Almost Sourdough


Hungry for sourdough bread but lacking a starter, I was happy to run across this recipe. It does not produce a true sourdough bread, but it's a great substitute. There's just enough of a slightly tangy flavor to satisfy that particular taste, yet mild enough for everyone. The dough is easy to work with, and produces a tender, hearty, pleasantly chewy loaf.

The originator of this recipe called it "Quick Sourdough Bread." Yes, compared to creating your own starter and waiting for five days until it's ready to use, it's "quick", but you still have to start this bread the day before you want to bake it. Totally worth it, by the way- my family really enjoyed this bread.


The day it was baked, it seemed a little sweet, but by the next day, the flavors had melded and balanced. That said, I will cut back on the sugar a little the next time I make this, just to see which version we like best.

You may not want to bake during these warmer months, but pin this one for later- you'll love me for it this fall.



Almost Sourdough Bread  Print Recipe
Makes 2 (9X5) loaves

2 and 1/2 cups warm water, divided use
3 tablespoons instant mashed potato flakes
3/4 cup sugar
1 envelope active dry yeast (2 and 1/4 teaspoons)
1/2 cup oil
1 tablespoon salt
6 to 7 cups bread flour

1. The day before: heat one cup water until warm, about 110-115 degrees. Mix it with potato flakes, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. It should start foaming a little within a few minutes. Cover and let stand at room temperature overnight. 
2. The next morning, heat remaining 1 and 1/2 cups water until warm, about 110-115 degrees. Mix it with the oil and salt and stir into the yeast mixture. Stir the flour into this mixture until smooth and well-combined (I did this with a stand mixer, using the dough hook, and used all 7 cups of flour).
3. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees), free from drafts, about one hour or until double in size. Stir or punch dough down and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Lightly knead each half 6 to 8 times, shape into loaves, and place in two 9X5 loaf pans that have been lightly sprayed with cooking spray. Cover and let rise until doubled in size.
4. During the last few minutes of rise time, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Uncover loaves and place in preheated oven. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown, rotating loves about half way through baking. Place pans on wire cooling rack for 15 minutes, then carefully turn loaves out of pans onto wire rack to finish cooling. Let cool completely before slicing or wrapping to store.

Cook's notes: I used a dark metal loaf pan and a glass Pyrex loaf pan. The bread in the metal pan was done in 35 minutes. The bread in the glass Pyrex pan took 40 minutes.


Recipe from Gooseberry Patch

Almost Sourdough may have been taken to some of these fun parties!



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71 comments:

  1. This looks so fresh and just amazing, Joy ! Pinned and stumbled :-)

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  2. My picky eater will eat any and all kinds of breads. So, I am thinking I may need to try this one for her. Thank you Joy for sharing :)

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  3. Oh, now I love this one! Sourdough is so good, but the wait to make it from a start and keeping it alive in the fridge for whenever I get to it, is....well, I don't have one going, so what does that tell you. This bread looks amazing and I WILL try it very soon. Carrie, A Mother's Shadow

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  4. Looks delicious! Since I've never made a true sourdough, I'd never know what was missing. But I do enjoy making bread, so this one should be a keeper... :-)

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  5. I love sour dough but haven't had any luck, more like disasters :) Your loaves are beautiful and worth another try!
    Jenna

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  6. Joy,

    I honestly think I have more of a weakness for bread than for desserts as much as I love them. This bread look so delicious to me. I would love a warm piece with some honey. I tried a few time to make me a sour dough starter, but I am sad to say I had to toss it out because I could not remember to take care of it. This seems like a better way to make sour dough bread. I am pinning, sharing, tweeting, and Stumbling.
    Blessings,
    Diane Roark

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  7. Looks beautiful! I don't think there is anything better than a fresh baked loaf of bread, warm from the oven! I am holding onto this one.
    Blessings,
    Shari

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  8. I love making homemade bread!! I have never tried real sourdough though - I am too intimidated!! This looks easy enough - I should give it a try!

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    1. Jamie, it really is easy....I think it was the easiest dough I have ever worked with. Bread flour makes a huge amount of difference, IMO. I have just finished making my own starter, so I may be attempting real sourdough bread soon. :D

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  9. Your loaves look so beautiful!
    Thanks for this sourdough-ish recipe. I'm pinning it.

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  10. We eat so much homemade bread at our house. Looks fantastic!

