Olive Rosemary Sourdough

Step 1

Mixing and Bulk Fermentation

Step 2

Thoroughly mix the flours, water, starter, and salt in a bowl that has enough room for the dough to double in size.

Step 3

Add the olives and rosemary and continue mixing until they’re evenly distributed. Note the level of the dough and the time. Cover the dough and let it rest on your counter for 30 minutes.

Step 4

With damp fingertips, stretch and fold the dough, lifting the edges of one side of the dough and folding it over to the other side. Go around the bowl 2 to 3 times, stretching and folding, and stop when the dough feels tighter. Cover and let the dough rest again for 30 minutes.

Step 5

Perform three more rounds of stretching and folding as in step 2, separated by 30-minute rests.

Step 6

When the dough has almost doubled in size and the surface is puffy and bubbly, end the bulk fermentation. Depending mostly on temperature, this will likely be 6 to 10 hours from mixing.

Step 7

Pre-Shaping, Bench Rest, and Shaping

Step 8

Scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a well-floured countertop and pre-shape it into a ball.

Step 9

Cover the dough with your inverted mixing bowl and let it bench rest for about 20 minutes.

Step 10

Flour the top of the dough and use your bench knife to flip it onto the floured side. Shape the dough into the appropriate shape for your baking vessel.

Step 11

Final Proof

Step 12

Let your shaped dough rest on its seam while you flour your proofing basket, then place the dough in the basket seam-side up.

Step 13

Cover the basket and let the dough rise for another 1 to 3 hours for the final proof. The dough will expand in the basket but not double in size. If you want to bake much later, you can do the final proof in the refrigerator for 10 to 12 hours and bake the dough directly from the cold.

Step 14

Baking and Storage

Step 15

Before the end of the final proof, preheat your oven and baking vessel for 30 minutes at 500°F (or 450°F if that is the heat limit of your baking vessel).

Step 16

Remove your dough from the refrigerator, flip it out of the basket onto a piece of parchment paper, and score the top of your dough.

Step 17

Transfer the parchment and dough to the base of your baking vessel, cover, and return the vessel to the oven.

Step 18

Bake for 20 minutes and then drop the oven temperature to 450°F. After another 10 minutes, take off the lid, and after another 5 to 10 minutes, remove the bread from the oven. The internal temperature should be 205°F or higher.

Step 19

Let the bread cool on a rack for about 2 hours before slicing.

Step 20

Store the bread cut-side down on your cutting board with a cloth over it. Slice and freeze after 3 to 4 days.