lightly spray a piece of parchment paper with oil and turn dough out.
Stretch dough out to a rectangle about 8×12 inches.
Cover dough with cranberries and then pecans almost to the edges.
Starting at short end roll up into a log tuck ends under.
*lift parchment paper and rolled dough onto a cookie sheet and put in fridge for 30 minutes to make it easier to braid.
When chilled, cut dough length wise and braid with cut sides up and place in parchment lined loaf tin.
Let dough sit for about an hour or until slightly puffed.
Bake in 350F preheated oven for 50 minutes.
Cool 10 minutes in pan, then remove and let cool completely on rack.
Sprinkle with confectionery sugar before serving if desired.
Remove the ends from the zucchini. Grate them fine and place in a colander with a ½ teaspoon of salt to drain. Leave for 1 hour. Use the back of a spoon to squeeze out excess water.
Put flour in a bowl. add your starter, parmesan and the grated zucchini, slowly add the water. Mix to form a wet and sticky dough.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well again until combined. Cover with cling film and let prove for about 3 hours at room temperatur.
Heat your oil to 170°C, Spoon the mixture in batches into the hot oil by using 2 teaspoons to make small balls. Turn and fry for about 3-4 mins until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on a rack with some kitchen paper and sprinkle with salt to taste.
If you want to make them vegan you can use nutritional yeast instead of the Parmesan. You usually need about half the amount of nutritianal yeast instead of the Parmesan.
Today I shared my kitchen and my baking ways with the brilliant Bertie from Cotswold Flour and we launched a very exciting new collaboration…the Cotswold Flour Sourdough Box.
Mix starter, coffee, molasses and water in bowl (Don’t add oil yet).
Mix flours and salt together in a separate bowl until combined. Add cooked rye berries and toasted sunflower seeds to flours and add
The mixture of coffee, water, starter and molasses to the flour and berries. Mix well, the *dough will be stiff and sticky. Cover dough with shower cap or whatever you use.
First mix before oil added
Let dough rest for two hours on counter.
After rested fold in the 25g olive oil (dough will still feel very stiff).
Second mix with added oil
Do 3-4 ( I did 4) more stretch and folds spaced 45 minutes to 1 hour apart.
The dough won’t stretch like white flour dough will so do the best you can each time.
Note: I mixed the dough at 9 am and did the last stretch and fold at 5:30pm.
Let the dough double on counter until doubled.
I let my go for 7 hours but yours may vary depending on the temperature in your kitchen.
Once doubled do one last stretch and fold around dough and with a wet hand( dough is sticky!)
Remove dough by letting it fall into your hand and Place in banneton that’s well dusted with rice flour.
Cover put in fridge overnight.
When ready to bake remove from banneton, put in enamel roaster or Dutch Oven. Cover and bake from cold start 450F for 50 minutes then 7 minutes uncovered.
(I used an enamel roaster) Let cool on wire rack 1 1/2 hours at least!! Longer if you can.
The Sourdough Files 