(Purple Sweet Potato?) Sourdough 🫶🏼
because we went viral on TikTok with my "pretty purple bread" 💜
It’s earthy and lightly sweet, contrasting beautifully with the sourdough tartness (not to mention… an absolute stunner!).
If this newsletter has somehow found its way into your hands (and you’re not yet subscribed), allow me to help you out:
in short: we went viral on TikTok with my “pretty purple bread” this weekend… so we have a few new faces here– welcome!
my food (for thought): “mañana mañana”, says Paola… and tomorrow never comes. I’m sorry that the train never arrived at Platform 9 3/4s this past Sunday.
tbch?
I got a little scared (nay terrified) that that would be the first newsletter that all of our new friends would receive (welcome, again!).
(I felt a little naked iykwim).
But, more than anything, I sat with the irony that I wanted to “keep things small” (once you eventually read said newsletter in question you’ll understand). So in keeping with our theme this year: life feels a little too perfect at times.
My conclusion?
That I feel more comfortable than ever about telling that story (a relief, I must say). But that I might just need a week or two to catch up on my feelings after this year’s series of fortunate events; before I continue with content that, well, requires me to show up with my feelings (and ego) readily in check (and I hope you understand).
(single side note of the day: T.C.’s attorney appears to be playing an endless game of phone tag)(didn’t we say everything in writing?)(i.e. my best guess is they realized they ran out of green paint– per our pending post)
Alas.
Expect our magical newsletter to hit your inbox in the next few weeks and we’ll start from there (but if you’re keen to get a head start, may I suggest taking a peek at Netflix’s documentary on psychedelics by Michael Pollan “How to change your mind”)(or, even better, the book by the same title– as it takes a true investigative and no b.s. approach)(plus, he’s a majestically entertaining writer and his own trips are fascinating subject matter).
But onto our own subject matter of the day:
My unofficial sourdough guide (a short and sweet version to get you started) was already set to be published this week, but now we’re adding a little extra twist given current events– and so I’m also going to teach you how to make (what might just be) the prettiest loaf you’ll ever make: purple sweet potato sourdough.
The recipe is simple: sub 10% purple sweet potato powder and 80% hydration.
If you know sourdough, then you already know that’s actually all the information you need from me to make it successfully (but if right about now you feel like a 10 year old sitting in an advanced calculus class– keep reading).
For sourdough bread recipes are, more often than not, given in percentages (as this allows bakers to scale with ease):
starting flour amount: 1000g unbleached bread flour = 100%
hydration: 800g spring water = 80% hydration (= 800g/1000g x 100% = 80%)
active starter: 200g (= 200g/1000g x 100% = 20%)
salt: 20g = 2% (= 20g/1000g x 100% = 2%)
Now, if you want to sub with an additional flour (from rye, to einkorn… to, yes, purple sweet potato), you’ll simply sub a percentage of the main starting flour:
starting flour amount: 900g unbleached bread flour = 90% (900g/1000g x 100% = 90%)
sub in: 100g sweet potato flour = 10% (100g/1000g x 100% = 10%)
hydration: 800g spring water = 80% hydration (= 800g/1000g total flours x 100% = 80%)
active starter: 200g (= 200g/1000g x 100% = 20%)
salt: 20g = 2% (= 20g/1000g x 100% = 2%)
I know. We really are back in math class (with a side of chemistry and a minor in microbiology). “I wish I could buy these pre-made. I burn water 😂” said one of you in my ig comments.
“I’m fairly certain my college roommates are shocked I now develop recipes for a living… as I too used to burn water 🤭“, I replied.
Hi, I’m Paola and I could barely boil an egg by my 20th birthday (i.e. you got this!).
(ask a question, post a thought 🤌🏼)
xo! Paola
p.s. and if you don’t follow thus far… it actually means I’m not explaining myself well enough (so all questions are valid here, as we’re aiming for a rock solid foundation).
p.p.s. a good sourdough loaf will be a terrific starting point for all our upcoming recipes (yes, even the gluten free ones)(and the low carb ones too). So I highly suggest baking a loaf (or ten) to understand the process, as we’re learning a new skill here.
(I know, I know, we’re also lucky to have actual pros here too)(I see you, and love you always, in my comments 👀)
(purple sweet potato?) sourdough 💜
It’s earthy and lightly sweet, contrasting beautifully with the sourdough tartness (not to mention… an absolute stunner!).
p.s. at 80% this would be considered “a very high hydration” loaf (a bit harder to handle at max difficulty). But fear not, I’m not throwing you off the deep end, for its the sweet potato that soaks up a lot of the hydration– so once handling it it feels like a 70% hydration beauty.
To scale to however many loafs you want (or 1 loaf in grams)
ingredients
80% (400g) spring water
20% (100g) active sourdough starter
90% (450g) unbleached bread flour*
10% (50g) purple sweet potato powder
2% (10g) fine sea salt
5 p.m. feed your starter
Add roughly 70-100g of flour to feed your starter (you want 100g of active starter for the recipe, so it depends on how big you keep your starter (say you may want to feed it for a couple days without discarding if you keep a small one going)(or if you’re taking yours out of the fridge you’ll def need to do one feeding before it’s strong enough to bake with).
