Bread with kefir

Preparation steps

• Before the recipe itself a few notes. Don’t be intimidated by the length of the description, I just wanted to write in detail how I did it. The recipe I started from, and which I later changed a bit, did not envisage the use of yeast, but only natural yeast prepared from kefir and flour. Is it because they predicted the use of home-made kefir in that recipe, and it is my purchase, that yeast did not look particularly alive to me after 24 hours, nor did I notice any changes, bubbles, etc. during that period, as described in the recipe. That's why I decided to "help" him.
• Instead of the usual dry / fresh yeast, this time I used dry natural yeast from kamut flour (dry, so powdered, because I don't grow yeast for sourdough myself). I put a little more than half the projected amount of this dry yeast that goes on half a pound of flour (lievito madre di kamut). So take the yeast measures in the recipe tentatively or if you are “braver” than me try to make it without adding yeast. Natural yeast adds a really special flavor to bread.
• I first made this bread with 2 cups of white and 1/2 cup of wholemeal flour. The second time I mixed it with 1 and a half cup of white, 1/2 cup of whole wheat, and 1/2 cup of whole rye flour. Next time I will certainly increase the proportion of integral types of flour.
• Mix kefir with 75 g (half a cup) of flour. Mix well with a fork to dissolve the flour. (picture # 1) Cover with a piece of cling film and leave for 24 hours at room temperature.
• Sift 2, 5 cups of flour (425 g) into a bowl, add dry yeast / yeast (if using fresh, melt it in water first), make a hole in the middle and add kefir with flour and salt. (pictures # 2 and 3) Mix with a wooden spoon (or in a table mixer) gradually adding water (depending on the type of flour you may need less water than 200 ml), until you get a fairly moist dough. (picture # 4) Now add a little (about a spoonful) of flour, mixing or beating the dough with a food processor, until it starts to separate from the bowl and stops being sticky. (picture # 5)
• Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead it again with your hands for a few minutes, adding flour as needed. (picture # 6) Shape the dough into an oblong loaf and place it on a floured piece of baking paper, which you move together with the dough into an oblong mold. (pictures # 7 and 8) Leave to rise for 2.5 hours (preferably in a cold, closed oven or microwave. (picture # 9)
• Take the dough out of the mold together with the paper (it will probably stick a little to the paper), spread it a little with your palms and roll it firmly starting from the shorter side (clean it from flour because otherwise you will have floury lines in the baked bread). (picture # 10) Again, flour the paper (preferably with sharp or corn flour) well under the loaf and on the surface of the bread, then close the paper and cover with a cloth. Let rise again for half an hour to an hour while the oven heats up.
• Turn on the oven to 250 ° C and heat together the pan with the lid in which you intend to bake the bread (I use an oval cast iron pan, can also be a baking pan, earthenware or refractory pan).
• Transfer the dough to a very hot pan, (picture # 11) if the paper is well floured it will be enough to slide the bread into it. I still cut three lines with scissors a little obliquely. Cover and bake for about 15 minutes covered. Remove the lid and bake further until the bread gets a nice crust (15-20 minutes). If you like the crust to stay hard and crispy for a longer time, after you have turned off the oven, put the bread (without a bowl) on the rack and leave it for another 10 minutes.
• all pictures prepared images of baked bread