I recently jumped into the world of sourdough when I discovered my new-found love for Einkorn, which I share about here. It led me to look into several cookbooks on using sourdough and natural yeast to bake bread!
Sourdough is a wonderful natural yeast that uses a mixture of flour and water with bacteria to create a fermentation. It’s been used for thousands of years and has amazing health benefits! If you’re not as into the science behind it as I am, it’s enough to know that it’s bread dough with living wild yeast and bacteria in it which then feeds our gut bacteria!
To bake a sourdough loaf you first create (or purchase) a sourdough starter. A friend or neighbor can even give you some of theirs! You continually feed it with more flour and water at the proper ratio. You don’t need much to get started, and it is so satisfying to try that first delicious loaf you create yourself!
I love making my bread as healthy as possible – whole grain, ancient grain, freshly milled, organic, sourdough, fermenting overnight. So I’ve noted when several cookbooks also offer recipes with these options!
Let’s dive in…
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This book first dives into what natural yeast is, the history behind it, and why it matters! I loved learning about its amazing benefits to the body.
The next section is all about getting started. You will learn how to maintain a sourdough starter, and how to bake with it! The pages have lots of pictures on how to knead the dough, stretch and fold it, and allow it to rest. All with step-by-step directions!
There is a page as well on how to adapt non-start recipes that is super helpful. It’s one of the cookbooks on using sourdough that covers all the grounds so you don’t fail, and even if you do, you know why!
Check it out on Amazon here!
Related Post: The 7 Best Cookbooks On Ancient Grains, Einkorn, And Milling Flour
The first half of this book is all about “The Sourdough” as it’s called. It contains everything from tools needed, terminology, pantry items, and how and why to use it. The second half of the book is recipes placed into categories: Autumn Harvest, Winter Dormancy, Spring Rebirth, and Summer Sun Worship.
While this book is large, it is not at all intimidating! The pictures are beautiful, and the information is clear to understand. The recipes have given me lots of inspiration to try more sourdough recipes beyond a basic bread recipe!
The first recipe, Roasted Chestnut Bread, was something I had never heard of before! I really appreciate how the recipes are divided into seasons so that they work with my seasonal eating and time in the kitchen.
Check it out on Amazon here!
While I don’t agree with everything at the beginning of this book regarding our gut and evolution, I do appreciate the author’s stance on challenging what we know about baking and our food system. As one of the cookbooks on using sourdough that focuses on your gut, you will learn all about microbes, prebiotics, probiotics, polyphenols, and more! It is a follow-up to the book The Sourdough School.
I also appreciate the focus on ancient grains and the diversity score of each recipe. It’s how well you can blend the variety of grains. While there are so many wonderful sourdough recipes in this book, there is also information on other fantastic ferments!
For a holistic approach and a new mindset on what you bake and consume, this is the book for you!
Check it out on Amazon here!
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This book covers some fantastic topics: why bake with whole grains? What are they? How do you store them? Why grind your flour? How do you choose a grain mill?
Then it discusses and provides recipes for quick breads, biscuits, scones, pies, and sourdough breads. There are also whole-grain dessert recipes, and even recipes for things to eat with bread. Also, unique to this book is the section on things to do with leftover bread and finding time to bake!
I love how beautiful the sourdough section is too. It is so easy to understand and follow, yet provides essential information without being confusing. It’s a smaller section so you won’t be overwhelmed with too much information if you are a beginner.
This is a fantastic book if you are like me and starting to mill your own grain but need a little help on how to cook with it! Every baker should have this cookbook in their kitchen.
Check it out on Amazon here!
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For a smaller book, this is packed full of fantastic information on sourdough, your starter, baking with it, and lots of recipes for breads and pastries.
If you are looking for a simple book to get started with your sourdough baking, this is the book for you! It has a little bit of everything and is laid out in a beautiful format. It’s easy to follow and understand. Plus, the recipes have lots of pictures to follow the detailed step-by-step directions.
There are several unique recipes too, that I had not seen in other cookbooks before. An example is the gingered crimson beet kraut on Danish rye sourdough seed bread. It looks delicious!
Check it out on Amazon here!
While chapter one of this book goes over all the basics of making bread, chapter two dives into everything about sourdough and wild yeast! You will learn how to build your starter and refresh it.
The rest of the book is a cookbook on using sourdough and other yeasts to create beautiful artisan breads. If you want to go beyond the simple sandwich loaf, then this book is for you! While this cookbook is not just sourdough recipes, it helps show the balance of when some yeasts are better than others.
If you want to take your bread-making to a new level, then be sure to try the recipes in this cookbook!
Check it out on Amazon here!
Related Post: The 7 Best Cookbooks On Cooking From Scratch With Real Farm Ingredients
This truly is one of the cookbooks on using sourdough for beginners! The first two chapters are focused on creating your sourdough starter and then how to use it. It is a book to take with you into the kitchen, make notes in, and discover the answers to your questions!
The recipes are some basic artisan-style sourdough breads, including some whole grain options. There are also pan loaves, pastry, pizza, and specialty bread recipes. I especially love Eric’s Whole Grain Waffles because it uses whole grain einkorn flour, which I mill myself at home.
There are also recipes on how to use your sourdough discard. If you want some simple recipes to get started on your sourdough journey then this is the cookbook for you!
Check it out on Amazon here!
There you have it, the best cookbooks on using sourdough and natural, wild yeast! Which one will you be trying out first? Let me know in the comments below!
Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma
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