One of my most amazingly simple and favorite breads is called Apple sourdough. It has a deep, woodsy, floral flavor. Very earthy. Very rustic. Very domestic goddess-like. You want this bread in your life. It's beautiful. Like me--well Ace says so anyway. All great things are brought about by a little sacrifice. This one takes a little time.
Apple Sour is a basic starter for sourdough based on apple pulp. Either applesauce or shredded apples work, but in order to make the Sourdough bread, you will need to make the SOUR. This is how it looks.
I keep it in a quart mason jar, with a piece of cloth over the top so that it can breath.
To make the sour you will need:
Apple Sour is a basic starter for sourdough based on apple pulp. Either applesauce or shredded apples work, but in order to make the Sourdough bread, you will need to make the SOUR. This is how it looks.
I keep it in a quart mason jar, with a piece of cloth over the top so that it can breath.
Yes, it is always stored on top of apples like this (what, do you think I'm insane? It's for the picture silly...)
To make the sour you will need:
2 cups of shredded apple (or applesauce)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
Directions: Combine all the ingredients in a glass or plastic container, covered with cloth for 8-10 days. Leave at room temperature. Do not stir. When mixture is bubbly and smells fermented, it should be ready for bread making. I use this in place of yeast. You read that right. No yeast required. There is natural yeast in the apple sour (also called apple starter).
Once you have used the portion for the apple Sour for the dough, put the entire bottle in the fridge and keep it there up to 2 months...until you want apple sourdough again. I promise, it won't be that long before you want it again though!
Once you have used the portion for the apple Sour for the dough, put the entire bottle in the fridge and keep it there up to 2 months...until you want apple sourdough again. I promise, it won't be that long before you want it again though!
24 hours before you want apple sourdough, remove jar from the fridge, add:
1 cup shredded apple, or applesauce
3T water
3T sugar
Stir with non-metal utensil, and cover with cloth. After 24 hours start the dough.
12 comments:
Before my apple sour hit the eight day mark, I had black fuzz growing on top. I've scooped it off--the stuff underneath still looks okay. Is it still okay? What did I do wrong to make it go bad before it even finished fermenting? It's not quite bubbly yet, but the stuff underneath the black fuzz is the same colour as your picture.
Hmm. The only time that ever happened for me was when it got a little warm in my house. What temperature were you at? Also, it is pretty important to have very clean utensils when making the starter. It should be okay as long as it doesn't smell funky. You want it to smell much like a wine. I generally store my starter in the fridge if I'm not using it every few days.
Maybe my apartment was a little warm?I don't know, but it does have a pleasant smell of wine. I've just used a portion for the first build of an apple sourdough bread. When I take it out again and add applesauce to it, is it okay if the applesauce has a bit of lemon juice in it, or will the extra acid call the yeast?
Thanks for the help.
The addition of a little applesauce is actually great! The small percentage of lemon juice should not have a negative effect on the yeast. Also excellent questions!
I don't know what happened to my spelling. In the first comment it was supposed to be "Where did I go wrong..." and in the second, "kill all" not "call"--but I guess you got my meaning in both. But I digress.
These recipes look excellent too! Thanks for providing them.
I know this is an old post but I am curious... What would happen if you added a little bit of malt to this apple sour? Do you think it would speed up the fermentation? I know malt has something to do with enzymes and yeast in bread production, but I have never seen it in a sour before. Thanks, Daniel
I imagine it would speed up the yeast production a bit, as it would feed it more, give it a try. A Tablespoon or so would probably do it.
How do you feed it to keep it going?
Joy
How do you feed it to make sure you have some on hand at all times?
Once you have used the portion for the apple Sour for the dough, put the entire bottle in the fridge and keep it there up to 2 months...until you want apple sourdough again. I promise, it won't be that long before you want it again though!
24 hours before you want apple sourdough, remove jar from the fridge, add:
1 cup shredded apple, or applesauce
3T water
3T sugar
Stir with non-metal utinsel, and cover with cloth. After 24 hours start the dough.
To keep it going all the time, feed it every 2-3 days with 1 cup applesauce, 3T sugar, 3T water. Keep it around 75-80 degrees only, or it will get very sour.
What other recipes use apple sour? I'd love to try more.
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