Sourdough - Little Wife in the Woods

The Best Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread Recipe

September 3, 2024

This pesto parmesan sourdough bread is everything! Swirled with Parmesan cheese, the robust flavors of pesto, and topped with more cheese on top. Eat it warm fresh from the oven or turn into mini pizzas!

Sourdough Starter

This bread is made using sourdough starter. You can however follow these instructions using your own yeast bread recipe to make pesto parmesan bread. However, the sourdough element just takes it up a notch!

If you do not have sourdough starter you can follow this recipe to make your own starter and be baking a loaf of this delicious bread by next week!

Making your own starter (or rehydrating ours!) is simple. We have curated instructions that are not complicated and use words everyone can understand. Plus get all the tips, tricks, and recipes right here in one place!

If you are wanting to learn how to use sourdough there is no better time than now! Learn all the ropes and be making delicious goodies for all your friends and family in time for the holidays. You will not want to miss our fall sourdough recipe coming up this month and in October!

Sourdough Stretch And Folds

Stretch and fold is a term used for the process of allowing the gluten to break down in your sourdough while also making your bread light and airy. Stretch and folds are necessary in most sourdough bread that requires no kneading or is called an “artisan” loaf.

Your dough will be relatively wet, or sticky after mixing. This is exactly what you want. After fermentation you will notice it is a bit more firm but able to be stretched a good bit and maybe still slightly sticky. If you find it is sticking to your hands a lot you may want to try working with wet hands or lightly dusting your hands with some flour.

Here is the process of stretching and folding further explained…

Pretend your ball of dough is a square. Start on the end that is farthest away from you. You will pull this end of your “square” UP, slightly stretch it OUT in a Y shape, then over the dough towards the side of the square that is closest to you.
Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat the process. Up, out, over.
Rotate once more a quarter turn, taking the dough from underneath then up, out, over.
Rotate one more time a quarter turn, then stretch up, out, over.
Cover your bowl with a slightly damp tea towel. Let rest 30 minutes (flexible). Repeat the process as many times as the recipe directs.

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Folding Techniques for Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread

The folding technique for making pesto parmesan sourdough bread really matters when it comes to getting the pesto and cheese flavors evenly throughout the bread. You want that nice swirling pattern that really makes the flavors burst. Here are some detailed instructions on how to fold the dough…

•Start by pressing (not rolling) your dough out flat on a floured surface.

•Add a layer of pesto, then top with shredded Parmesan cheese avoiding the edges of the dough.

•Fold the dough into thirds (almost as if you were rolling up a sleeping bag).

•Press the dough flat again.

•Add another layer of pesto and cheese.

•Fold into thirds again then shape into a loaf.

The key is to not handle the dough too much or too roughly. By now you will have completed your stretch and folds giving you those nice bubbly patterns throughout the dough. You do not want to damage these by mishandling the dough. That is why I recommend pressing the dough flat instead of rolling.

Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread Pizza

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that you can easily turn it into quick mini sourdough pizzas! You can use whatever pizza ingredients you have on hand. Use these instructions to turn your bread into sourdough pizza!

Cut bread into 1-1 1/2 inch slices and place on a greased sheet pan.
Top with sauce, cheese, and other toppings you have on hand.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and toppings are hot.

Ingredients

The ingredients for this pesto parmesan sourdough bread are simple and fairly inexpensive. I find all my organic ingredients like flour, baking powder, and more from Thrive Market! They are a one stop shop for all things clean label that delivers right to your door.

Thrive Market helps me achieve my goals of providing my family with quality, from scratch meals! Thrive offers affordable pricing on natural ingredient pantry staples, snacks, cleaning products, and so much more. Shop thousands of products from hundreds of trusted, clean label brands that ship right to your door! Use my link below to shop and save!
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Sourdough Starter

Water

Baking Powder

Salt

Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Pesto (homemade or store-bought)

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Powdered Parmesan cheese (optional; for top)

Baking Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread

This recipe an artisan style bread requiring the use of a Dutch oven. The Dutch oven gives the bread a moist, chewy center with a delicious outer crust. However, you can transfer these instructions to the use of a regular sandwich style loaf pan.

