If you’re looking for something a little bit more adventurous than those plain loaves of sourdough bread, then how about combining a rustic loaf of sourdough bread with your favorite pizza ingredients? This is almost as good as having a pizza and it makes a great snack with a slice of cheese melted over thick slices of the bread. This is the “hurry-up” version, but the overnight-rise method is included at the end of the recipe. You can make it with unbleached white flour, whole wheat, or a combination of flours. Unbleached flour will yield the lightest loaf, whereas 100% whole wheat flour will produce a dense, chewy loaf.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 Tbsp. honey
- ¾ cup warm water (about 110°F)
- 1 tsp. active dry yeast
- 1 cup fresh, thick sourdough starter
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. dried oregano, crushed
- 1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning, crushed
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 Tbsp. butter, melted
- ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 3 Tbsp. tomato paste
- ½ cup finely diced pepperoni, if desired
- 2-3 cups unbleached flour
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Stir honey into warm water in a small bowl; sprinkle in yeast and set aside for 5 minutes, until yeast is foamy.
- Put sourdough starter in a large mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture. Sprinkle salt, garlic powder, and herbs over the top; mix briefly. Add egg, melted butter, parmesan cheese, tomato paste, and pepperoni; mix together well.
- Add flour, ½ cup at a time, until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and has an elastic texture, about 8 minutes with a heavy-duty mixer - by hand it may take 10 to 15 minutes. Place the dough into a large greased bowl and cover loosely.
- Let rise about 1 hour, until dough has doubled. Punch down and turn out dough onto a clean surface.
- Shape into a loaf and place in a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan. Cover loosely and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes.
- Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown and loaf sounds hollow when thumped on the bottom.
LONG-RISE METHOD
- For a long-rise loaf mix ¼ cup water with sourdough starter. Stir in herbs and 2 to 3 cups flour, until dough is very thick. Cover loosely and let sit overnight at room temperature.
- When ready to bake, sprinkle yeast over ½ cup warm water in a small bowl with honey added and set aside for 5 minutes.
- Blend tomato paste with melted butter and parmesan cheese. Add the yeast mixutre and mix thoroughly into sourdough mixture using a heavy duty mixer or by hand.
- Stir in additional unbleached flour only if needed to get the proper consistency.
- Stir in pepperoni after all other ingredients are mixed in.
- Proceed with kneading, rising, shaping, and baking as above. This method works best if you are using all whole wheat flour.