Add enough spring water (you don’t want filtered, you really do want the added minerals)(this should tell you something too about what you should be drinking too btw 👀) until the dough resembles a thick pancake batter. Generally 70g of water/100 g of flour (i.e. a 70% ratio) is enough to get the consistency right. But if you’re using heritage grains or most gluten free flours you’ll need to add a little more.
Remember: thick pancake batter (like keto pancakes, I know y’all know!).
Allow to rest for 3-6 hours in a warm(ish) place: until it doubles in size. You can test for prime activity fairly well either using the float test (as it sounds: check if your starter floats in a little water) or the burn test (tap your starter on the counter to “break the surface”, light a match and if it blows out it means your starter is using up all the oxygen in the surrounding area i.e. it’s sourdough time).
8 p.m. make your dough
Add the water (preferably at room temp) and active starter to a large bowl. Using your hands (though some peeps favor a danish hook) mix the starter with the water until dissolved (don’t overthink it if a few lumps remain).
Add in the flour, sweet potato powder (if using) and salt and mix with your hands until just combined and the dough is all shaggy (and sticky).
Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.
9 p.m. bulk rise (plus stretch ‘n folds)
Thirty minutes in you’ll want to do a set of “stretch ‘n folds”: grab a hold of the dough, stretch it upwards and fold it down towards the center of the bowl. Rotate and repeat four times (you can watch me do it here).
Repeat one to three more times every thirty minutes. Now, how many “stretch ‘n folds” to do is something that varies according to folklore. I’ve made terrific loafs with just two sets, but I do feel like going up to three or four gives the loafs more structure (particularly when adding in gluten free flours to the mix).
Transfer to a smaller bowl (as it’s easier to gauge the rise if you can actually mark it with a sharpie) and cover with a kitchen towel.
Allow to rest for 3-10 hours, or until at least doubled in size (remember that time here is directly influenced by temperature so it’ll vary greatly)(p.s. I generally let mine go until it almost tripes as I’ve pushed it just until the point that it begins to recede back and it still comes out superb)(and I personally find it easiest to digest).
6 a.m. shape
Watch me shape it here:
Lightly flour your working surface, turn the dough out and stretch it out gently (allow it to rest for 10 minutes if it “feels” like it’s resisting)(you’ll know, trust me!). Stretch it out, fold the sides in, and roll it gently but tightly. You then want to roll it gently against the counter towards you a few times (this creates surface tension, making for a better crust!).
Transfer to a (very well floured or lined) banneton or small-ish bowl and cover with a paper towel, place inside a plastic bag and refrigerate for 12-72 hours (depending on how long you want to proof it for).
Or allow to proof at room temperature for about 2 more hours, until it springs back to touch (you literally want to poke it gently, and if it springs back you know you’re golden)(though if it springs back too quickly it’s actually under-proofed)(and, you may’ve guessed it, if it doesn’t spring back at all you’re now over-proofed). i.e. this is why baking a few loafs and poking them around throughout it’s stages is highly suggested.
8-12 a.m. bake away!
(or if you do a cold fermentation… and wait 12-48 hours)(72 if you want slightly over-proofed bread)
Preheat oven to 450°F/230°C with your Dutch oven inside for 20 minutes (some peeps bake at a lower temperature, say 420°F, it depends a bit on your oven).
Score loaf in order to allow it to expand evenly (and create a beautiful “ear”). Knifes don’t quite work here, a razor blade really is prime.
Bake lid on for 20 minutes, remove lid and bake for 20 more minutes or until deeply golden brown (if you tap it on the bottom it’ll also sound hollow).
Allow to cool completely if you want it at its best– but 20 minutes will do if you simply can’t hold your horses (and you don’t want to wreck your crumb)(though please do wreck your crumb once and crack it open fresh out the oven, so ykwim).
p.s. my best suggestion for storing your sourdough is to simply keep it in your bread or Dutch oven (what I do). But investing in a bread tin is neat too!
*King Arthur is likely the easiest, yet still pretty great, bread flour to “learn” sourdough with (there’s no way I personally experimented with fancy $10/lb heritage flours on my first tries!)hat might
And from last week: a first look into grape juice marshmallows, because s’more season is upon us 💁♀️
p.p.s. y'all this recipe isn't low carb! but I would like to incentivize (if no health constraints, needless to say) to try one of the hacks by the glucose goddess: an apple cider vinegar drink thirty minutes prior to a meal (I just dilute a shot of acv in water)... and it generally really does keep my blood sugar from spiking even if you consume some carbs (in moderation, needless to say).
Her work really does take "ketosis as a metabolic state" to a whole new level... and I'm here for it!
You must be a witch because you just worked some wicked magic with that bread!!!!!!!! Those are the most interesting and really really gorgeous rounds I've seen. And you're sexy AF in the tiktoc videos! I mean what's better than a beautiful person baking BREAD????