Sourdough Cranberry Orange Bread

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh sourdough starter (either whole wheat or white)
• 1 cup water
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 Tbsp. grated orange zest
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 4 to 5 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup chopped Pecans

Directions

1. n a large bowl combine starter and water. Stir in honey, salt, orange zest, 2 cups of flour, and cinnamon. Fold in cranberries and pecans. Stir in additional flour until dough is too thick to mix by hand, then turn out onto a smooth surface and knead, adding more flour as needed until dough is elastic, about 10 minutes.

2. Place dough in a buttered container (either glass or plastic). Cover and let rise until doubled. This may take anywhere from 2 to 8 hours, depending on the room temperature. A longer rise time is preferable. You can also refrigerate the dough for up to 24 hours at this point.

3. When doubled, punch down and divide dough in two pieces. Shape each piece into a long loaf. Place on a greased baking sheet, cover with a cotton tea towel, and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour (longer if dough was refrigerated). When loaves have doubled in size, make several 1/4-inch slashes diagonally across top of loaves with a sharp knife or a baker’s lamé (razor).

4. Bake in a 400°F oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown and loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Cool on a wire rack before slicing. This bread makes fabulous toast.

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