Simply shape the loaf into a sandwich style shape after folding the pesto and cheese into the dough (as mentioned above). Bake for 35-40 minutes on 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Tips for Baking Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread

1. Be sure to follow folding instructions above to get a good swirled pattern.

2. Don’t overwork your dough in the folding and shaping process.

3. Be sure to scour the dough well to keep the pesto and cheese from expanding through the dough.

4. If using a Dutch oven for best results bake with the lid on for 20 minutes and off for 15 minutes. Add the Parmesan to the top in the last 7 minutes of baking.

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Pesto Parmesan Sourdough Bread

Enjoy this delicious loaf of pest parmesan sourdough bread! This bread is cheesy, bursting with flavor, and simple to make. Eat it fresh from the oven or turn it into mini pizzas!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 9 30

Cook Time 35

Total Time 10 5

Course Appetizer, bread, Pizza, Side Dish

Servings 1 loaf

Equipment

1 Dutch Oven See note one.

Ingredients

1 cup sourdough starter
1 cup warm water
2 tsp honey
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tbsp salt
2½-3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 oz pesto
8 oz shredded parmesan cheese
½ cup powdered parmesan cheese

Instructions

Combine sourdough starter and water. Allow to sit for 15 minutes to dissolve then stir well.
Add honey, baking powder, and salt.
Add two cups flour, then 1/4 cup of flour at a time until the dough is still slightly sticky but does not stick fully to sides of bowl. You may use a stand mixer but I prefer to use my hands so the dough does not get overly mixed.
Place dough in a greased or slightly floured bowl (to keep from sticking). For best results, allow to rise one hour. Then allow to ferment in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours for best result.
After fermentation begin stretch and folds. See note two.
After stretch and folds are complete place dough on a floured surface and press flat but try not to overwork the dough.
Add half the pesto and half the shredded parmesan to the top of your pressed dough. Avoid the edges. See note three.
Fold dough into thirds.
Press dough flat again and add another layer of pesto and parm.
Fold into thirds once more then shape into a circular loaf, again try not to over handle the dough.
Place dough uncovered in the refrigerator for one hour. While dough is in the refrigerator preheat dutch oven at 425℉ for one hour.
Scour the dough and make art if desired.
Place dough in the dutch oven and at 400 for 20 minutes with the lid on.
Remove dutch oven lid and bake for 8 minutes.
Add powdered parmesan cheese to the top of the bread. Bake an additional 7 minutes.
After baking time is complete remove the bread from dutch oven and allow to cool before slicing.

Notes

Note one: this recipe is made for a dutch oven but instructions for how to make it in a regular bread loaf pan can be found in the post.

Note two: Fermentation is required for optimal taste and best texture. However if you wish to streamline you can do stretch and folds while bread ferments on the counter for 5-8 hours.

Note three: the entire shaping process can be found in the post above!

Keyword artisan bread, artisan sourdough, dutch oven recipe, pesto bread, pesto parmesan bread, pesto recipe, sourdough bread recipe, sourdough recipe

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The Best Sourdough Blueberry Muffins: Healthy Sourdough Discard Recipe

August 14, 2024

These sourdough blueberry muffins are subtly sweet, soft, and so delicious! These muffins are proof that healthy can taste just a good. Enjoy dessert guilt-free with natural ingredients and only natural sugar!

Sourdough Blueberry Muffins: Why Sourdough?

If you are new to sourdough or you have only ever tried sourdough in bread it may sound a bit odd to find it in the ingredient list of sweets like muffins or cookies! Adding sourdough starter to your recipes gives them such a nice texture and adds probiotics into the food. Making sweets with sourdough starter does not automatically make them healthy! However, it does give them a better quality and the added health benefits.

How does adding sourdough benefit me physically?

Sourdough starter is loaded with probiotics. When you add it into foods, even sweets, you are automatically getting benefits that you would not get in other recipes. Needless to say, when you add other bad ingredients (sugar, chocolate chips, ingredients with corn syrup, etc.) the sourdough starter does not eliminate all the bad. What am I saying?