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  11. Oh my…gorgeous bread! Bring on the butter…

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  12. Joy, your bread looks perfect! I would love a slice with a big-o-pat of butter on it! Pinned and sharing!

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  13. that is some pretty bread! recipe sounds easy and delish! We love sour dough so waiting a day vs. 5 is awesome!

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  14. This bread looks delicious, Joy! I love it's an "easy" version of sourdough....I need easy!!

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  15. This looks delicious! I love baking breads and definitely want to try this recipe. Pinning!

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  16. This bread recipe looks fabulous! I love how fresh it looks...so delicious...thanks for sharing!

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  17. Great recipe Joy. Can't wait to try it on my family. I love making bread.

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  18. Hmmmm...I can almost smell this through the computer screen!

    Thanks for sharing at Marvelous Monday on Smart Party Planning :-)

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  19. Yuummmmm, I love sourdough!! Totally pinning this one, because I have never messed with starter and have no idea what to do with it :) I'm already following your lovely blog, but saw you over at Treasure Box Tuesday too! :)
    ~April @DimplesandDelights

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  20. Stopping over from Tuesdays with a Twist. This looks delicious and I love homemade bread. I can't wait to give this one a try. Thanks for sharing! Living Inspired, Kristin

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  21. G'day! I swear I can smell this from here Joy! Great photo!
    Cheers! Joanne @What's On The List

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  22. Oh this looks like a wonderful loaf of bread!! Thank you so much for sharing over at The Wednesday Round Up Link Party! ~ Angela ~ LeMoine Family Kitchen

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  23. Looks amazing Joy. Thanks for sharing!

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  24. Oh my, this looks so good, I used to bake 9 loves of bread a week when my kids were all home, it was always nice to see them enjoy the homebaked!!! Thanks for stopping by to link up this week over at Oh My Heartsie Girl, do appreciate it!!! Enjoy your day!! #WW

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  25. Delicious and perfect bread. I love homemade bread a lot, sharing and pinning it

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    1. Thanks for sharing with Hearth and Soul blog hop.

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  26. We love sourdough bread and I usually buy it at least twice monthly. Will definitely give this recipe a try since I we eat sourdough so often and I have bread flour to use up. Thanks for sharing. Pinned.

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  27. This looks fantastic! Love that it makes it so much easier without sacrificing taste. Thank you for linking at the In and Out of the Kitchen Link Party. Hope to see you again next week!

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  28. I want to make some. :) This looks like maybe I'll be able to do it!

    Pinning it!
    Thanks for sharing Joy!

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  29. Those look delicious! Now I must try the recipe - thank you for sharing with us!

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  30. Oh I can almost smell it...it looks so good. Thanks for sharing on the Thursday Blog Hop!

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  31. These loves are beautiful. I love making bread.

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  32. I love sourdough, and I'll try anything easy! Love that you suggested pinning for later. :)

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  33. Joy...your loaves are pure perfection. I'm not a big fan of sourdough....I bet I would really enjoy a slice of your bread...it sounds wonderful!
    Thanks for sharing your baking skills with us at Project Inspire{d}!! :)

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  34. I can almost smell your homemade bread from "FancyThisFriday" linkup! Wow, they look so yummy.
    Ok...must run and make some toast...

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  35. Your bread looks amazing! Going to pin it and hopefully make it instead of just drool over yours. :)

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  36. Pinning for my son to make for his home ec course. He LOVES sourdough, and while I adore bread enough to pay just about anything for it, it sure would be more convenient to be able to make it at home.

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  37. Pinning this for my son. He LOVES sourdough, and I have yet to meet a loaf of bread I didn't like.

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  38. This is a wonderful bread! I cut the amount of sugar in half after reading your comments. Also, to intensify the sourdough flavor a bit, I used whey from my yogurt making instead of water. So far we have only had it as toast for breakfast. I am eager to try it for sandwiches, though I don't know if it is stiff enough. (Don't get me wrong, the softness of this bread is an asset! The potato flakes probably help with this.)

    Thank you so much for sharing a recipe that I will definitely make again.

    Jocelyn

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  39. This bread looks so yummy! I may have to experiment with this recipe and try a gluten free version.
    Thanks for linking up in the Bloggers Brags Party at Surviving Toddlerhood. I hope you can join us again soon!

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  40. Love a good homemade bread! I've always been a bit afraid of sourdough, but maybe with this "quick" recipe, I can give it a try. :) I hope you can stop on by and share this or any other recipe with us on Five Friday Finds party! (Open until midnight Wednesday.)

