The toasting of the walnuts, really brings out the flavor!
What’s so special about this loaf? It’s hard to explain without tasting it. The smell, the texture, the nice bite, the taste of that little bit of whole wheat but not too much. We put it in front of our family at the Christmas table and it was gone before you could say merry. So, a loaf for special occasions definitely, but I’ll let you decide. This recipe can just as easily be doubled, provided your oven is big enough. The measurements of this recipe are quite exact. It’s important you stick to them as well as possible to get that perfect loaf.
Before you start
This loaf is made with a stiff sourdough starter dough. You make the starter the evening before you make the loaf provided you want to bake it the next morning (it takes 12 hours to ferment). Make the starter by dissolving 18 grams of your active sourdough culture in 53 grams of water and add 90 grams of white bread flour. Stir until it comes together and finish by kneading the dough by hand until you have a ball. Put the dough ball in a bowl and cover with clingfilm and let it ferment for 12 hours at room temperature.
The next day before you start with the bread you first have to toast the walnuts on a baking sheet in the oven for 12-15 minutes at 180 ºC / 355 ºF. Leave to cool.
Ingredients for the Loaf
makes 1 loaf
Sourdough starter – 12 hours (90 g white bread flour, 53 g water, 18 g sourdough culture)
248 g bread flour
112 g wholewheat flour
30 g dried figs, chopped in little pieces
30 g prunes, chopped in little pieces
60 g toasted walnuts, chopped
22 g soft butter
244 g water
8 g salt
2.4 g instant yeast
Making the Loaf
Preheat your oven to 235 ºC / 455 ºF (at what stage you preheat your oven depends on how long it takes your oven to heat through, some take 30 minutes, some with stone floors take a lot longer, up to two hours. The preparation time from this point until the bread actually goes into the oven is about 2.5 hours).
Put the sourdough starter, flour, salt and yeast in your mixing bowl and add 2/3 of the water. Now start mixing and gradually add the rest of the water and let the dough come together (see if you need all of the water or even a bit more, depending on the flour you use). As soon as the dough starts forming a ball add the butter. Mix for 3 minutes and feel if the dough has the right consistency, the dough should be a little sticky (a little bit more sticky than a post-it note) but it should be able to hold its form; not too wet or too dry. Add more water if needed, but do it one teaspoon at a time. Knead for another minute.
Now add the nuts and dried fruits and knead them through the dough until evenly distributed. This is an easy job for a spiral mixer. If you do not have one, maybe the only way to get the job done is by hand. I know my KitchenAid is not too brilliant at it. Transfer the dough in a bowl dusted with oil, cover with clingfilm and leave to rest for 45 minutes.
Take the dough out of the bowl and onto a floured work surface and do one stretch and fold (see our bread movie to observe this technique if you are not familiar with it). Transfer to the bowl, cover and again leave to rest for 45 minutes.
Now it’s time to shape. Shaping is something for which everybody develops his or her own technique over time. You can make a batard or loaf shape or a boule (ball). If necessary you can learn more on shaping from a good bread book, like the ones by Hamelman or Reinhart. Transfer the shaped dough in a proofing basket or baking pan, cover and leave to proof for 60 minutes. When you think it has risen enough, use your finger to carefully make a very small dent in the dough. If the dent remains, the bread is ready to bake, if the indentation disappears, the dough needs a little bit more time.
Now your loaf is ready for the oven. Slash the top of the loaf with a lame or bread scoring knife. To get a nice crust, try to create some steam in your oven by putting a small metal baking tray on your oven floor when you preheat the oven and pouring a half cup of hot water immediately after putting the bread in the oven. Release some steam by setting your oven door ajar (perhaps with the help of with a wooden spoon) 5 minutes before the bread is ready. If you are going to create steam with a baking tray, you maybe also want to turn your oven temperature a bit higher, because you are going to lose some heat in the process.
After 45 minutes of baking your loaf should be ready. Transfer onto a rack and leave to cool. This loaf also keeps well in the freezer.
Scott Hilborn says
Another wonderful recipe – thank you.
The dough was a bit difficult to manage after the 2nd 45 minute rise so I stretched and folded it before the 60 minute shaping rest. Suggestions for next time?
I don’t think there was a negative impact on the final loaf.
Thanks again.
Wendy Friedman says
How much yeast does this recipe need? I don’t understand what 2,4 grams refers to. Is that 2.4g?
Thanks
Weekend Bakers says
Yes, it is 2.4 grams of yeast, we have corrected it. Hope you like the loaf too.
Wendy says
Thanks! Making it this morning – I’ll let you know how it goes. Very nervous!
Irene says
Goede avond,
Ik heb vandaag dit brood gemaakt. Met 20 gr zuurdesemcultuur, zonder gist en langere rijstijden. (2x 60 min. en 1x 135 min)
Gedroogd fruit vervangen voor dadel en cranberry. Een mooi en smaakvol resultaat, maar toch enigszins compact.
