Three years running, this recipe took home first prize in the sourdough category at the Michigan State Fair! In a cloche, a covered stoneware baking stone, is best for baking.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 30 mins |
| Additional Time: | 1 hr 40 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs 40 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 1 to 2 – pound loaf |
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- 3 tablespoons wheat germ
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 4 cups bread flour
- 1 ½ cups sourdough starter
- 3 tablespoons margarine, softened
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon cornmeal
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a bread machine using the Manual cycle. That’s usually two mix cycles of approximately 15 to 20 minutes with the rise cycle between them of about an hour.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Form the dough into a single round loaf. Place the loaf on a baking stone or baking sheet which has been lightly oiled and sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover loaf and let rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size, about 40 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool on a wire rack.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 268 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 48 g |
| Cholesterol | 2 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Protein | 9 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1 g |
| Sodium | 630 mg |
| Sugars | 5 g |
| Fat | 4 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I love this bread, I make it often. I divide the dough in half & place in prepared bread pans. I bake it at 360 F. for 30 mins. This bread can be sliced for sandwiches, it’s lovely toasted & it freezes well. The recipe is beautiful as is/ but I like substituting ground Flaxseed for the wheat germ, & Coconut Oil in place of butter. I can’t imagine anyone being disappointed with this recipe.
This is an excellent recipe! I make it once a week! The loaf is large with a soft texture inside. I believe this is the best sourdough recipe out there. I did reduce the temp for my oven to 400 and cook on a baking stone for approximately 30 min (test with thermometer-should read 190 when done. Also I decreased my white flour to 3 1/2 cups instead of 4. My husband and I just love it ♥️ I would like to see if anyone’s added any whole wheat flour to it and the amount you used and if it turned out light with nice texture?
I love it, I did change it to make two loaves as the first round loaf was huge. It keeps very moist and fresh for 3-4 days, freezes well.
Temperature for baking way too high. Cut it to 420 and. Still burnt top and bottom. I should have known. Never heard of baking bread at 475 degrees for that length of time. Suggest you go with your gut feeling for baking. Oh well might try again at a later time. Size of bread was right just the high temp to watch. I would do 375 degrees.
Today I made this sourdough for the second time, the first time was anything but successful. Both times I followed the recipe to a T, both times my dough was super tough, felt like play dough that was drying out and it almost looked like a brain I double checked the recipe, it didn’t call for water and only one cup of milk. No bread machine, I mixed it in my Bosch. I’m hardly new to baking, especially breads, but the consistency was off both times. While the bread (hardly tasted like sour dough) tasted fine it didn’t look so great. I really wanted this to work for me but I won’t be trying this a third time.
Wonderful bread, have made it 3 times in 2 weeks. I am new to the sourdough world but have been a home baker for many years. I had tried a different recipe online and this recipe is far superior.
Fantastic…. delicious! I added a bit of ground Rosemary during the mixing and sprinkled the top with it and cornmeal to bake… OH MY GOODNESS!
Disappointed that it also incorporates commercial yeast. I think sourdough bread should be made with a natural starter.
Excellent recipe & instructions. Came out soft, sweet & delicious. First time right
My husband thought this was the best white bread recipe I’ve made to date! Made recipe exactly as written, but baked in a bread pan. Made a very tall loaf-just barely fit in my bread bag. Would have been too tall to bake in the machine. Total time from gathering ingredients to out of the oven is quicker than running a loaf completely in the machine. So yummy!
I need to let my starter mature longer for more sour flavor but a great recipe!
When I read the ingredients and saw 1 tablespoon of salt, I was sure that was too much, but made the bread anyway as instructed. Well, I was right. The bread is entire too salty and 1 1/2 teaspoons (which I normally add) to two teaspoons of salt would have been enough. The salt overpowers the actual flavor of the bread. I will make it again with 1 1/2 tsp of salt.
This made a beautiful and tasty bread, but it was way too brown even though I took the advice of other reviewers and lowered the temperature to 400. I guess next time, I’ll turn the oven off after 20 minutes or so and let the bread continue to cook in the cooling oven. I definitely think this is enough for 2 loaves. I made one round loaf and put the rest of the dough in the freezer.
This made a beautiful and tasty bread, but it was way too brown even though I took the advice of other reviewers and lowered the temperature to 400. I guess next time, I’ll turn the oven off after 20 minutes or so and let the bread continue to cook in the cooling oven. I definitely think this is enough for 2 loaves. I made one round loaf and put the rest of the dough in the freezer.
Great recipe! All the flavor was there! I had a great starter fermented (Sourdough Starter II from this website) so I omitted the extra yeast and wheat germ in this recipe. Really didn’t need it .
This would be MUCH better if you left out the yeast and let it rise in an UNHEATED oven for 6-12 hours. That is, after all, how real sourdough bread is made.
Had to substitute whole wheat flour for the wheat germ, and I used softened organic butter instead of margarine…I just didn’t have either…great bread though, used a ceramic bowl and all
The only thing I didnt have was wheatgerm and I let it cook in the breadmaker to see how it turned out. Next time I want to have the wheatgerm and want to bake it in the oven………. update got wheatgerm and i dont t hink it made a difference, i have baked this 2 times and I just really really think that 1 tablespoon of salt is too much, i think 2 teaspoons should be enough………… It rises well and other than the saltiness we all liked the flavor…………..will try with less salt and let you know……….
This is my first sourdough! It was amazing. My starter was only 6 days old but smelled and tasted greatl I made a couple adjustments and did not use the bread machine. I proofed my yeast in the warmed milk first. mixed all the other dry ingredients in the mixer then poured in all the liquids. I rise all my bread in the oven with an iron skillet filled with boiling water. the warmth and humidity rises the bread lovely. I do the same for the second rise. Will definitely make this again and experiment with other flours and grains.
YES, it was the perfect recipe for our family………will make many more times over…..and did not use wheat germ – and it was fine.
Best sourdough recipe that I’ve tried.