Pain au Levain – French Bread From a Starter

Starter:

½ C bread flour

1/8 t yeast

¼ C warm water

Combine ingredients in a large glass container. Let sit at room temperature for 2-5 days, stirring daily. You can increase the amounts to make more starter, but keep the flour to water ratio the same (2 parts flour to 1 part water).

Sponge:

1 ¼ C bread flour

½ C warm water

¾ C any sourdough starter

Mix ingredients in bread machine on “dough cycle,” which is mixing/kneading and the first rise.

Dough:

1 t bread machine yeast

1 C warm water

3 C bread flour

1 – 1 ½ t salt  (I use a rounded teaspoon)

Add ingredients to bread machine, stir to make sure flour is mixed in a bit, and run on dough cycle again (mixing/kneading and one rise). When dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the pan onto a lightly floured surface. Knead to remove air bubbles. Save ¾ - 1 C to be your starter for next time. Add any extras you’d like (rosemary, roasted onions, olives, pepper….) and form the loaves. Cover with a clean damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until about doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees for 30 minutes. Just before baking, slash the tops of the loaves with a sharp knife and brush with a mixture of 1 egg white and 2 T water. Spray the oven with water and then spray it again 4-5 times during the first 10 minutes of baking or put a pan with a little water in the oven on the rack under the bread so you don’t have to keep opening the oven (which lets the heat out and could make the bread fall). Bake until the bread is a deep caramel color and makes a hollow sound when you tap on it. The actual time will vary depending on the size of your loaves (long thin baguettes, a large round, etc.).