Mom’s Best: Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Join us here in the kitchen for two loaves of naturally sweet and fluffy sourdough sandwich bread that you can make quickly, and simply with your family.

Utilitarian and easily inspired: two words I would use to describe my mindset when it comes to how I spend my time. The utilitarian side comes from the need to get things done. We’re running a household over here, and it is a mix of a start up business, daycare and restaurant. Things need to be thought through, streamlined and reap a benefit. But, it is this mindset and the systems that come from it that help make space. 

When you are also easily inspired, you need space to be creative. Toast on Tuesday means we have time to make a new flavor of hummus for lunch. Chicken roasted Thursday evening means we have the space to make a new salad dressing to go as a side with Friday pizza night. 

I’d like to think that these mindsets also go beyond the kitchen and extend to motherhood. We take care of the business of chores and meals so that there is space to be creative together. It is a mindset that goes well with school, with self-discipline, with business and any project. I make this loaf over the weekend to have on hand for busy weekend schedules (ie: toast and sandwiches). Being prepared and ready for rest demonstrates the idea of balance. My kids need to see that work is important, and so is movement. Chores help the family, and so does laughing together. 

Sourdough works well for our family because I like spending time WITH them. I’d rather all hands be on deck than little hands making other messes in another room, than one mess all together. See the simplicity of this recipe, the ease of adding it to your day and the lovely result you can bring to the table.

Why You Will Love this Recipe

• It serves a great purpose and is easy to customize! Add cinnamon and raisins, orange zest and cranberries, or shredded cheese and diced jalapenos.
• I have yet to mess up this recipe! This recipe has been fairly fool proof as long as all the measurements are correct. For the mom that needs to guarantee edible bread is ready every week, this one is a go-to. 
• The ingredients are simple: starter (a great source for a starter recipe), honey, high quality olive oil, salt, flour and water. 
• The softness: this loaf is pillowy soft with lots of flavor! My kids love this recipe more than a traditional artisan loaf because of its soft crust and chewy middle. 

Can You Save Money Making Your Own Bread?

The cost of a loaf of bread accounts for time and money spent. On average, I spend four minutes measuring out ingredients, and 4 minutes mixing the dough. Shaping and placing into the oven also take an average of four minutes, for a total of 12 minutes. I did the math on this double loaf recipe based on the ingredients I usually purchase: 

Starter: (organic, unbleached all-purpose flour + water) : $0.13

Water: free

Honey (local): $1

Olive Oil (Terra di Bari): $1.20

Salt (Redmond’s Real Salt): $0.71

Flour (organic, unbleached all-purpose flour): $1.59

Total: $4.63 for two loaves of homemade, organic sourdough sandwich bread

Depending on the quality of the store-bought organic, sourdough sandwich bread, you would spend anywhere from $10-16 on two loaves. This saves the household $11.37 on a task that takes 12 minutes. These savings could allow for an additional organic whole chicken, multiple pounds of apples or carrots, or a wholesale bag of beans or rice!

Is Homemade Sourdough Starter Difficult to Make?

Making a sourdough starter is not difficult, but it helps when the practice of making bread becomes a habit and part of your weekly routine. While the timing of sourdough can feel foreign at first, it is a skill that is easy to incorporate with only minutes of active attention. Once established, you can maintain it by feeding it regularly and keep it alive for years to come.

If you’re starting from scratch, expect to give the starter about 5-7 days of attention before it’s ready for baking. But once you have it, the rewards of baking your own sourdough are definitely worth the effort!

We talk more about how we manage and time our sourdough bakes throughout the week in our post “A Week in the Life of Sourdough”.

Can Kids Help Make Sourdough Bread?

Yes! Absolutely. Sourdough bread is very forgiving, and makes for a great morning activity together, that results in a product achieved. Especially as kids grow in independence, they can learn the steps to produce a product for the family, which results in a great deal of self-confidence and pride! What a gift to provide for littles in your home.

