White Leaven Bread

The cultured yeast together with lactic bacteria create a distinctive, sour taste to the crumb. The recipe adapted from 'The Handmade Loaf by Dan Lepard'. I used rye and white leavens to make this bread while the original one used just white leaven.

100 g White leaven 100 g Rye leaven 325 ml Cold water at 16C/60F 500 g German #550 flour 1/2 tbsp Fine sea salt Flour for dusting

1. In a large bowl, whisk the rye, white leavens with the water. Add the flour and salt, and stir together with your hands until you have a soft, sticky mass. The dough temperature should be about 20C/68F. Cover the bowl and leave for 10 minutes.
   
2. Knead the dough on a lightly oiled work-surface for 10-15 seconds. Shape the dough into a ball. Grease the bowl lightly with oil and place in the dough ball. Cover and leave for 10 minutes. Knead the dough again for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, and then place the dough back in the bowl. Cover and leave for 30 minutes.
   
3. Knead the dough one more time, shape into a ball and then place the dough back in the ball. Cover and leave for 1 hour. Repeat one more time. Knead the dough into a ball and leave for 2 hours covered in the bowl.
   
4. Divide the dough into two pieces, each roughly 500 grams. Shape each piece into a ball, cover and leave for 15 minutes. Dust two linen-lined baskets or two bowls lined with kitchen towels. Shape the dough once more into balls and the place each seam side up in the prepared baskets or bowls. Cover and leave at the room temperature until almost doubled in height, about 4 hours.
   
5. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F. Dust a baking tray with semolina. Upturn the loaves onto the tray and slash the top of the dough and bake for 50-70 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.