Sourdough Bread - with mostly white flour

After making sourdough bread using different recipes with various tweaks and iterations, I think I have finally arrived at a recipe that produces a loaf that I like.  It tastes good, has nice large holes, a crisp crust that stays crisp for a few days, and keeps for at least a week at room temperature. Since this bread is only flour, water and salt, you can eat it with anything - butter, Marmite, jam, avocado, sambal, etc.  It is also good for making croutons and crumbs.  The croutons made with this bread are perfect for making Ribollita.

80 g spelt flour

320 g bread flour

270 ml water

240 g sourdough starter (1:1 flour/water)

8 g salt 

2 ml (1/2 tsp) water

Mix the two flours with 270 ml water, in a large bowl, until all the water is absorbed. Cover with a plastic produce bag and set aside for 1 to 2 hours.

Mix the starter into the dough, by pinching and folding, until the dough looks uniform. Let the dough rest for 30 mins, covered.

Sprinkle the salt and 1/2 tsp water over the dough and mix until combined. Cover and rest for 1 hour.

Stretch and fold the dough, rotate bowl, and repeat, 6-8 times total.  Cover and rest for 30 minutes.  Repeat this process two more times.  After the third stretch & fold, let the cough rest for about 90 - 120 mins.  Here is a stretch & fold demo.

Get a banneton ready by sprinkling some flour. (I use a mixture of 1:1 all purpose flour & rice flour)

Tip the dough onto counter/board and flatten it slightly.  Shape into a ball or oblong shape depending on the shape of your banneton and baking vessel.  Use just your hands or one hand plus the other hand holding a dough scraper.

Transfer the dough to the banneton.  Place the banneton in a plastic produce bag, keep the bag somewhat taught so that the bag doesn't touch the dough.  Fold the bag under, and place the banneton in the fridge for 12 - 18 hours.

Pre heat the oven to 500 deg F. When the oven has reached 500, transfer the dough to a heavy cast iron pan (If you are worried about the bread sticking to the pan, you can line just the bottom of the pan with parchment first). Score the dough down the middle with a sharp blade.  Cover the pan and place in the oven.  Bake for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, turn the oven temp to 450 deg F, and remove the cover of the baking vessel.  Bake for 20 more minutes.  

Remove the pan with the bread from the oven, and carefully turn out the loaf on to a cooling rack.  Try not to slice the bread until it cools down to room temperature.