Yum, Honey Roasted Garlic Sourdough. Have you roasted garlic before? Like whole heads of garlic, ready to top your favorite meal, or conjoin with your favorite sourdough boule? With honey? Ugh, yum.
This loaf is not going to be super garlic-y because when you roast garlic, it takes down the flavor quite a bit. However, it will still be delectable and a tender honey sweet garlic hug. So, let’s move right into the process…
Honey Roasted Garlic Sourdough: Little details
Firstly, the timing of this recipe moves like this:
- The night before, you make the levain: 10 minutes of hands on time, 12 hours overnight.
- Making dough for autolyze & roasting garlic: 1 hour
- Add the garlic, honey & salt to the dough, then bulk fermentation (overall 4 hours or broken down as follows):
- Rest for a ½ hour
- Stretch + fold then rest a ½ hour
- Stretch + fold then rest a ½ hour
- Stretch + fold then rest 2-3 hours (depending on dough environment temp, see below)
- Shape & set in fridge (cold proofing) for 14-16 hours
- Remove from fridge & set on counter for 1 hour (preheat oven halfway through)
- Bake for 1 hour
- Cool for 2 hours
Dough temp!
Dough environment temperature is really important for sourdough fermentation. I like to keep my dough covered at all times and in a proofer (especially in the winter) during bulk fermentation at 80°F. The optimal environment temperature for sourdough dough is around 75-82°F. That may not always be possible, but it's good to note for your own reference when gauging how long your bulk fermentation takes, or even how long it takes for your sourdough starter to peak.
When I keep my dough environment at 80°F, it takes the minimal amount of time to bulk ferment (4 hours). If your kitchen is much cooler as mine gets in the winter and you don’t have a place like a proofer to keep the dough, you can either create a makeshift proofer in your oven or accept that the dough will take a longer while (not the worst thing in the world!). If it proofs at a colder temperature, it’ll taste milder than being proofed at a warmer temperature.
If you make this recipe, please comment and rate the recipe below! I love hearing from you all. Also, you can tag me on Instagram @higheralchemybaking with your bake!
Honey Roasted Garlic Sourdough
Equipment
- 5 or 6 qt dutch oven
Ingredients
for the levain
- 120g water
- 50g mature sourdough starter
- 140g bread flour
for the dough
- all the levain
- 350g water
- 100g spelt flour
- 380g bread flour
- 2 roasted garlic heads
- 50g honey
- 12g salt
Instructions
- The night before, mix the levain thoroughly.
- In the morning, mix the levain, water, spelt flour, and bread flour for the dough. Let autolyze for 1 hour.
- In the meantime, roast the two garlic heads. Preheat the oven to 425F. To prepare the garlic heads, peel off any outer layers of skin. Slice off the top quarter inch of the garlic so the inner flesh peeks out. Set each head in their own square of aluminum foil and drizzle with a little olive oil. Wrap up the heads and set on a baking sheet in the oven to roast for 40 minutes. When done, the inner flesh will be browned and squishy. Scoop or squeeze out the flesh into a small bowl, in small or large clumps. Add the honey and salt to the bowl and stir until combined.
- After the dough has finished autolyzing, add the garlic mixture and squeeze and fold into the dough until thoroughly combined. Avoid breaking the dough strands as you work.
- Let the dough bulk ferment for 4-6 hours, stretching and folding every half hour for the first two hours. Your bulk fermentation may be longer or shorter if the dough environment runs hotter or colder/if it’s winter or summer. The optimal environment temperature for sourdough dough is around 75-82F. You can tell when bulk fermentation is done by seeing if there are little bubbles running throughout the bottom and sides of the dough, the dough is about 30% larger and domed.
- Sprinkle a round proofing basket with rice flour or line a medium-sized bowl with a rice-floured kitchen towel.
- Lightly flour a surface and dump the dough out onto it. If bulk fermentation went well, the dough should “burp” and deflate as you dump it out. Shape the dough into a boule and place it seam side-up in your proofing basket or bowl. Fully cover and set in the fridge overnight (14-16 hours) for cold proofing.
- In the morning, remove the dough from the fridge and set it out on the counter for an hour. Preheat your oven to 450F a half hour in, then let the oven and your dough sit for about 15-20 minutes after preheat is over.
- Sprinkle the bottom of a 5 or 6-quart Dutch oven with cornmeal. Gently flip the dough into it so the floured side is face-up. Score your boule how you wish, cover with the lid, and place in the oven to bake.
- After 5 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 425F. Then after 20 minutes, remove the lid from the oven. Bake for another 40 minutes. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven and place the bread on a cooling rack for 2 hours before slicing. Enjoy! Let me know what you think below in the comments or on Instagram @higheralchemybaking!
Notes
Let me know what you think of my recipe in the comments below! Also, if you loved this recipe, check out my Purple Sweet Potato Sourdough recipe.
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