When you use sourdough starter, along with other healthy ingredients you can be guaranteed that you are providing a healthy, gut supporting food to your family! Even sweets!

Does adding sourdough impact the taste?

Adding sourdough almost 100% of the time impacts the texture of your food for the better. However, it can effect the taste of the food if too much is added. I would recommend starting slow. Adding 1/4-1/2 a cup of sourdough starter to a recipe you want to convert is the best way for experimenting with taste. Sweet and salty always offset sour. If you find that recipe are having too much of a sour taste adjust by adding a bit more sweetener and salt to bring balance.

Natural Sugar vs. Processed Sugar.

In our from scratch kitchen we choose to use only natural forms of sugar. This decision came by research and our personal health journeys. For many reasons we have decided that natural sugar is the best option for us.

What is the best kind of natural sugar for Sourdough Blueberry Muffins

There are about five main natural sugars that are commonly used in the U.S. and widely available to everyone…

Honey. Probably the most widely available and healthy of the natural sugars is honey. You can find it in some form in just about any grocery store and due to the revival of homesteading many can find local, fresh honey nearby. It is also very affordable.
Maple Syrup. Maple syrup is another very pure source of natural sugar that can be found commonly in the U.S. and Canada. It’s robust flavor is a great option for replacing brown sugar in recipes!
Agave Nectar. This is a more expensive, less available natural sugar from the agave plant.
Monk Fruit Sweetener. This is natural, plant derived sweetener is another great source of natural sugar and closely mimics the taste of processed sugar in sweets. it is becoming more widely available.
Cane Sugar. Another great source of natural sugar is cane sugar, however it can be a bit tricky to find a trustworthy source that does not over-process it and add fillers, chemicals, and preservatives.

To answer the question, “Which is best?”, it really depends on what you are making and on personal taste. I think the closest to the taste of processed sugar you will get is mixing different kinds of natural sugar. Things that require brown sugar tastes bast when you mix honey and maple syrup because it produces a much more robust flavor. Cane sugar tastes the closest to processed sugar, it is just a bit more course and a bit sweeter (use less!).

Baseline- experimentation is key!

Sourdough Blueberry Muffins Ingredients

The ingredients required for sourdough blueberry muffins are simple. You can keep your kitchen stocked with quality, organic ingredients when you shop at Thrive Market! They are my number one go to for all the organic, clean label ingredients that I can eat peacefully knowing they are good for my body.

Thrive Market helps me achieve my goals of providing my family with quality, from scratch meals! Thrive offers affordable pricing on natural ingredient pantry staples, snacks, cleaning products, and so much more. Shop thousands of products from hundreds of trusted, clean label brands that ship right to your door!

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Sourdough Starter

You will need active or discard sourdough starter. Active starter is best and will give your muffins a more fluffy texture. However, discard can also be used effectively when an extra teaspoon of baking powder is added.

Water

Honey

Honey or another sweetener of choice will be required to replace the processed sugar in these sourdough blueberry muffins. Cane sugar is also another great option that will produce a similar taste.

Maple Syrup

Maple syrup gives these muffins a burst of flavor!

Butter

Eggs

Salt

Baking Powder

All-purpose Flour

Fresh or Frozen Blueberries

Click here to check out our recipe for Sourdough Apple Cinnamon Muffins!

Sourdough Blueberry Muffin Tips

Fermentation

Fermenting the muffin batter is optional in this recipe. However, fermenting will give it a better texture and flavor when baked. Add the fermentation step by allowing your batter to sit for serval hours (4-8 hours) or overnight in the refrigerator (8-12 hours).

Adding this step will also allow the gluten from the flour to break down better. The breakdown of the gluten makes it best for those with gluten sensitivities. This is because the body does not have to do the work of breaking the gluten down. The work has already been done by the fermenting process.

Adding Berries

If you are using a stand mixer or hand mixer to mix your batter I highly recommend adding the blueberries in by hand. The use of a mixer will break your berries and give the batter a blue/green color that does not look as pleasant. When they are added gently by hand the result is much more appealing!