My husband loved this Dutch Baby. Loved it.
It’s a rainy day and I think I’ll make pita bread. Any favorite recipe?
This looks amazing! Just simple enough for my baking-impaired self. And just the thing to add banana slices and Nutella to instead of cheese and onions!
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Mmm, that sounds good too! Can’t go wrong with Nutella!
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I’ve got my starter going and so far, so good it seems to be bubbling and rising each time I feed it. I hate throwing all the discard away though! It seems like a lot! Even if it’s just flour and water. I already made discard chocolate chip cookies and discard pancakes with it!
Does waiting a week of feeding seem reasonable before I try my first loaf of bread?? Assuming it continues to bubbly and rise? I’m currently keeping it out of the refrigerator for this phase - the house is not that warm.
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I don’t see why you couldn’t.one thing I find makes a difference is weighing your ingredients. A kitchen scale is a great thing to have.
I’ve been using a scale and measuring in grams!
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Don’t throw away your discard; it’s gold. Keep “tossing” it into a larger container and using it for every type of sweet or savory baked good you make. There’s a discard version of every recipe you can think of, just Google.
And I agree that you should be ready to try your first loaf after a few feedings. As long as your starter is at least doubling before falling, you should be good to go. It will get stronger as it matures, and you will have more consistent results as the starter ages, but you should still get tasty loaves from your first attempts.
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Haven’t tossed it yet…
When can I start refrigerating the starter and NOT feeding it daily - once I make a loaf or two I will probably only bake bread once a week.
Give that you will be making your first loaf soon, start refrigerating after that, when you begin your weekly (or longer) baking schedule.
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Thank you - you all have been very helpful!
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Update on my sourdough journey!
I have baked two loaves so far. Technically I have done 1/2 the recipe King Arthur provided which according to them was for 2 loaves (I didn’t want that much bread and I was worried it would use all my starter!) The recipe called for 5 cups of flour…does that seem like enough for two loaves?
The reason I ask is because my 1/2 recipe - one loaf - seems quite small. While the bread is delicious, I’m not getting a great rise. My starter is more than doubling. I think it’s because the house is too chilly? We keep it around 66. I’ve tried to put the starter or mixed bread for rising in a warmer spot (somewhat near a register) but I don’t think I’m getting it to DOUBLE in size.
Another question. I’ve been using my dutch oven for baking the bread. Should I warm the dutch oven first before dropping the bread in to bake? Cover or uncover? Don’t use a dutch oven cause it’s too big???
For a loaf, what is your typical bake time? My recipe is calling for 20-30 minutes at 425. My bread yesterday was done but not browned.
Appreciate any help! I am having some fun with it!
In other bread news, last week I made my favorite banana bread recipe (w/mini choc chips and some dark chocolate too) and shared with my S and DIL and my staff at work:
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Our house is chilly, too. I place a small bowl of boiling water (usually my 2-cup Pryex measuring cup) in a cold oven and rise both my (covered) starter and breads that way. The boiling water will warm the oven and provide moisture that will boost the rise.
Always heat your dutch oven before placing the dough in to bake. Place the covered DO in the oven and heat to the recipe temp, leaving it in there for about 30 minutes before placing the dough in for the bake. The intense heat of the DO helps with "spring,” and keeping it covered seals in the moisture.
My single-loaf recipe uses 3 cups of flour. The bread is (convection) baked at 450 for 45 minutes, then I remove the DO lid and bake for 6-7 minutes more to really brown the crust.
Keep at it. You will get better and better results as you get more experience and your starter matures. Keep us posted!
(I’m baking a loaf right now to give to a neighbor.)
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I’d show my thanks by baking you some bread for your advice…maybe one day! 
I wondered about heating the DO - I’ve done that for the no-rise yeast breads - but I was trying to be a recipe follower to a tee and it didn’t mention that! The boiling water is a good idea and makes sense - the moisture will also help.
And I figured that the starter will continue to mature and that will eventually get me improved results.
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Oh, I forgot to add that you should use a DO sized for the loaf if you want to control “spread.” I use a small 4-qt for for overnight no-knead and I think a 6-qt (about 8" across on the bottom) for my regular sourdough. Using a DO that conforms to your dough size will keep it from spreading too much – if that’s what you prefer. There really are no hard rules with bread-making. This is just what I do.
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My bread is done. This is an overnight sourdough no-knead baked in a 4-qt Dutch oven to keep the loaf small and round. It has nice “ears:”
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look at that crust!!!
I concur on the amount of flour. With that amount of flour, I am still working on getting the right amount of cooking time for my covered/uncovered Dutch oven; so I will be trying your times for my next loaf.
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When you heat your Dutch oven, do you put some oil in the bottom to prevent sticking?
No, I use a parchment paper (see photo above) or silicone bread sling.
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