Mijn vraag is of het uitmaakt of je dit brood als vloer- of buisbrood bakt. Op jullie foto’s is het een vloerbrood, maar in de beschrijving staat ook bakblik…..
Zou het in een rijsmandje beter rijzen?
Gr. Irene
Weekend Bakers says
Beste Irene,
Wij denken dat het weglaten van de gist een groot verschil maakt. Dat moet je compenseren natuurlijk, en het kan heel goed zijn dat het brood nog langer nodig had om goed te rijzen. Wat daarbij vooral van belang is, is de temperatuur van het deeg. Kijk maar eens naar onze tips over dit onderwerp: www.weekendbakery.com/posts…mperature/
Was je deeg aan de koude kant, of stond het in een wat koelere ruimte, dan kan het zomaar veel langer duren. Voeg een volgende keer wat warmer water toe en kies een mooi warme plek voor het rijzen. Een rijsmandje kan natuurlijk helpen om het deeg voldoende te ondersteunen, bij langere rijstijden, maar een bakblik kan ook prima die functie vervullen.
Succes ermee en veel bakplezier!
Susan says
Hi,
I have just made this loaf today (first attempt) and it turned out brilliant in every way. Thiis a fantastic recipe.
Thank you for sharing it. Can I use more nuts and less dried fruit, provided that the total is not more than120g?
I would like to add pistachios and walnuts and cranberries.
Can you kindly advise as to how I can make it just a tinge more sour?
Do I increase the SD culture, from 18g to say 25g. Will this make the dough too wet.
Or would it be better if I were to leave the SD starter for more than 12hours at room temperature?
Can I use 112g of dark rye instead of whole wheat flour?
Thank you,
Susan
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Susan,
Thank you so much. Yes you can use more nuts no problem.
If you would like to make your loaf more sour there are some things you can try. See the ‘more sour please’ tips in this section: www.weekendbakery.com/posts…ough-tips/
Yes you can try to add a bit more of the sourdough but it is not a given that your bread will get more sour.
And yes, you can use the rye instead of the wheat, but expect a slightly denser loaf because of the lack of gluten in the rye.
Happy Holiday baking!
Ed & Marieke
Susan says
Hi both,
Thank for for your reply.
I simply adore this recipe and can see myself baking this again and again.
I will add pecan nuts . It is lovely for afternoon tea.
Have a great weekend.
Susan
Magda says
I’ve just made this bread but unfortunately I had to go out and didn’t come back in time so it overproofed. I’ve made so many different breads from your website where recipe only calls for the sourdough culture and I must say never had a bad loaf. I usually tend to make the starter in the morning, make the bread in the evening, proof in the fridge overnight and then bake it first thing in the morning in a le creuset dish which gives it a great oven spring and beautiful crust. My question is: why do we need yeast in this recipe? Is it because of the walnuts, figs and prunes making the dough heavier? I’ve looked at fruit and nut bread recipes at Hamelman’s book, but I think all but one calls for extra yeast. Have you ever tried making this loaf only with the sourdough culture?
By the way, I’ve been meaning to post much earlier and tell you how happy I was when I came across your website. I’ve been making bread at home for maybe a year and half and sourdough only for 2 months or so, and I love the recipes. As I said, I never had a bad loaf when following your recipes. I usually make the sourdough pain naturel as it is really straightforward but I absolutely loved the SF sourdough.
Anyway, sorry for rambling, I would be grateful if you could answer my question about yeast. Also, does adding butter affect the crust a bit, or was it my over proofing the bread I wonder? It is still crispy but it looks a bit different, more mat. Thank you!
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Magda, sometimes the clean taste of a yeast bread is what you need. You do not need yeast for this recipe, but yeast makes the final proofing faster and more predicable. Also the shorter proofing times balance the sweetness with the sourness tone. This way you only have a little hint of sourness. Remember sourdough is also yeast, only a bit slower and usually with a mix of lactic / acidic bacteria. No magic within sourdough 😉 Happy baking!
Arden says
Ik bedoel natuurlijk in mijn vorige bericht: ik had geen pruimen (hoe kom ik toch op dadels?). Morgen gaat het brood in de herhaling :-).
Marieke says
Hi Arden,
Vanwege de vijgen misschien…maar dadels zouden ook heel goed kunnen. Ik begrijp je voorkeur voor pecans. De laatste tijd ben ik steeds meer gaan houden van walnoten. De walnoten die we kregen van familie en meenamen uit Frankrijk waren echt heel goed, dus we zijn ze steeds meer gaan gebruiken.
Groetjes,
Marieke
Arden says
Vandaag dit brood gebakken: heerlijk :-)! Zal er nog een verslagje van maken op mijn weblog, met uiteraard een link naar jullie recept en naar het artikel over de rogge starter maken. Ik had geen dadels dus alleen (60 gram) gedroogde vijgen gebruikt, de walnoten heb ik vervangen door pecannoten (vind ik lekkerder).