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- initial mix
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- after spending the night in the fridge
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- loaf #1; this loaf slightly smaller than the 2nd one; eyeballing a large mixing bowl of goo isn’t my strongest skill
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- loaf #2
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- i love the way the crumb looks even if it is gummy
i have been a whirlwind of kitchen godessness recently: filtering limoncello, bottling kombucha, making sourdough bread, and making more chestnut bread. i used a different recipe for the chestnut bread this time. i meant to halve it but ended up using the full amount of water so i added more flour and other ingredients and made 2 loaves.
i only used 28 grams of salt instead of 30 and i didn’t have enough sourdough starter for a full batch. next time, use less water. the bread was good but gummy, even at 210 degrees F.
Adapted from a recipe by one of Copenhagen’s foremost bakers, Nikolaj Skytte, published in Danish food magazine Mad & Venner.
9 dl (3 cups + 3 tbsp) cold water ***(use less next time)***
14 g (2 tsp) fresh yeast, OR 7g (2 tsp) active dry yeast *
a scant 1/2 cup sourdough starter ***(i only used 1/4 cup for a full recipe. still came out ok.)***
750 g (6 cups) all-purpose flour
250 g (2 1/2 cups) chestnut flour
3028 g (1/4 cup) Maldon sea salt**Day 1:
Pour water into the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add yeast and stir to dissolve. Add the sourdough starter, both flours and salt and mix on medium speed until the dough is completely smooth (about 8-10 minutes). Brush a large bowl with vegetable oil and transfer the dough to this bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Day 2:
Brush two loaf pans with vegetable oil and divide the dough between them. Set aside to rise for 2 hours. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200 C. Bake the loaves for about 30 minutes.*** Remove from the oven, tip the loaves out of the pans and return them to the oven for another 5-8 minutes to ensure a nice crust all around. Allow the loaves to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing it.****
This bread keeps exceptionally well. Just wrap it in parchment paper and store it at room temperature. It should keep for at least 3-4 days, if not longer.
* I use compressed fresh yeast and haven’t tested the recipe with active dry yeast. The conversion to active dry yeast is based on the excellent Wild Yeast blog, which also has conversion factors for instant yeast.
** You can use any salt in this recipe. The only reason that I specify the brand is that it is made up of unusually large, craggy flakes, so if you measure by volume it is not interchangeable with regular table salt, kosher salt og rock salt. For details on different types of salt and their volumes relative to weight, check out this comprehensive article on Serious Eats.
*** Many bread recipes recommend the use of steam to improve the texture and look of the crust. Unless you have a professional-grade steam oven, an easy way to do this is to set an extra baking sheet below the wire rack as you’re preheating the oven. Once you place you loaf pans in the oven, simply toss half a cup of water into the hot baking sheet and immediately close the oven door. The water will evaporate right away, creating enough steam to give your bread a beautiful glossy crust.