CREATIVE MOMENTS

SOURDOUGH ART WITH STYLIST LINDA SOFIA RING

Linda creates beautiful sourdough loaves that are more like works of art than your average bread. Being brought up in the Stockholm archipelago and working at the Bukowskis auction house developed her love for nature and art. A wide range of artists – and even children’s drawings – inspire the creations she scores into her artisan loaves.

SOURDOUGH BREAD RECIPE

550g lukewarm water
25g honey
25g unrefined sea salt
300g sourdough starter – find recipes online for this
Around 800g organic flour dinkel (spelt)

METHOD

1 The most important thing is that the sourdough starter is vibrant (bubbly and alive). I usually feed the starter around 5-6 hours before baking. Start by mixing water, honey, salt and the starter in a big bowl. Pour in the flour and stir, it will be a little sticky, for half a minute. Let it rest under a kitchen tea towel for half an hour.

2 Fold the dough for 10 minutes by hand or machine (an internet search will show you how to fold a sourdough). Let it rest for an hour and fold again, then let it rest for 30 minutes to an hour. Place, upside down, into a banneton (bread-proving basket) lined with flour or a tea towel. Cover with cling film and allow to ferment in the fridge for at least 12 hours – this process is very important.

3 After 12-24 hours, it’s time to decorate and bake. Preheat oven to around 250°C (it is hard to say exactly as you have to experiment with your own oven), placing a heavy casserole dish (with lid on) in it while it is preheating.

Remove the dough from the fridge and turn it out on to a floured surface. Now it is time to decorate – sprinkle flour on the surface and use a super-thin bread-scoring lame blade. Carefully put your loaf in the casserole dish (with lid