Faux Sourdough

 The Simplest Sourdough you could ever make!  Is it as good as true sourdough? Not really, but it is very close with only a portion of the time and effort sourdough requires. 

This truly is a very simple just throw all the ingredients in your mixer, with the beater paddle to start, then switch to the dough hook and knead it for 7 minutes. You could likely use a bread machine to mix the dough as well, but I haven't tried it. 

Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and let rise for about 90 minutes.  Then turn it out on a lightly floured surface and divide into two equal parts (I always weigh it to get even loaves).  Shape the loaves as you prefer, I tried both boules and batards and they were equally successful.  Let the loaves rise for about an hour or until a finger poke leaves a lasting dent in the bread. I baked these in a very hot oven of 450 for 30 minutes but you need to watch them for burning on the top, it might be wise to go a bit lower and longer.  Providing some steam is a good idea as well, I just spray the hot oven with a mister when I slide the loaves in.  These were baked on a steel slab but a pizza stone would work fine.  The boule was done in a Dutch oven.  

Ingredients

4.5 cups Unbleached Flour

1 tablespoon sugar

2.5 teaspoons salt

1 2/3 cups of lukewarm water

THE SECRET INGREDIENT

1 package (18 gms) Platinum Instant Sourdough (Yeast and Sourdough Culture) If your grocery store doesn't have this you can order it on Amazon.