Countless cooks caught the sourdough baking bug in the early days of the COVID-19 lockdown. Yeast was scarce and with time on their hands, modern bakers discovered the joys of this ancient process. I was fortunate to grow up with artisanal sourdough baking, but as a Midwestern kid in the 1990s it was anything but trendy. Inspired by Breads from La Brea Bakery, a culinary tome from award-winning baker Nancy Silverton, my mother set out to create her own sourdough starter using yeast from wild grapes that we foraged from the woods behind our house. More than 30 years later, her starter is still going strong and even though my mom has since passed, I take comfort in knowing that part of her is quite literally alive in my kitchen.
When the COVID-19-era baking trend emerged, my jar of starter had been "sleeping" quietly in the back of my refrigerator for years. To leaven bread, sourdough starter must be active and requires twice daily feeding of flour and water at room temperature. It can be put to "sleep" by feeding and then refrigerating it until you're ready to wake it up and use it again. For starter that's used regularly, this usually takes a couple days of feeding, but mine had been in the fridge so long that it took nearly six weeks before it became vigorously bubbly and active again. Consequently, I had six weeks' worth of "discard" that I needed to make something with or pitch. These have since become my go-to preparations and I often bulk up my starter just so I have the discard to make these recipes.
It takes weeks to create a sourdough starter from scratch, but those interested can pick up a sample of Mom's original starter along with instructions at It's All About Wine on Wabash Avenue.
Sourdough Biscuits
Hands down the best biscuit ever.
Ingredients:
1 cup flour (I use King Arthur white whole wheat flour)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon each salt and sugar
½ cup very cold butter
1 cup sourdough discard
2 tablespoons milk or cream
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Grate in the butter on the large holes of a box cutter, then mix gently to incorporate. Alternatively, you can combine the dry mixture with cold cubed butter in a food processor and blitz until it's the consistency of coarse meal, then transfer to a mixing bowl. Combine the sourdough and milk and then add to the biscuits. Mix gently with a spoon to form a shaggy dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead briefly. Pat the dough into a rough rectangle, then fold it in thirds like a letter. Pat the dough flat and repeat the fold, then gently pat it out to a thickness of ½ inch. Cut out biscuits and arrange them on a greased baking sheet. For optimal rise, place the biscuits in the freezer for 30 minutes before baking. At this point the biscuits can be frozen solid and then transferred to a freezer bag and stored for up to two months.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees (350 if biscuits are frozen solid). Place the biscuits in the oven and bake for 15-25 minutes, depending on their size and if they are frozen. They're done when golden brown and spring back lightly pressed in the center. Baked, cooled biscuits can also be frozen. Thaw at room temperature then reheat for five minutes in a 325-degree oven.
Variations:
-Savory cheddar biscuits: Reduce the butter to 6 tablespoons, add one cup grated sharp cheddar, ¼ cup diced green onions and ½ teaspoon each onion and garlic powder.
-Cinnamon raisin: When patting out the dough, sprinkle cinnamon sugar and brandy-soaked raisins onto each layer before folding. Drizzle the baked cinnamon-raisin biscuits with a glaze made from powdered sugar, cream cheese and milk.
Sourdough Apple Spice Bread
Ingredients:
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup brown sugar
½ cup sourdough discard
2 cups applesauce
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon each baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon
¼ teaspoon each cloves and nutmeg
Heaping ½ cup dried apple bits (available at Food Fantasies)
Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling over the top
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the vegetable oil, brown sugar, sourdough discard, applesauce and eggs in a mixing bowl and stir until thoroughly combined. Whisk together the flour, spices, salt and baking powder/soda, then add this to the applesauce mixture. Add the apple bits and mix gently until just combined. Pour the batter into a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan, sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar and let rest for 10 minutes before placing in the preheated oven. Bake for one hour, covering with foil if needed after about 45 minutes. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted into the middle of the bread comes out clean and dry. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.
Sourdough Flatbreads
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
4-5 tablespoons plain full fat yogurt (NOT Greek style)
½ cup sourdough starter
Melted butter or olive oil, for brushing flatbreads
Combine the flour, salt and oil in a mixing bowl and use a whisk or fork to mix thoroughly. Whisk together four tablespoons of the yogurt and the sourdough starter, then add this to the flour mixture. Mix briefly with a spoon to form a shaggy dough (add an additional tablespoon of yogurt if the dough is too dry), then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about one minute until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover the dough and let rest for 30 minutes, or refrigerate overnight. (Overnight rest will yield more complex flavors.)
Cut the dough into 12 uniform pieces and roll each into a ball. (Keep the rolled balls covered so they don't dry out.) Preheat a large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over high heat. Using a rolling pin (a straight sided wine bottle works if you don't have a rolling pin), roll out a dough ball to form a 4-inch round (for naan type breads) or an 8-inch round for tortillas. Working one at a time, place a flatbread in the hot dry skillet and cook for about 45 seconds per side. The breads will brown and puff up slightly. Transfer to a rack, brush lightly with butter on both sides and allow to cool slightly before serving.
