I love a fresh baked loaf of bread. I love brioche bread. I love ciabatta bread. I love rustic artisan bread. And I love french bread. This sourdough french bread is made with fresh milled flour. I know what you might be thinking, UGH! This bread is going to be dense. My friend, this french bread is light and delicate and full of flavor.
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Specialty Tools
- Bosch Universal Mixer, for my bosch mixer and any nutrimill link, my code FLOURING will help you save an additional $20 and most of the time it will stack ontop of their sales!
- Bottom Drive Stainless Steel Bowl: used specifically for bread/complex bread doughs
- Grain Mill: I own 3. I have the harvest, the classic, and the impact. In the additional resources below, you’ll find my breakdown of how to choose the best grain mill for your home.
- Dutch Oven
- Sourdough Artisan Bundle: containing- 2 Cast Iron Enamel Dutch Ovens, 2 Sourdough Slings, 2 Banneton Baskets, 2 Bread Bags, Kneading Whisk, Dough Scraper, Lame with 5 Blades, Bread Knife, Large Silicone Dough Mat, Large Kitchen Scale
- Wheat Berries: I used Hard Red Winter Wheat from Palouse Brand to make this bread. Use code THEFLOURINGHOME at checkout to save.
- Sourdough Starter: BUY Mine if youre in the USA or follow my guide on how to make a starter. you can find it HERE
Ingredients:
370 g (approx 1.5 cups) active sourdough starter
700g (approx. 3cups) water (I use a water filter from Clearly Filtered, code BFCM20)
1200g (approx 6-7 cups) hard red wheat flour (this is the end result of having milled the berries into flour)
45g (3TBSP) coconut sugar
60g (1/4cup) olive or avocado oil
12g (1TBSP) redmond real salt, code FLOURING (i use the kosher salt, but its all amazing)
OPTIONAL: 3-4TBSP heavy cream (this isnt added to the dough but added right before baking)
To begin making your bread, make a sponge: a sponge is made with all of your water, starter, sugar and part of your flour. These four ingredients are added to your mixing bowl and gently combined. Allow to rest 20-30 minutes
Next add oil, half of your remaining flour and salt. Turn your mixer onto medium (if youre using the bosch mixer no. 2) and allow to combine. Slowly add flour 1/4 cup at a time until your dough is starting to ball up in the center and has pulled away from the sides. THIS is when you know you have enough flour.
Knead for 8-10 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic and you can get a window pane in your dough.
Remove the dough hook and allow to bulk ferment on the counter for a few hours or until doubled (this can take 4-6 hours, remember cold temperatures slow fermentation but it doesnt stop it! it just needs more time).
Once doubled, place your dough, covered, into the fridge for 24 hours.
Now is the fun part! You can choose to fill or not fill your dough. I have two variations for you:
CINNAMON SWIRL FILLING
for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup cinnamon, 2 tsp vanilla, sprinkle salt. Mix all ingredients together and split between two loaves. SHAPE according to your preference. IF you want this sweeter, double brown sugar. AS IS, its cinnamon forward and more savory. Serve with a whipped honey cinnamon butter.
GARLIC HERB AND CHEESE
for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1 TBSP garlic and italian seasoning, sprinkle salt and 4 cups of cheese. Combine butter, garlic, italian seasoning and salt, spread over dough. spread half of the cheese and shape
Remember this makes two loaves. So you will need to split the dough in half. Spread your filling to the edges, roll up like a cinnamon roll, crimp and shape. Read below for shaping tips.
Allow to rise for another 45 minutes before baking. IF you want, pour 3-4TBSP heavy cream over your braided, filled loaves. This is not needed if you are just making the french bread version, without a filling.
Baking:
pre heat your oven to 375. Place your shaped dough onto parchment and transfer into a dutch oven. DO NOT USE THE LID! and bake 45-50 minutes.
If baking just french bread, shape into long loaves, this would be the cinnamon roll shape (but not cut into braided strands, you will leave it whole) and pinching the edges like in the linked video below. Score the top and bake 375 for 40-45 minutes. These are baked on a rimmed baking sheet, not in a dutch oven
Allow your bread to cool at least 2 hours before slicing.
how to shape my loaves for the WOW factor
CHECK OUT THE SHAPING VIDEO HERE
I like to shape mine into wreaths, twists, and rounds. The video linked above has a great demonstration.
