Lemon Blueberry Artisan Sourdough Bread Recipe
Equipment
- 3/4 L Weck jar (for sourdough starter)
- Dutch oven ($15 off with code REBEKAH15)
Ingredients
Sweet Starter
- 10 g sourdough starter
- 10 g honey
- 50 g bread flour
- 50 g water
Main Dough
- 300 g warm water
- 100 g sweet starter (from above)
- 500 g bread flour
- 10 g salt (added after an hour)
Citrus Sugar
- 2 lemons, zested
- 25 g sugar
Blueberry Inclusion
- 4-6 oz dried blueberries
- 2 lemons, juiced (same lemons as the citrus sugar)
- 1 orange, juiced
Lemon Glaze (Optional)
- 75 g powdered sugar
- 1 lemon (zest and juice)
Instructions
- Make the sweet starter the night before. In a jar, mix 10 g sourdough starter, 10 g honey, 50 g bread flour, and 50 g water. Stir until fully combined, then cover loosely and let it ferment overnight at room temperature (about 10-14 hours). By morning, it should be bubbly and at least doubled in size. You'll have 20g more than you need (add it to your discard jar in the fridge if you like!).
- Mix the dough. In a glass mixing bowl, combine 300 g warm water and 100 g sweet starter, stirring gently to dissolve the starter. Add 500 g bread flour and mix with a Danish dough whisk or your hands until no dry flour remains. The dough will be shaggy and sticky – that’s normal! Cover with plastic wrap or a bowl cover and let rest for 1 hour (this is called a fermentolyse).
- Prepare the citrus sugar. While the dough rests, mix 2 lemons, zested (use a microplane for that) and 25 g sugar in a pestle and mortar (or rub together with your fingers) until fragrant. This releases the natural citrus oils and intensifies the lemon flavor.
- Incorporate the salt and citrus sugar. After the dough has rested for an hour, sprinkle 10 g salt and the citrus sugar mixture over the dough. Use your fingertips to dimple it in, then switch to stretch and folds or kneading to fully incorporate. This step takes about 3-4 minutes. The dough will become smoother as you work it.
- Hydrate the dried blueberries. In a small jar or bowl, combine 4-6 oz dried blueberries with 2 lemons, juiced and 1 orange, juiced (use the same lemons you zested earlier!). Let them soak while the dough rests. This step plumps up the blueberries and infuses them with bright citrus flavor.
- Perform a set of stretch and folds. To do this, grab one side of the dough, stretch it upward, then fold it over itself. Rotate the bowl and repeat on all four sides. Keep going until the dough resists being stretched. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
- Incorporate the blueberries during the second set of stretch and folds. After draining the blueberries (save the juice for a cocktail or mocktail!), gently pat them dry with a paper towel. Add a quarter of the blueberries at a time during the second stretch and fold, layering them evenly as you perform each fold to ensure even distribution.
- Final coil fold. After 30 minutes, perform a final coil fold to build additional dough strength. To do this, lift the center of the dough, allowing the edges to drape down, then tuck them underneath as you set the dough back down. If you feel the dough is slack or not strong enough, you can do an additional coil fold after another 30-minute rest.
- Bulk ferment. Cover the dough and let it ferment at room temperature until it is puffy, jiggly, and has visible bubbles on the surface and sides. The exact amount of time this takes will vary. The temperature of your environment is the biggest factor. For reference, it took my dough about 7 hours at 73°F (23°C). The timing begins when we mix our dough.
- Pre-shape the dough. Mist your work surface with water (or lightly flour it if you prefer). Gently turn the dough out of the bowl. Using a push and pull motion, shape the dough ball into a round shape. We want the surface to be taut. Let rest, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, or just until the dough relaxes a bit.
- Final shaping. Flip the dough and use the caddy clasp final shaping technique to fold it into a boule or batard. See the Notes section for video tutorials.
- Cold proof overnight. Place the shaped dough into a floured banneton, cover with a flour sack towel or plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight (8-24 hours). This slow fermentation enhances flavor and makes the dough easier to score before baking.
- Bake. Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C) with a Dutch oven inside for at least 30 minutes. (I use convection.) When ready to bake, carefully transfer the cold dough onto parchment paper or a bread sling, score the top with a bread lame, and place it into the preheated Dutch oven. Cover and bake for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 205-210°F (96-99°C).
- Optional glaze. If you love a touch of sweetness, whisk together 75 g powdered sugar with the zest and juice of 1 lemon. Drizzle over the cooled loaf.
Notes
If you prefer fewer blueberries, use 4 ounces (this is what is photographed for this recipe card). If you want a lot of blueberries, use 6 ounces (see attempt 6 earlier in this post for an example). And if you like something in the middle, I suggest 5 ounces!
Caddy clasp for a batard shape
Caddy clasp for a boule shape
