Pistachios and Cranberries

Yes, it's true: these days we are somehow very much into incorporating all sorts of things into our loaves. Even though, in general, we like to think of ourselves as having more of a traditional approach to baking, and despite being the big fans of all these great, established recipes, drawn from a long, deep-rooted baking history, every so often we're all about breaking the rules.

So, in other words, we are always open and eager to try out new things, and to play in our home kitchen with our ingredients and with our dough. And one thing is certain, cheese on top of a slice of fruity and/or nutty bread is (amongst many other things) one of our favourites.

This time around we chose some pistachios and cranberries, and incorporated them into a mostly white sourdough loaf. To make it not strictly 100% white, we made a soaker with some whole kamut flour, and added that to the dough. The loaves turned out to be quite dense (a little denser than we wanted them to be); but the flavour was all there, and we are still enjoying, as we speak, what is left over from the second loaf.

We will share this post also on Susan's weekly YeastSpotting page. 
 
Recipe

Starter 
(prepared 12 hours in advance and left at room temperature)
 
150 gr all-purpose flour
130 gr water
1 tsp ripe white sourdough culture

Soaker
(prepared 12 hours in advance and left at room temperature)
 
200 gr whole kamut flour
200 gr water

Final dough

700 gr all-purpose flour
320 gr water
Starter
Soaker
27 gr salt
150 gr pistachios
150 gr dried cranberries

Mix flour, starter, soaker and water, making sure to hydrate the flour well. Allow about 30 minutes for the autolyse, then add the salt and knead the dough until it is developed. After that, incorporate the pistachios and cranberries. Let the dough ferment at room temperature for about 3 hours and give it a stretch-and-fold after 30 minutes, repeat twice more at 30 minute intervals. After 3 hours of fermentation at room temperature, do a final stretch-and-fold; give it a round shape and put it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover tightly and place in the refrigerator between 12 and 24 hours.

Take the dough out of the refrigerator, divide the bulk in half, degas the dough very gently and pre-shape as rounds. Allow them to rest for about 1 hour, then shape the rounds into bâtards or boules. Let the shaped loaves proof for about 45 minutes. Bake at 450 F for about 40 minutes, or until ready.

Oh, and Happy Canada Day!