Sweet Potato Sage Artisan Bread
Soft and tender with a touch of sweetness and a lovely orange hue. The sweet potato produces a moist, almost fluffy texture and results in a richer, heartier loaf! NOTE: This recipe has been updated to include an additional step in which the dough is cold proofed in the refrigerator prior to baking.
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups water, room temperature (at or near 70°F/21°C)
- 1¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 3 cups bread or all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1½ tablespoons fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato about 200 g, cooled (see notes)
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Add the yeast to the water and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sage and salt. Add mashed sweet potato and continue to mix until coated and well distributed, breaking it up with a fork if needed.
- Add yeast, water and olive oil to the bowl and use a rubber spatula to mix everything together until well incorporated. The dough will appear sticky and stringy and there should still be a little flour around the edges of the bowl.
- Cover and let rise somewhere warm (see note below) until it has doubled in size, about 8-10 hours.
- Once the dough has doubled in volume, use your hands (or a dough scraper if you have one) to pull the dough out onto a floured surface. With floured hands, gently fold the dough into itself several times until a soft, flour-covered ball is formed. Seam side up, lift and place it into a flour dusted proofing bowl. Dust with flour, cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour or as long as 24 hours. You can even leave it for as long as 48 hours at this point if you’re not able to bake it right away.
- When you're ready to bake your bread, preheat oven to 450ºF (232ºC) with a Dutch oven or covered baking vessel inside the oven.
- Uncover then invert the bowl to turn the dough out onto parchment paper seam side down. If needed, gently turn it with your hands and nudge it into the shape of a loaf. Score the top with a razor blade or the tip of a sharp knife with a design of your choosing. This will allow steam to escape while it’s baking.
- Once the oven is preheated, remove the Dutch oven from the oven and transfer the dough, still on the parchment, into the Dutch oven. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then remove the cover and bake for 15-20 minutes more. Your bread will be done once the top is browned, and it sounds hollow when you tap the top.
- Using parchment edges, lift bread from Dutch oven and transfer it to a wire cooling rack to let cool for up to an hour before slicing.
Notes
Sweet potato: For mashed sweet potato, wash sweet potato(es) then prick with a fork 3 or 4 times and bake in a 425°F (218ºC) oven for 30 to 40 minutes until pierced easily with a fork. Alternatively, sweet potatoes can be steamed in a microwave for 4-5 minutes. After checking for doneness, continue to cook in 30-second increments as needed until cooked through. Let cool completely then remove peel and mash before adding to recipe.
Seasoning: If you don’t have sage, rosemary and thyme are delicious alternatives. Adding ground cinnamon in place of the sage will produce a slightly sweeter tasting loaf. Dried herbs may also be used if fresh herbs are not available.
Rise time and temperature: An ambient rise temperature somewhere between ~70º-75º/20º-23ºC is ideal but even high 60's/18º-19ºC should work if the dough is kept away from drafts. Note that rise times can vary based on temperature, environment and ingredients used. You will know your loaf is ready to bake when it has doubled in size, and this can take a minimum of 2-3 hours or as long as a full day. With a little experimentation, you will find the time frame that works best for you.
Storage: This loaf will store well covered in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or sliced and frozen in a well-sealed plastic bag for up to 1 month.