Bake Affair Sourdough Spelt Mix

Sourdough can be used for many types of baked goods. Among other things, sourdough ensures better moisture retention of the dough, making it easier to work with. The moisture in the dough also binds valuable minerals in it, slowing down the rate that your bread moulds. Sourdough bread is easier to digest, tastes better and stays fresh much longer than other types of bread.

• Acidity degree: 38-42
• Suitable for: baked goods

Creating a Sourdough Starter:

• Use a glass that can hold at least 1L that has a lid that can be gently laid on top, not tightly shut. It is easiest to mix the dough with a butter knife.

Day 1

• Take a large, clean glass or plastic container with a volume of at least 600g. The container should have a lid. Measure out 50g of light spelt flour, 1 tablespoon of the spelt sourdough mix and 60g of tap water. With your fingers, stir the flour, sourdough mix and water until it forms a thick paste. It is important to mix the sourdough with your hands for the first two days as it ensures that the wild yeast creates the natural bacteria the starter needs to grow. Once you've mixed the dough, set the lid on top of the glass or container. Do not screw it shut. Let it stand for 24 hours at room temperature.

Day 2

• The starter will start to develop its scent and flavour overnight and will have a slightly sweet scent. Place the container or glass on a scale and take off the lid. Add 50 g of light spelt flour and 50 g of water. Mix the dough together with your fingers, creating a creamier paste than the day before. Place the lid over the top of the container so that it is halfway on. Let it rest at room temperature for another 24 hours.

Day 3:

• Today you can start to see the dough coming together! Today the dough should smell slightly sour, like yoghurt. Add 50 g of light spelt flour and 50 g of water. Mix these ingredients together using a spoon, creating a creamy paste. Add the mixture to your dough, then let it rest at room temperature for 24 hours.

Day 4:

• Now you should start to begin seeing bubbles and the dough should start to smell like sour apple cider. Add 50g of light spelt flour and 50g of water to the dough. Stir the mix with a spoon until a creamy paste forms. Place the lid over the dough and let it rest for 24 hours at room temperature.

Day 5

• The starter should be really active at this point and is almost finished. Today will be the last day that you feed the starter. Weigh out 50g of light spelt flour and 50g of water. Mix into the dough with a spoon until you have a creamy paste. Place the lid on the top of the container and let it rest for 24 hours at room temperature. The starter is finished when lots of little bubbles appear and it smells rather sour.

Day 6:

• After 24 hours, add 50 g of flour and 50g of water, stir and let the mixture rest for 24 hours. If the starter doesn't have any bubbles, you should add whole grain spelt flour and let the starter rest in a warm area. If you can find a place that is 28-32°, that's perfect. Avoid areas that are warmer than 32°C. You could leave the starter next to a heater, in the oven with only the light on (not suitable for all ovens, check how warm the oven is with just the light on), store it in a proofing drawer or just cover with a cloth and set the starter on a hot water bottle.

Using the sourdough starter to bake

• To make the sourdough, use the starter to replace about 10-30% of the flour from your recipe. That means that per kilo of flour use 100-300g of flour with the same amount of water and 10-30g of the sourdough starter. For doughs that need a longer time to rise, you can add the sourdough starter directly to your bread dough without feeding it first.

Feeding and refreshing your starter

• Your starter should be fed every 10-14 days. After feeding the starter, let it rest until it has doubled in size, then put it back in the fridge. To feed the starter, take 50g of the starter and mix it with 50g of water and 50g of flour. Let the starter rest until it has doubled in size, then place it back in the refrigerator. Sourdoughs differ from batch to batch so it might take 3-4 or 6-8 hours for the dough to rise. If you need a lot more of the starter, you can feed it with more water and flour. You can easily add 225g of water and flour to 50g of the starter to make enough for a 500g bread recipe.

Tips for using the starter

• A new sourdough doesn't rise very well yet, so when you start a new sourdough, make sure to use it in combination with yeast. The older the starter gets, the better it rises. Some bakeries use sourdough starters that they've used for decades! Just make sure to keep feeding the starter.
• For a pure sourdough bread made without yeast, make sure that your starter is active. This means you need to feed the starter 1-2 times and let it rise until it's doubled to make sure it is active. If you want a really sour sourdough bread, make sure to let the starter rise at room temperature. If you prefer a milder flavour, let it rise at a temperature between 28-32°C.