Sourdough Doughnuts

Owen's been asking us to make doughnuts for the last couple of weeks. Fortunate or unfortunate as it may be Owen is now to the age where he actually remembers things we say to him from day to day or week to week. So when we as his lazy parents say "not today Owen, maybe next week. . ." he remembers, and holds us to our word.

Saturday Jeremy was out for the morning on site at a schoolyard garden, so I decided it was as decent a time as any to go ahead and make doughnuts. We've made them before with a recipe that has given us great results. I decided to try a new recipe this time; however, as I'm on a sourdough kick.

It's a fun process and very fulfilling to create something at home that most people only buy in stores.

Rising.

Frying.

Draining and Cooling

Rolling in cinnamon sugar and serving.

We were deliciously impressed with the sourdough doughnuts. They were more dense than commercial yeast doughnuts--they were more like cake doughnuts. And as with most baked goods they're best eaten the same day. So we made a few trips to share some of the goodness with friends, but it didn't keep us from devouring much more than our own fair share!

Sourdough doughnuts

¼ cup Milk
1 cup Sourdough starter
2 Eggs, beaten
¼ cup Oil
⅔ cup Sugar
½ teaspoon Salt
¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
½ teaspoon Baking soda
3½ cup Flour
½ teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoons Baking powder
1 teaspoon Vanilla

Mix sourdough starter with soda in large bowl. Add milk, sugar, eggs, oil, flour, vanilla, baking powder and spices. Mix well, shape into ball, cover for one hour. Roll out onto a well floured surface to 1/2 inch thick. Cut doughnuts with biscuit cutter. Let sit one hour. Fry in 350-375* oil until golden brown. Turn once when you can see the color coming up the middle of the doughnut. Drain on a cooling rack over a paper towel. Roll in cinnamon-sugar. These are best eaten the same day you make them.

Sourdough Banana Bread

1/2 C shortening
1 C sugar
1 egg
1 C. ripe soft bananas, mashed
1 C sourdough starter
1 tsp vanilla
2 C flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
(optional 3/4 C walnuts)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together the sugar and shortening. Add egg and mix until well blended. Stir in the bananas, starter and vanilla.

In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients. Create a "well" in the dry ingredients and pour the wet mixture in. Stir just until combined.

Pour into a greased 9x5 loaf pan. Bake one hour, or until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean

Overnight Sourdough Bread

This bread is a longer process than the other recipe, however the overnight rise helps to develop additional flavor in the bread.

1 cup sourdough starter
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
5 cups flour (21 1/4 ounces)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon to 5/8 teaspoon sour salt(citric acid), optional, for extra-sour bread

Combine the starter, water, and 3 cups of the flour. Beat vigorously. Cover, and let rest at room temperature for 4 hours. Refrigerate overnight, for about 12 hours.

Add the remaining ingredients, kneading to form a smooth dough.Allow the dough to rise in a covered bowl until it's relaxed, smoothed out, and risen a bit. Gently divide the dough in half. Gently shape the dough into two oval loaves, and place them on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet.

Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 2 to 4 hours. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.

Spray the loaves with lukewarm water.Make two fairly deep horizontal slashes in each.

Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, until it's a very deep golden brown. Remove it from the oven, and cool on a rack.

Recipe from King Arthur.

Sourdough (or not) Waffles

2 cups sourdough starter
2 eggs
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
¼ c. vegetable oil

Turn on your waffle iron, then stir down your starter. Measure two cups of starter into a glass or plastic bowl. Add eggs, sugar, salt, and oil. Mix until completely smooth. When the waffle iron is ready, fill according to waffle iron directions. Use up all the batter, and freeze any extra waffles.

Top with your favorite syrup, jam or jelly. Makes a great dessert too. Try it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup and whipped cream.

Serves 4-6


Not-So Sour Dough Waffles

These can be made without an existing sourdough starter as well. 

Step 1: Make the instant sourdough starter the night before

In a large glass, plastic or ceramic bowl, combine:

2 c.  flour
1 c. milk
1 c. plain yogurt that "contains live active cultures"

Mix until smooth with a plastic or wooden spoon. Cover the bowl with a cloth and put it in a warm place in your house.

