As I mentioned in the snippets, I baked Joanna’s cornbread and Sally’s semolina loaf over the weekend.
The semolina loaf (above) is a charming yet easy yeasted loaf, which went down well with my family of sourdough lovers. The fine semolina gives the bread an interesting flavour and a smooth, creamy coloured crumb. I made it exactly to Sally’s formula, although I kneaded it by hand rather than machine.
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I also baked a version of Joanna’s corn bread, using sourdough starter instead of poolish. I meant to include yeast as specified in the original recipe, but completely forgot, so this loaf took much longer to rise and is slightly flatter than expected.
Having said that, Pete absolutely adored this bread and waxed lyrical about its texture and flavour. The crumb was chewy, elastic, and the most gorgeous shade of yellow…
So, for my own future reference, here’s our version:
- 225g active sourdough starter (100% or 166% hydration)
- 115g maize meal
- 190g water
- 225g bakers flour
- 9g salt
- 20g olive oil
1. Mix the maize and water in a small bowl and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
2. Mix all the ingredients together to form a wet dough, then cover and allow to rest for 15 – 20 minutes. Turn the dough onto a lightly oiled surface and knead briefly until smooth. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size.
3. Shape the risen dough into a ball and allow to prove until doubled in size (I use an oiled and floured plastic basket to rise the bread in). Preheat oven to 240C with fan.
4. Turn the dough out onto a peel and slash, then dust with semolina. Reduce the oven temperature to 220C with fan, and bake the loaf on a pizza stone for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 180C with fan and bake for a further 40 minutes to set the crust.
One thing to note – this loaf will only work with fine corn maize. I’ve tried making it previously with polenta, and the resultant dough was gritty. It’s definitely worth searching out the maize flour – we found ours at the markets.
It was the perfect loaf to serve with Pete’s beetroot dip!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 