Sourdough Bread Bowls
These sweet little bread bowls are the perfect accompaniment to soup night!
Ingredients
- 100 grams Active Sourdough Starter
- 350 grams Water
- 12 grams Salt
- 500 grams Bread Flour
Instructions
- Into a large bowl, measure your active starter and the water and mix together with a fork or Danish whisk. Add the whole wheat flour, and use your hands to mix everything together until the flour is fully hydrated and there are no dry bits. If needed, add a little water.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and allow the dough to rest for a full hour to give the flour time to fully absorb the water. Preform a series of 4-6 stretch and folds, then cover again and set aside.
- Wait 30 minutes, and preform another series of 4-6 stretch and folds. Repeat after an additional 30 minutes for a total of 3 stretch and folds.
- Begin the bulk rise. Allow the dough to set at room temperature for 7-10 hours or until the dough has doubled in size and looks puffy and full of air. It should jiggle when shaken.
- Dump the dough onto your work surface. Use a bench scraper to divide the dough into four even pieces. Take the first piece of dough and gently pat it into a rough rectangle and shape your bread bowl using four folds. I start at the back and carefully lift with two hands and fold the back edge 2/3rds over the dough, like and envelope fold. Gently press the edge into the dough to seal. Repeat this with the left edge, then the right edge. Finish by folding the bottom edge all the way across the dough, flipping it seam side down in the process. Use the edges of your hands to gently pull the bowl towards you in a circular motion, to seal the seam and create more surface tension. Repeat with the remaining three pieces.
- Line four soup bowls with tea towels or cloth napkins. Place a formed dough ball upside down into each lined bowl. Allow to rise for 1-3 hours until it passes the poke test. Press down on the dough with your finger, it should spring back slowly but not collapse under your finger.
- Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
- When ready to bake, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Flip the sourdough bread bowls onto the parchment and score as desired with a sharp knife or lame. Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the rolls are slightly browned and an instant read thermometer reads 200 degrees.
- Let your sourdough bread bowls cool completely before prepping them for soup. Use a knife to slice a lid off of each bread bowl. Remove the lid and remove enough bread to leave room for a serving of soup. You will want to leave a 1/2 inch wall to make sure the soup doesn't leak through! I pull out the bread with my fingers. Fill with your favorite soup and enjoy!