FOOD ❘ ÉRIC KAYSER
LEVAIN (STARTER) LIQUID I have always used liquid levain (or liquid sourdough starter) for my breads and pastries. This natural leavener, made of flour and water and regularly refreshed, is inherently tied to our history of breadmaking and fundamental to the earliest practices. Sadly, baking with natural leaveners such as liquid levain was largely eschewed by modern bakers in the 20th century who preferred to use yeast, which was ‘easier’ to control and enabled them to produce leavened breads in a very short amount of time. However, these breads have less flavour and a shorter shelf life than those made with levain. If you want to replace a liquid levain with a dehydrated sourdough starter, you will need about 75 g (2¾ oz) dehydrated starter for every 150 g (2
/3 cup/5 oz) liquid levain.
LIQUID LEVAIN Makes about 700 g (3 cups/1 lb 9 oz) DAY 1
In a bowl, whisk 50 g (3½ tbsp/1 ¾ oz) warm water with 50 g (1
/3 cup/1¾ oz)
organic stoneground wholemeal flour (T150). Cover with a cloth and leave to ferment for 24 hours at room temperature (20–25°C).
DAY 2
In a bowl, whisk together 100 g (scant ½ cup/3½ oz) warm water with 100 g (2
/3
cup/3½ oz) organic white bread flour (T65) and 20 g (1 tbsp or ¾ oz) honey. Mix this into the previous day’s mixture. Cover with a cloth and leave to ferment for 24 hours at room temperature.
DAY 3
In a bowl, whisk 200 g (1¼ cups/7 oz) organic white bread flour (T65) with 200 g
INGREDIENTS 200 g (7 oz) edible flowers
100 g (scant ½ cup/3½ oz) Liquid Levain 400 g (3 cups/14 oz) white bread flour (T65)
100 g (¾ cup/3½ oz) rye flour (T130) 325 g (11 (68°F)
/3
9 g (1¾ tsp) Guérande sea salt 3 g (1 tsp) fresh yeast, crumbled
METHOD 1 The previous day, combine 50 g (1¾ oz) of the flowers with the levain and rest overnight in the refrigerator to infuse the levain with a floral taste.
cups or 11½ oz) water at 20°C
(scant 1 cup/7 oz) warm water. Mix this into day 2’s preparation. Cover with a cloth and leave to ferment for 12 hours at room temperature. The liquid levain is ready to be used. Generally, the levain will remain active for 2 days after it’s been refreshed or fed. You will have to feed it every 2 days by adding 50 per cent of its weight in water and flour. For example, if you have 300 g (1¼ cups/10½ oz) levain, add 75 g (½ cup/2¾ oz) flour and 75 g (1
/3 cup or 2¾ oz) water.
Levain can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 8 days. It must be fed a day before use.
YEAST
At the right amount, fresh yeast can complement the levain in most of the recipes in this book. It enhances the fermentation process and sometimes offsets the marked sourness of certain levains.
FLOWER BREAD Makes 2 Loaves | Preparation time 20 min | Resting time 16 h 15 min | Baking time 30 min
2 On the day, combine all the ingredients, except the remaining flowers, in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix and knead for 4 minutes on low speed and then for 6 minutes on high speed. The dough should be smooth and come away from the sides of the bowl. Add the flowers and mix on low speed for 1 minute to incorporate without damaging them. Cover the mixer bowl with a cloth and leave the dough to rise for 2 hours at room temperature, folding after 1 hour. 3 On a floured work counter, divide the dough into two pieces of equal weight (about 560 g/1 lb 4 oz each) and loosely shape into balls. Cover with a cloth and rest for 15 minutes at room temperature. 4 Shape the dough pieces into boules without tightening at the seam. Place the boules on a floured cloth with the seam underneath. Cover with a cloth and prove (proof) for 2 hours at room temperature. 5 Place a baking pan on the lowest oven rack and preheat the oven to 250°C (480°F). Transfer the loaves to a baking sheet lined with baking (parchment) paper, with the seams facing upwards. Once the oven is hot, pour 50 ml (31/2 tbsp/13/4 fl oz) water into the hot baking pan. Put the loaves and pan of water into the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Lower the temperature to 200°C (400°F) and bake for another 10 minutes. 6 Remove the loaves from the oven, then cool on a wire rack.
ROSEMARY FOCACCIA Makes 1 large focaccia | Preparation time 25 min | Resting time 15 h 30 min | Baking time 15–20 min
INGREDIENTS 4–5 sprigs rosemary
30 g (3 tbsp/1 oz) olive oil + extra for drizzling
500 g (scant 4 cups/1 lb 2 oz) white bread flour (T65)
330 g (scant 1½ cups/11½ oz) water at 20°C (68°F)
100 g (scant ½ cup/3½ oz) Liquid Levain 7 g (2 tsp) fresh yeast, crumbled 10 g (2 tsp) fine salt Pinch of coarse salt
METHOD 1 The previous day, remove the leaves from the rosemary sprigs and mix them with the olive oil in a bowl. Leave to steep overnight, then strain. Finely chop the rosemary leaves. 2 On the day, combine the flour, water, levain, yeast, fine salt and rosemary leaves in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix and knead for 5 minutes on low speed
❯❯ 70 ❘ FRANCE TODAY Feb/Mar 2023
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