Bread Recipes

After a couple unsuccessful tries, I finally mastered starting and maintaining a sourdough starter. This week I made my first loaf of sourdough bread - it had the silkiest texture! To celebrate, I want to share that recipe which I picked up I believe off of Passionate Homemaking.

I also want to share my recipe for Instant Breadsticks, which I'd almost forgotten I had until I shared it with my sister this week and remembered what a great trick it is to have up your sleeve. When you need bread in a hurry but don't want to resort to the chemical- and soy-laden store bought stuff (or it's gross outside and you don't want to have to leave the house) this is a fantastic recipe to have on hand. It doesn't last well, but fresh out of the oven it's perfect with soup or pasta. Enjoy!

Basic Sourdough Bread

1 cup sourdough starter
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups of water
3 1/2 cups of flour
1 1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients and knead briefly. Do not add extra flour or you will compromise the texture of the bread; dough will be very tacky. Let rest 3 hours, deflating and folding every hour. (Or let rise in the fridge overnight.) Shape into a loaf pan or a round boule (on parchment paper on a baking sheet) and let rise one hour. Score as desired and bake 20 min at 450*, then 30 min at 400*. If desired, place a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven to add steam.


Instant Breadsticks
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup milk
3 tbsp butter

Combine dry ingredients. Add milk to make dough and knead briefly. Roll out and cut into sticks. Brush with butter and top with garlic (powder or salt as preferred) and bake 16 min at 425*. Serve promptly.