Ingredients

• 375g leaven (recently fed sourdough starter)
• 375g boiling water
• 500g organic dark rye flour
• 12g fine salt
• 30g black treacle

Method

This recipe starts with your sourdough starter, which you can make using this recipe if you don't already have one: www.foodfitforfelix.com/2018/02/21/sourdough-starter/

The night before your bake, refresh your starter and feed it with equal quantities of flour and water to make up your 375g leaven.

I make this bread using a stand mixer (trusty Kitchenaid) with a dough hook, as it's particularly sticky and difficult to handle.

1. Pour the hot water over the rye flour, mix together, cover with a shower cap or damp tea towel, and leave to autolyse for 4 hours.
2. Add the leaven, treacle and salt.
3. Mix/knead for 10 minutes.
4. Cover and leave to proof for 4 hours.
5. Heavily flour a material-lined banneton basket.
6. Tip your dough out, squash it all together and pop it into the banneton with the help of a dough-scraper.
7. Cover the basket and leave it to proof for another 4 hours.
8. Preheat your oven and baking stone or dutch oven if using, to 250°C.
9. Bake at 180°C for 1 hour.
10. Remove your bread and leave it to cool on a wire rack.

NOTE: This bread will improve in flavour if given a couple of days to mature.