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  41. I love baking bread but haven't done it in some time. I'm thinking Amara and I will have to try this when the temperatures cool -- whenever that might be!

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  42. Bread is a total weakness of mine. This one looks fantastic & anything that's quick is right up my alley.

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  43. YUM! I love sourdough but don't have a starter so this is perfect. Thank you for sharing at Tuesdays with a Twist. YOU have been featured today at Back to the Basics!!!

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  44. Your bread looks amazing. Thanks for sharing at this week's party @DearCreatives Theresa

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  45. What a tasty looking loaf! Thanks for linking up to Snickerdoodle Sunday!

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  46. Thank you for sharing your fantastic recipe on #TheWeekendSocial ! I am always thrilled to see your amazing contributions to the Link Party! I hope to see you again this Thursday at 9 PM EST.
    XoXo
    Heidy L. McCallum

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  47. This recipe looks delicious. Thanks for linking up to The Creative Exchange!
    xo, Laura

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  48. Congratulations!
    Your recipe is featured on Full Plate Thursday this week. Enjoy your weekend and your new Red Plate.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

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  49. I have been making bread for my family since the beginning of the year but I have not tried any started bread recipes yet. Maybe this will be my intro into starter bread. Thank you for the recipe!

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  50. You did it again!! Most viewed this week at Freedom Fridays!! It looks like I am not the only one that loves this bread!!!

    Hugs:))

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  51. This looks delish, Joy! Awesome recipe!

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  52. Thanks for stopping by and sharing this recipe with us - you're featured this week on Five Friday Finds! I'm looking forward to what you share this week. :)

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  53. They look like perfect loaves, great job! Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!!

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  54. This looks so amazing! I can smell it right now and I'm sure it tastes heavenly. Pinned.
    Hugs! Lou Lou Girls

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  55. I love potato bread and this looks exciting because it;s the kind of recipe that you can make week after week. Thanks for sharing!

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  56. Joy...I so made this bread this morning. The recipe worked like a charm and I used natural all purpose flour instead of bread flour. (I didn't have bread flour on hand.) And the breads still came out delish!!! I shared this with my readers on FB and Twitter. You're always welcome to share your posts with WJIM's Monday's Musings if you like. Thank you and have a great weekend.

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  57. I will definitely try it. (There was time that I used to make my own bread and buns but as the children left the nest; I got away from doing it.) So thank you for the inspiration as it sounds delish! ☺ -Brenda-

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  58. Bread has never looked so good :)

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  59. What a great idea for a sourdough bread Joy! Pinned and shared!

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  60. That bread looks perfect! Really beautiful, that's how a good loaf should look like! I want to try this recipe, and since I don't have the instant mashed potato flakes where I live, what should I use as a substitute?! Is it OK to use mashed potatoes and balance the water amount?! What should the texture be like?!

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    1. Julia, thank you so much for your kind words. The bread is delicious, I hope you can give it a try. Since I have not tried making it without the instant potatoes, I would not be able to advise you on making the substitution. The texture of the potato mixture when you make it at first is very watery. I can tell you that instant mashed potato flakes cook like rice- they expand to about twice their amount, and you cook 1 part flakes to 2 parts water. I do wish I could be more help on this. If you try a measurement of regular potatoes that works well for you, I would love to know! Best of luck! :)

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  61. How could you turn this into a regular starter recipe that you would maintain on a weekly basis

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  62. They loved the bread! I would just like to try to figure out how to make this into a regular starter recipe that I could keep in the fridge. The bread was delicious and a very tender.

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    1. LaDonna, I am so glad you enjoyed the bread- I can't believe you commented today- I was *just* thinking that I needed to make this bread again! If you figure out how to make and keep a starter, please do let us know...it's intriguing...I will ponder on it! Thank you for coming by, and I hope you have a great weekend! :)

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    2. Hey thanks for answering back! Didn't think it would so quick. My thoughts the next time I bake I will use the starter I have, but with your recipe. I received a starter last week and you you leave it in the fridge and feed every 5-7 days. You do not have to anything to it during those days in the fridge. So timing will be easy to plan ahead. My first trying it out. You have a great weekend yourself!

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    3. Using a regular sourdough starter sounds like a great idea. When you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out for you!

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  63. Made this last night and finished today. Great alternative to feeding the starter all the time. Yummy and Thanks for the recipe.

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    1. Tisa, I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know! :D

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