If you are utilizing a filling, a key tip is when you are twisting or braiding, keep the filling pointed UP, if possible. In a three strand braid, its more difficult to do since one strand will have an open bottom. The purpose for this is to try to contain the filling and not have it leak/spread out in baking. To help mitigate burns and clean up, I would definitely be using parchment. I do love my bread slings (I get them from mod kitchn, code THEFLOURINGHOME), but in this case, if any sugar is involved, just save yourself and use parchment.
sourdough french bread using fresh milled flour
Make this recipe plain or add a filling for an extra level of flavor.
Ingredients
- 370 g (approx 1.5 cups) active sourdough starter
- 700g (approx. 3cups) water
- 1200g (approx 6-7 cups) hard red wheat flour (this is the end result of having milled the berries into flour)
- 45g (3TBSP) coconut sugar
- 60g (1/4cup) olive or avocado oil
- 12g (1TBSP) redmond real salt
- OPTIONAL: 3-4TBSP heavy cream
- optional fillings:
- CINNAMON SWIRL FILLING
- for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup cinnamon, 2 tsp vanilla, sprinkle salt.
- GARLIC HERB AND CHEESE
- for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1 TBSP garlic and italian seasoning, sprinkle salt and 4 cups of cheese.
Instructions
To begin, make a sponge: a sponge is made with all of your water, starter, sugar and part of your flour. These four ingredients are added to your mixing bowl and gently combined. Allow to rest 20-30 minutes
Next add oil, half of your remaining flour and salt. Turn your mixer onto medium (if youre using the bosch mixer no. 2) and allow to combine. Slowly add flour 1/4 cup at a time until your dough is starting to ball up in the center and has pulled away from the sides. THIS is when you know you have enough flour.
Knead for 8-10 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic and you can get a window pane in your dough.
Remove the dough hook and allow to bulk ferment on the counter for a few hours or until doubled (this can take 4-6 hours, remember cold temperatures slow fermentation but it doesnt stop it! it just needs more time).
Once doubled, place your dough, covered, into the fridge for 24 hours.
Now is the fun part! You can choose to fill or not fill your dough. I have two variations for you, cinnamon swirl and garlic herb and cheese. These two variations are listed in the notes section of this recipe card.
Baking:
pre heat your oven to 375. Place your shaped dough onto parchment and transfer into a dutch oven. DO NOT USE THE LID! and bake 45-50 minutes.
If baking just french bread, shape into long loaves, this would be the cinnamon roll shape and pinching the edges like in the linked video below. Score the top and bake 375 for 40-45 minutes. These are baked on a baking sheet, not in a dutch oven
Notes
CINNAMON SWIRL FILLING
for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup cinnamon, 2 tsp vanilla, sprinkle salt. Mix all ingredients together and split between two loaves. SHAPE according to your preference. IF you want this sweeter, double brown sugar. AS IS, its cinnamon forward and more savory. Serve with a whipped honey cinnamon butter.
GARLIC HERB AND CHEESE
for two loaves: 1/2 cup melted butter, 1 TBSP garlic and italian seasoning, sprinkle salt and 4 cups of cheese. Combine butter, garlic, italian seasoning and salt, spread over dough. spread half of the cheese and shape
Remember this makes two loaves. So you will need to split the dough in half. Spread your filling to the edges, roll up like a cinnamon roll, crimp and shape. Read below for shaping tips.
Allow to rise for another 45 minutes before baking. IF you want, pour 3-4TBSP heavy cream over your braided, filled loaves. This is not needed if you are just making the french bread version, without a filling.
Recommended Products
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additional resources:
- how to choose the right grain mill for your household
- how to bake with fresh milled flour
- The Beginners Guide to Home Milling
- Milling Grains: Frequently Asked Questions
- Kitchen Aid or Bosch Mixer: which one is the king of the kitchen
- How to Make the Viral Sourdough Croissant Bread (Fresh Milled)
- USA ONLY Bundle! The Cowboy Way Sourdough CookBook (digital copy) & dehydrated sourdough starter