Step 2: Make the Waffles
Turn on your waffle iron, then stir down the starter and add:

2 eggs
 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
¼ c. vegetable oil

Mix until completely smooth. When the waffle iron is ready, add:

1 teaspoon baking soda

Combine thoroughly and use immediately.

Sourdough English Muffins

Recipe adapted from: Bake Your Own Bread & Be Healthier/Stan & Floss Dworkin The Night Before:
1 C starter
2 tablespoons honey
2 C reconstituted powdered skimmed milk (or whole milk)
4 C unbleached white flour

Mix starter, honey and milk in mixing bowl until smooth. Add 4 C flour, 2 C at a time, and mix in. Cover with clean towel and leave at room temperature.

The Morning of:
1 scant teaspoon baking soda
1-2 C unbleached white flour
2 tsp sea salt
cornmeal for sprinkling.

Stir down mixture. Sprinkle a scant teaspoon baking soda and 2 teaspoons sea salt over the surface of the dough and work in.

Flour your counter with ½ C of flour. Transfer dough to counter on top of flour pour ½ c flour on top of dough and work flour in. Add up to 1 cup more flour until the dough longer sticks to your hands is stiff enough to roll out. Knead for 5 minutes.
Line 2 baking sheets with waxed paper, sprinkle corn meal over both.

Flour counter again and lightly roll dough to about 1/2-inch thick. Take a 3 inch round cutter and cut as many rounds as you can-rolling out the left over dough and cutting more until the dough is all used.

As you cut each round, place it on the cornmealed wax paper. Don't allow muffins to touch or they will stick. When all rounds are cut, sprinkle corn meal over the tops of the muffins.

Allow to rise in warm place, covered, for about one hour.
Preheat a griddle 300*F or flat pan over medium. Cook one side for about 5 minutes or until golden brown and flip. Cook on other side for about 5 minutes or until done.

Split with a fork and top with a fried egg and cheese or marmalade.

Makes 24 Muffins (Freeze leftovers!)

Sourdough Oatmeal Muffins

1 egg
1/2 C. oil
1 1/2 C. sourdough starter
1/2 C. brown sugar
1 C. flour
1 tsp salt
1 C. oats

Oil a muffin pan and preheat oven to 375*F.

In a small bowl mix together the egg, oil, and starter; set aside. In a large bowl mix together the brown sugar, flour, salt, and oats. Make a well in the dry ingredients, pour the wet ingredients in the well and stir just enough to moisten the dry mix. The batter will be lumpy.

Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 30 minutes.

Basic Sourdough Bread

2 1/8 cups Water
1 TBSP Salt
5/8 cup sourdough starter (5oz line in a liquid measure cup)
5-6 cups Bread Flour
1 cup + 1 TBSP Whole Wheat Flour

Pour water salt and starter in a bowl and mix together. Add 3 cups bread flour and 1 cup + 1 Tbl whole wheat flour and mix to incorporate. As needed, add more bread flour up to 6 cups total.

Knead on a floured surface for 5 minutes until the dough is springy and tight. Let the dough “rest” for 5 minutes and knead another 5 minutes.
Once the dough is kneaded, divide it into two pieces and lightly round them. Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Once the dough has rested, form it into round loafs. Flour the loaves, put them on a baking sheet and cover them. Allow to rise until at least doubled in size.
Preheat your oven to 375F

Put the loaves in the oven. After about 15 minutes, rotate the bread so it bakes evenly. Bake another 15 minutes, check to see if the bread is done. You can tap the bottom of the loaf to hear a hollow sound, or use an instant-read thermometer to check that the bread is above 190F.

Makes 2 loaves

Sourdough Cornbread

1 C. starter
1 1/2 C. evaporated milk
1 1/2 C. cornmeal
2 Tbsp sugar
2 eggs
1/4 C. melted butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix starter, milk, cornmeal, sugar and eggs in a large bowl. Stir in butter, salt, and baking soda. Pour into 10" cast-iron skillet. Bake at 450*F for 30 min.

Serve warm with creamed honey butter.