Recipe - Basic Sourdough Bread

1 cup Sourdough starter
2 One half cup Flour
2 cup Warm water
3 Three fourths To 4One fourth C flour
3 tablespoon Sugar
1 teaspoon Salt
One fourth teaspoon Baking soda
3 tablespoon Vegetable oil

Cold water

Mix 1 st 3 ingreds. in 3 qt. glass bowl with wooden spoon until smooth.
Cover; let stand in warm, draftfree place for 8 hours. Add 3Three fourths C flour,
sugar, salt, baking soda and oil to the mixture in bowl. Stir with wooden
spoon until smooth and flour is completely absorbed. (Dough should be just
firm enough to gather into a ball. If necessary, add remaining One half C flour
gradually, stirring until all flour is absorbed.) Turn dough onto heavily
floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place in
greased bowl; turn greased side up. Cover; let rise in warm place until
double, about 1One half hours. (Dough is ready if indentation remains when
touched.) Punch dough down; divide into halves. Shape each half into a
round, slightly flat loaf. Do not tear dough by pulling. Place loaves in
opposite corners of greased cookie sheet. Make three 1/4" deep slashes in
each loaf. Let rise until double, about 45 minutes. Heat oven to 375. Brush
loaves with cold water. Place cookie sheet in center of oven; it should not
touch the sides of the oven. Bake, brushing occasionally with water, until
loaves sound hollow when tapped, about 50 minutes. Remove from cookie
sheets; cool on wire racks.

Be sure to let dough rise completely both times it might take longer than
the estimated times given.

From The CookieLady's Files REformatted for MM:dianeE 6/29/93