Dough as Respite: A Sourdough Challah Breakthrough at the Most Trying Time

"In normal times, if I go more than four or five days without baking something I start to get twitchy. And in the most trying times I turn to dough as my respite."

At 7:27pm on Friday July 24, my father peacefully drifted off into the next life with family by his side.

I had returned home Thursday from the Grain Gathering and, having received word that his time was nearing, I was able to go be at his bedside that evening and all of the following day. I had been given the grace to make that journey to the Skagit Valley as he held on until my return.

Even in normal times, if I go more than four or five days without baking something I start to get twitchy. And in the most trying times I turn to dough as my respite. So I baked a big batch of sourdough; for family, for neighbors, for friends.

And I knew that I was behind on recipe development for a sourdough challah...

We made yeasted challah by the bushel at The Grainwright, as we supplied a temple school and parents with their Shabbat challah every week. It was also a staple bread baked daily when I was at Haymarket, as the other head baker had trained in a large Jewish bakery. But making a sourdough version has been especially vexing. Since there is oil instead of butter (no dairy), the enrichment is a very different proposition compared to every bread I’ve adapted before. It’s technically a much lower enrichment level when compared to brioche, but when I tried a sweet liquid starter it was an abject failure.

I finally moved over to the sweet stiff starter, but it’s challenging to mix because of how little water is added to main dough, and that stiff starter needs to be fully incorporated.

I have to say that for my first go 'back at it' I absolutely nailed it! The texture is like cloudlike cotton wool, which is exactly what I want from this bread, and it’s neither sweet nor sour. The sweet stiff starter method also causes the bacteria which survive to start producing Exopolysaccharides (EPS), a biopolymer which improves texture and moisture retention. Because of this, I actually prefer it to the yeasted version.

I’ll be publishing the full recipe and method in the coming weeks.

I shared a post dedicated to my father and the trip to Washington over on Instagram which you can find here, and there'll be a dedicated Grain Gathering debrief post later this month too.

Thank you for your understanding as we navigate this difficult time. And for the messages of love and support. With Claire also unexpectedly away visiting her almost-90 yr old mum in hospital in the UK, we are neither as sharp, nor as on top of things as usual.