• Measuring ingredients: This recipe specifically is wonderful because it does not require a scale to measure. Little kids can learn to measure and level cups, and even littler ones (I’m talking 2!) can dump measured ingredients. Older kids can use the scale to up their skills with measuring – Mom’s, skip the descaling and treat your big kid to a math lesson in large addition!
• Dough mixing: If your kids love playdough, they will love the gooey, stretchy part of mixing the dough! Let their hands be the sticky ones as they stir the initial ingredients together, and even a second round when the dough has had time to rest.
• Shaping: I have found that this loaf doesn’t need a particular shaping, but we want the dough to have some surface tension for the best rise. This is the place to start integrating instruction into the play that baking can appear as to kids. 5 steps of stretching have them follow simple instructions to listen, apply and see results.

How Can I Work Sourdough into My Day?

Sourdough has often been likened to caring for indoor plants. So, whether you are working a 9-5, or staying home with a couple of littles, it can be as straightforward as watering your pothos. I look at this from the perspective of 1) starter being ready, 2) starter ready mid-morning 3) how to schedule bread being out of the house for the day.

How I work sourdough into my day:

7:30am: I pull my starter out of the fridge in the morning when I’m making coffee and breakfast. If it is somewhat ready to use, I will start my dough then. Otherwise, I will use that moment while scrambled eggs are stirring and the toaster is rotating through slices of bread, to feed my starter. Note: If I was away from the home, I could start my dough in the evening so I would leave my starter on the counter. If I planned to start my dough the following day, I would place it back in the fridge.

10:30am: At this time, my kids are normally hungry again. If my starter wasn’t ready at breakfast, I would now measure out my ingredients while I am grabbing bananas and crackers. I do love this timing because it more easily includes my kids, letting my eldest measure, and giving the dough to my youngest for some hands on play.

6:00pm: The rise in dough is dependent on temperature, so if kitchen was warm and the dough was started at breakfast, this bread is ready to shape and bake. This means it is ready for dinner! A late morning dough would probably be shaped and placed into my greased loaf pan, covered and placed in the fridge for a next day bake. My out of home gals can cook dinner and have kids measure and mix, or throw it together quickly while noodles boil. Put that dough on the counter for tomorrow’s bake.

Sandwich bread: by Kate at Venison for Dinner

I am writing out the recipe for a 2X version, because I find my future self is always grateful for that second loaf of bread in the freezer. 

Ingredients

1 C (240g) sourdough starter

2.5 C (590g) water

2 TB (40g) of honey

4 TB (50g) of olive oil 

3 tsp (18g) salt

6-7 C (720-840g) unbleached, all-purpose flour

Directions: 

1. Combine the starter with the water and stir to dissolve. 
2. Add the honey and olive oil and stir in to combine. 
3. Add 6 cups of flour and the salt and mix. Add the additional flour until it is the right consistency. You want to be able to handle the dough without it sticking everywhere, or have it pull away from the kitchen aid mixer bowl after 5-7 minutes of mixing. 
4. If hand mixing, let rest for 10 minutes, then return with wet hands and knead until well combined. If using a kitchen aid, mix for 5-7 minutes. 
5. Allow to rise at room temperature for 8-12 hours.
   1. The temperature of your space will determine the speed of rise: in the winter, place in your oven with the light on. In the summer, it will rise quickly. 
   2. If you need to delay your bake, place in the refrigerator overnight or until ready to bake.
6. When ready to bake and well risen, remove from the bowl and shape.
   1. Stretch out into a rectangular shape. Fold top to middle left over right, and then bottom over top. 
7. Place into a greased loaf plan and allow to rise for 1 hour.
   1. Note: I have baked this loaf many times without the second rise time and still have gotten a fluffy, well baked loaf!
8. Bake at 425F for 20 mins, rotate the loaf in the oven and bake for 15 more minutes or until golden brown. 
9. Allow to cool. I have found that storing the bread in a brown paper bag helps it stay the most fresh!

Read More: 

Mom’s Big Bread Round-up: for other manageable loaves and bakes

Mom’s Best Double Artisan Sourdough Loaves: one for the week, one for the freezer

Sourdough Starter: a recipe for starting sourdough starter from scratch