Artisan-Style Sandwich Loaves (makes 3 loaves)
Ingredients
Levain (prepare the night before)
- 50 g active sourdough starter
- 50 g bread flour
- 50 g water
Mix, cover, and leave at room temperature overnight (8–12 hours) until bubbly and doubled.
Final Dough
- 900 g bread flour (or strong white flour)
- 100 g whole wheat or rye flour (optional, for deeper flavour)
- 700 g water (room temperature)
- 20 g salt
- All of the levain (150 g)
Total dough weight ≈ 1870 g (enough for 3 medium loaves)
Method
- Autolyse
Mix flour + water until no dry bits remain. Cover and rest 30–45 minutes. - Mix
Add levain and salt. Mix until the dough comes together (by hand or mixer).
Knead 5–8 minutes until smooth and slightly elastic.
Desired dough temperature: 24–26 °C. - Bulk fermentation (3.5–5 hours at 24–26 °C)
Perform 3–4 sets of stretch-and-folds in the first 2 hours (every 30 minutes).
Then leave the dough alone until it has increased ~50–70 % in volume and feels airy. - Divide & shape
Divide into 3 equal pieces (~620 g each).
Pre-shape into loose ovals, rest 20 minutes.
Final shape into tight batards (or cylinders) and place into greased or parchment-lined loaf pans. - Final proof
- Room temperature: 1.5–2.5 hours until the dough reaches the rim of the pan and feels soft/jiggly.
- Or cold proof in the fridge overnight (8–14 hours) for better flavour and easier scoring.
- Score & bake
Preheat oven to 230 °C (with steam if possible).
Score the loaves with a few long diagonal cuts.
Bake:- 20 minutes at 230 °C with steam
- Remove steam, lower to 210–215 °C
- Bake another 20–25 minutes until deep golden brown and internal temperature is 96–98 °C.
- Cool
Remove from pans immediately and cool on a wire rack for at least 1–2 hours before slicing.
This produces the exact look from the video: dark golden crust with floury patches, nice oven spring, and a soft open crumb with irregular holes.
