CAphyl's blog

We really love this simple recipe which is equal parts sourdough starter and flour (I did 1 cup to make a small pizza, 1-1/2 for larger), tablespoon of olive oil, and teaspoon of salt.  Let it sit for 30 minutes and then roll it out very thin. Just bake it on a pizza stone at 500 degrees for four minutes or so, take it out and coat with olive oil to seal, and then add your ingredients.  Bake it for 5 or so more minutes, and it's done.  Fantastic.  We really enjoyed it. I added pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, marinated black and green olives, artichoke hearts and a touch of gorgonzola. (Season it with oregano as well).   It's a great way to use sourdough starter and creates a really thin and crispy crust if you like it thin vs. thick.  Love it.

I am still trying to figure out how to post multiple photos on my blog, so I am posting this one after my initial blog on this bread.  I think it came out OK, but I would have liked a little more height.  Thanks again for your comments and suggestions.  I use this recipe below for the classic sourdough, which I love. 

http://breadmakingblog.breadexperience.com/2012/02/classic-sourdough-in-la-cloche.html

I tried something different with this one in that I used a starter that I fed with rye flour.  It really took off and improved the "lift" for my starter.  I had used all AP flour previously and was not getting much rise lately. It's getting colder as well, so that doesn't help.  The dough was a bit wetter than usual, and the shaping was much more difficult than I anticipated. I had to knead in a bit more flour, but finally got it to where I wanted it.

I love the La Cloche as the crust is so wonderful every time. The bread tasted great.  We just had sandwiches for lunch, and the bread was still warm and very crusty.  I want to try one of the three day multi-grain recipes next!

This is the second time I have made this recipe, so I am still working on it.  First time I made it, the starter was really active, and after I made the dough, I had to go out and left it too long, so it was over proofed. I brought some sourdough starter to my hometown of Milwaukee when my husband and I were in town this summer. I took it in checked baggage, used two ziplock bags over a glass container, and it worked.  I put a sticker on it with my address and said: "sourdough starter' in case the TSA folks were wondering what it was!)  I was in town again recently and just had to bake, as all of you understand. The starter was in the fridge for months and started up perfectly when I was there two weeks ago.  My sister fed it once for me during that time.  The starter was extremely active. I had apricots and nuts and thought I would make something with these ingredients for a Sunday football party.  Because I had to go out, I left it too long, and I thought the taste was too sour, and I didn't like the color. The starter I have in Milwaukee is much more active than the starter I have at home. The "baby" is better than the "parent."  For this one, my "home" starter wasn't active enough, so it took forever, and I got some wrinkling I didn't like. The braiding is kind of fun, but I didn't do the best job on this one. My husband gave it the thumps up, however; we just had it warm out of the oven and toasted.  I am trying to let the starter I have at home rest more, so it can become more active. Suggestions are certainly welcome.  I so much appreciate the encouragement, advice and outstanding baking on this site.  I have learned so much, but am always trying to get better.  Thanks to everyone!

I've attached the link to the recipe below.

http://feedingmyenthusiasms.blogspot.com/2010/04/perhaps-best-yetirish-apricot-and.html

I just posted the Sicilian Lemon Orange Sweet Bread that I made for dessert for my husband's birthday.....the main course was pizza (with salad made from lettuce and vegetables from the farmer's market. This was the healthy part of the meal....it was his birthday, so we were indulgent with pizza and dessert!)  I found a great sourdough pizza dough recipe that makes thin, crisp crust the way we like it (particularly my husband).  This was the first time I made it (I've made other recipes and the crust was too doughy), and this recipe really worked well.  I learned some things along the way, as it always happens, but there is no question I will be making this again. (Link to recipe below)

After rolling out the crust (very thin), bake it at 500 for 7 minutes (you'll see big bubbles), take it out and brush with olive oil to seal it and then put on the ingredients. Return to oven and bake until crust is done (I think it was another 7 minutes). I topped it with tomato sauce and mozzarella (not too much) and pepperoni, gorgonzola, mushrooms and marinated black and green olives. It was a nice meal!  If you like thin, crispy crust and have sourdough starter to spare, this is the recipe for you.

http://www.food.com/recipe/sourdough-pizza-crust-98733

When I was in the UK lfor a wedding around Easter time, I made this Paul Hollywood traditional Sicilian lemon orange sweet bread for my husband's family at Easter.  I didn't do the best job as I never made it before, but it tasted great and everyone liked it.  My husband requested it for his birthday yesterday, so I made it.  It turned out well.

When I made it earlier, it didn't rise very much and was more like cake.  This time, it got huge!  Live and learn.  I've attached a link to the recipe below:

http://harleybeecroft.wordpress.com/2013/05/08/band-of-bakers-paul-hollywoods-sicilian-lemon-and-orange-sweet-bread/

I just made some bread from some dough that I had frozen some time ago.  I didn't mark the time and type--so naughty!  I pulled it out of the freezer and let it defrost for a day.  Then I folded it and let it rest a bit before I put it into the basket to proof overnight. I baked it in my LaCloche baker, which helps me get a better crispier crust. I sprayed it with a little water and then sprinkled the seeds on before baking at 500 degrees for 30 minutes with the dome of the baker on and then 10 minutes with the lid off to finish the baking and browning.    I am still learning and tend to experiment along the way.  Not all the experiments work!

We just had this bread for lunch, and it was the best I ever made!  Does the freezing really help the crumb? The crust was excellent as well.  My husband said it was as good as a loaf bought in the store.  This is high praise from him. I don't remember the recipe I used for this bread, but I have got to recreate it.  Thanks to all for your wisdom and guidance, ideas and helpful hints.  I really appreciate it.

We got some wonderful blackberries from the farmer's market, so I had the idea to alter my sourdough English muffin recipe to include blackberries and then I added pecans for something different.  They turned out really well, not too sweet, and were perfect with a touch of butter.  I have made the sourdough English muffins in multiple ways: plain, cinnamon raisin and blueberry before this new version.  I will keep experimenting!

We had a good crop of jalapeno peppers growing, so I thought I would look for a good recipe to use some of them and my sourdough starter.  I found the recipe below, and I really liked it.  I learned some things along the way that I would do differently next time, but my husband really enjoyed it.  We made tilapia piccata, grilled asparagus, and tomato/basil salad with smoked mozzarella to go along with the bread.  It was really delicious.  We ate outside with a great glass of wine. Heaven!

http://sicilianosmkt.blogspot.com/2011/05/recipe-cheddar-jalapeno-sourdough-aka.html

Like so many of you, I hate to throw away my sourdough starter, so I made pretzels for the first time.  They really turned out very well; a much better first time bake than some of my other first-time experiments!   My husband is a bit picky, and he really enjoyed them.  We ate one fresh out of the oven.  I tried a few things that were different than the recipe, and I think I will do the same the next time I make them.  I really wanted a recipe where the pretzels were boiled, so I found one that was fairly simple.  The shaping will take some practice, but I happy with the first try and look forward to making them again, perhaps with a little different twist.  Now, I have to do some real work rather than enjoy the Labor Day holiday baking!