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Sourdough #9 : Toasted Pine Nuts, 20% Whole Wheat
Updated: Dec 27, 2021
TIPS: It is recommended that you use active starter to build your Levain when making sourdough bread. If you have been keeping your starter retarded in the fridge, bring it out to and leave at room temperature and feed it twice a day three days prior to using it to make your sourdough loaf. To know if your starter is active to use to build the Levain, with a 1:1:1 (Flour:water:Levain) ratio it should start to increase twice its volume within 4 to 6 hours at room temperature of 20°C - 26°C.
Let's get Started!
Taste profile : Slightly sour but not over powering with a mild nuttiness.
Total hydration = 80%
Levain
Prepare the night before
60 g Water 21°C
75 g White Baker's Flour
15 g Rye Flour
30 g Ripe Starter
Dough
400 g 80% White Baker's Flour
100 g 20% Whole Wheat Baker's Flour
410 g 82% Water (reserve 20 g water for later)
10 g 2% Fine Salt
125 g 25% Ripe Levain
Inclusions
30 g Toasted Pine Nuts
Method and Schedule
Friday 9 pm Make Levain
The night before, mix all the ingredients for the Levain together and store them in a jar large enough for it to triple its volume with a loose lid.
Tie a rubber band on the outside of the jar level with the Levain to monitor the natural levain activity.
Leave the Levain at room temperature to ripen overnight. This process should take around 12 hours before ready to use. The Levain will double its volume and be very bubbly but not sinking in the center.
To test if the Levain is still okay to use, place a small spoonful in a jug of water. If it floats to the surface, it means it is good to use. If it sinks to the bottom of the water, you will need to leave it to ripen for a little longer.
Note: If the Levain in the jar has sunk in the center and gives out a sharp tangy smell to it, this means that the wild yeast has exhausted itself from the food source and is no longer strong enough to leaven bread. You will need to restart the Levain again with a higher hydration for a shorter ripening process. This may take another 5 hours. It is best to restart and wait than using a weak Levain that is bound to give a disappointing result.
The above Levain left at room temperature should still be good after 12 to 14 hours providing that the ambient of your kitchen are not too warm and humid.
Saturday 7 am Autolyze
10 hours later
(The next morning and 2 hours before the Levain is estimated to be ready for use)
Add the 390 g water (reserving the rest of the 20 g water for later) with all the flours and mix until well incorporated and there are no lumps of flour present in the mix. Cover with a tea towel and leave to autolyze for 2 hours.
Saturday 9 am Add Levain
2 hours Later and Levain passed the Float Test
Test the Levain using the "Float Test".
If it passes the test, weight out 125 g of the Levain and spread it over the autolyzed dough and mix with hands to incorporate but stretching and folding the dough. This process take me approximately 3 minutes.
Cover and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
You should have at least 30 g of left over Levain to make fresh ones for next loaf.
9:40 am Add Salt and some of the remaining reserved 20 g water
30 minutes later
Sprinkle the fine salt over the dough and wet the salt with some of the reserved water to help dissolve the salt. Incorporate in to the salt and mix until you cannot feel any grainy bits of salt.
Cover and leave to rest for 40 minutes.
10:10 am Lamination and incorporating the toasted pine nuts
30 minutes later
Lightly wet the work bench with water, then transfer the dough on to it. Gently stretch the dough out to a rectangle ensuring that it is even in thickness. You do not need to stretch it too thin for this step, just enough for you to fold it on to each other.