Double Chocolate Orange Sourdough

Name: Double Chocolate Orange Sourdough
Yield: Two 800g Loaves
Ingredients: 85% bread flour or strong AP; 10% spelt flour; 5% whole rye; 75% water; 20% levain; 2.2% salt; INCLUSIONS; 12.5% semi-sweet choc chips; 12.5% bittersweet choc chips; 9% cocoa paste (see recipe, below); 15% candied orange; 552g bread flour or strong AP; 66g spelt flour; 32g whole rye; 486g water; 130g levain; 14g salt; INCLUSIONS; 82g semi-sweet choc chips; 82g bittersweet choc chips; 58g cocoa paste - see Cocoa Blooming instructions; 98g candied orange - see Candied Orange instructions

Candied orange peel for brightness. Semi-sweet + bittersweet chips for layered chocolate flavor. Dutch-process cocoa, fully bloomed, for that deep holiday richness.All folded into a long-fermented sourdough with spelt + rye for complexity. Tell me a better December loaf. I'll wait. 🍊🍫🔥

JUMP TO RECIPE

Double Chocolate Orange Sourdough: December's Loaf

A Decadent Modern Take On A Festive Holiday Loaf

Christmas in the UK is not complete without a Terry's Chocolate Orange. This is the sourdough equivalent.

The chocolate shows up twice, semi-sweet and bittersweet chips plus Dutch-process cocoa bloomed in just-boiled water before it goes anywhere near the dough, so the flavor is fully there rather than mixed in dry and hoping. The candied orange peel is made from scratch too: peel boiled twice to soften it, then properly candied in syrup to the thread stage before drying. Spelt and whole rye sit alongside the bread flour, giving the crumb a depth a plain white dough wouldn't have.

Check out our Instagram reel of the entire process.

Baking and Enjoying This Recipe

What Makes This Loaf A December Regular?

Two Chocolates, Bloomed Cocoa: semi-sweet and bittersweet chips plus Dutch-process cocoa, bloomed in hot water before it goes into the dough so the flavor is fully there, not just mixed in dry.
Candied Orange, Made From Scratch: the card includes the full method: two boils to soften the peel, then a proper syrup candy to the thread stage.
A More Complex Crumb: spelt and whole rye alongside the bread flour add depth.

Tips for Success

Straight from the recipe card:

This quantity works fine in an Artisan KitchenAid with a 5-5.5 quart bowl. Or a 5-7 liter spiral mixer. We used an Ooni.
Dutch process cocoa is alkalyzed giving it a richer, mellower flavor with less bitterness. You can use any cocoa powder, but we recommend Dutch process, for those reasons. Ghiradelli does an inexpensive packet which is readily available in supermarkets.
Temperatures in the mix. For most stand mixers, cool or cold water should be used to account for friction factor which will raise the dough temperature during mix. A water temperature of 55-60F is recommended as a starting point, and adjustments can be made from there to achieve a final dough temperature of 78F, coming out of mix.

Pairing Ideas

This one's built for December: as a gift loaf, alongside coffee for breakfast, or toasted and topped with a dollop of mascarpone or cream cheese frosting, for something closer to dessert.