Tortano loaf with potato, honey & thyme
Got your sourdough game down pat? Take it to the next level by turning your starter into a levain and partnering it with a poolish to create this wonderful Italian tortano loaf by Janine Edwards from London’s Toklas Bakery. The bread has an insane depth of flavour, bolstered with potato, thyme and honey. It’s a three-day affair but pretty hands-off – a joy to create for anyone who’s caught the breadmaking bug
Technical bake
The recipe
Makes 1kg loaf (cuts into 10 slices) Hands-on time 50 min, plus proving and resting across 3 days (see Make Ahead) Oven time 1 hour 40-45 min
MAKE AHEAD
You need to start the recipe 2 days before you plan to bake the bread. You’ll also need an active sourdough starter to make the levain, so you may need more time to make that – find a recipe at deliciousmagazine. co.uk/how-to-make-sourdough.
KNOW-HOW
To feed the levain, discard half and mix in the same quantities of flour, starter and warm water as in the recipe (60/20/35/80g).
For the poolish
• 90g plain flour, plus extra to dust
• Tiny pinch fast-action dried yeast
• 90g tepid water (around 18°C)
• 50g potato, coarsely grated
For the tortano
• 1 large king edward potato • 350g strong white bread flour
• 50g white spelt flour
• 250g warm water (about 35°C)
• 20g extra-virgin olive oil
• 10g runny honey
• Pinch dried thyme
• 10g sea salt
• Handful ice cubes
For the levain
• 60g strong white bread flour
• 20g white spelt flour
• 35g active sourdough starter (see Make Ahead)
• 80g warm water (about 35°C) →
DAY ONE (MORNING) 1 Mix all the ingredients for the poolish together in a small container and cover. Leave in a warm place for 18-24 hours until doubled in size.
2 Heat the oven to 160°C fan/gas 4. Put in the king edward potato and bake for 40 minutes or until soft throughout. Leave until cool enough to handle, halve, then scoop out and reserve the flesh. Put the skins back in the oven for 15-20 minutes until deep brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly, then put the skins in a blender and whizz into a powder. Reserve the whizzed potato skins and potato flesh in separate airtight containers in the fridge.
3 Finally, make the levain. Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl or container, then cover and leave next to the poolish. Give it a feed before you go to bed (see Know-how).
DAY TWO 4 In the morning, when the levain and poolish are ready, you can make the dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attached, add the 350g strong white bread flour and 50g spelt flour, warm water, oil, honey and thyme. Weigh out 115g of the poolish and add it to the bowl, then weigh out
