Café de Olla Sourdough Loaf

Café de Olla Sourdough Loaf

Marcela Valladolid
Servings

8 servings

Prep Time

24 hours

Cuisine

Mexican

Category

Bread

Difficulty

Hard

Think panettone meets rosca de reyes, with that perfect sourdough chew. Café de olla replaces the water in the dough, and bites of candied orange peel and melty Mexican chocolate make every slice special.

Ingredients

  • 100 grams active sourdough starter
  • 10 grams fine sea salt
  • 365 grams warm café de olla
  • 500 grams high-protein bread flour (14% protein preferred)
  • 1/3 cup chopped candied orange peel
  • 1 ½ cups chopped Mexican chocolate (the kind that comes in discs like Abuelita or Ibarra)
  • Extra flour and water for shaping

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, combine 100g active starter, 10g salt, 365g warm café de olla, 500g high-protein flour. Mix thoroughly with your hands, squeezing and folding until you have a shaggy dough. Scrape down the sides and your hands to incorporate all the flour. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let rest for 1 hour.
  2. After resting, do your first fold. Stretch the dough from the top (12 o’clock) and fold it down to the bottom (6 o’clock). Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat the fold. Do this 2-3 more times until the dough has been folded from all sides.
  3. Begin bulk fermentation: every 30 minutes for 4 hours, repeat the folding process described above. During each fold, sprinkle in some of the chopped Mexican chocolate (total 1 ½ cups). Do this evenly over the course of the 4 hours.
  4. After bulk fermentation turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Use a bit of water or flour on your hands if needed. Fold the dough onto itself and tuck the bottom edges under to form a loose ball with surface tension. Cover with a cloth and let rest for 30 minutes.
  5. Lightly moisten your work surface and stretch the dough into a large rectangle (gently, without tearing). Sprinkle evenly with the 1/3 cup candied orange peel. Fold the dough into thirds (like a letter), then roll tightly like a cigar, creating tension as you roll. Tuck the sides under to form a round loaf.
  6. Place the shaped loaf into a floured banneton or proofing basket, seam-side up. Dust the top with more flour, cover with a towel, and place in the refrigerator to proof for 14-16 hours.
  7. Preheat your oven to 450°F (or as high as it will go). Place your Dutch oven inside to preheat as well. When ready, remove the dough from the fridge and carefully invert it onto a piece of parchment paper. Dust the top generously with flour and gently smooth it with your hands. Score the loaf using a lame or sharp blade. Transfer to the hot Dutch oven, cover, and bake for 20 minutes covered, then 20-25 minutes uncovered, until deeply golden brown.
  8. Carefully remove from the Dutch oven and place on a cooling rack. Let it cool for at least 1 hour before slicing. (This is hard. Do it anyway.)

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