I gave up! I had been searching for a sourdough multigrain seed bread recipe for about 3 months to absolutely no avail. And yes, there are lots of recipes out there. But many call for ingredients that I simply don’t have on hand. Or ever want to include in my recipes. Or are way too healthy for the likes of me and mine. Or vegan. Or gluten free. Or whatever!!! My objection list could fill this whole page. I just wanted a straight forward, simple recipe that included basic ingredients I almost always had on hand. Was that too much to ask? Apparently – yes it was! (And yes, I was being lazy and wanted the perfect recipe just handed to me. Waahh………….)

So yesterday I stopped researching recipes and decided to don my mad scientist’s hat instead. After all, I’d been baking and messing with bread recipes since the early 70s. So why not just take a chance. Start with a basic recipe, add ingredients with sheer abandon, and see what happens? Well, what happened is the recipe you find below. And in all honesty, I wouldn’t change a thing about this bread. Really flavorful, lovely crumb, moist but still slices beautifully, and perfect for either toast in the morning or to imprison the likes of meat, cheese, mustard, and mayonnaise for lunch. In other words – I got lucky!

And the beauty of my sourdough bread is that you can start it in the morning and bake it off later that same day. (That’s what a small inclusion of active dry yeast brings to the table, or in this case, the oven!)

So if you too are looking to build a sourdough sandwich bread that is easy to prepare, includes healthy ingredients, and tastes like it came from an exclusive bakery, then give this recipe a try. And change up the seeds, or add more seeds, if that is your desire. Matters not. We just happen to love fennel seeds, so I threw in a couple of teaspoons for good measure. But poppy seeds, pumpkin seeds, or flax seeds would also be delicious. Or some of all the above. Live it up! It’s your bread after all.

So as always – happy baking, stay safe, laugh outrageously every chance you get, and never let down your quest to make the lives of those around you just a little bit better by your presence. Virtual hugs from Chez Carr.

1 c. sourdough starter

¾ tsp. active dry yeast

2/3 c. slightly warm water

2 T. honey

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp. fine sea salt

2 T. flax meal

2 T. rye flour

¼ c. whole wheat flour

½ c. whole oats

2½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more if needed

¼ c. sunflower seeds

2 T. sesame seeds, plus more for top

2 tsp. fennel seeds

Combine the sourdough starter, dry yeast, water, honey, and olive oil in the bowl of your stand mixer. Let sit for 15 minutes.

Add the salt, flax meal, rye flour, whole wheat flour, oats, and 2 cups of the unbleached all-purpose flour to the liquid ingredients. Using your bread hook, mix just until combined. Add the seeds and enough of the remaining unbleached all-purpose flour to make a dough that is still a bit tacky to the touch, but basically cleans the bowl. (This process usually takes about 5 minutes.)   

Pour a bit of olive oil over the dough, and using your hands, roll the dough into a ball making sure the entire surface is lightly greased.

Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel, and let rise for 75-90 minutes or until when gently poked with a finger an indentation remains in the dough.

Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan. (I use cooking spray.) Deflate the dough, and form into a loaf shape. (I tuck about a third of the dough under from the right, then tuck another third under from the left, then tuck in both ends.) Place in the greased loaf pan and gently pat dough into the corners. (The dough is basically flat at this point.) Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap and let rise for 2-2½ hours. (It’s ready when the middle of the loaf is about ½ to ¾-inch above the rim of the pan.)

Lightly brush or spray the top of the loaf with water. Sprinkle with sesame seeds (or seeds of choice). Make 3-4 diagonal cuts across the top being careful not to deflate the bread.

Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the internal temperature reaches at least 190 degrees.

Remove from oven and carefully place the bread (after you remove it from the baking pan) on a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.