Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Directions

1. Levain: The night before mixing your dough, make the levain by mixing together the levain ingredients in a mixing bowl or jar. Cover loosely and leave in a draft free space for up to 12 hours.
2. Mix the dough: The next morning in a large mixing bowl, add the wet dough ingredients and whisk until combined. Next, add in the flour and salt and mix using a wooden spoon or a dough whisk until a shaggy dough forms. Allow to rest for 30 minutes.
3. Bulk fermentation: Over a period of 3-4 hours, perform 2-3 sets of stretch and folds or coil folds on the dough to develop the gluten structure. The dough should increase by 20-30% over this time.
4. Shape: After the bulk ferment, grease a 9x4 pullman or 9x5 inch loaf pan. Turn the dough out onto a work surface (try not to use any flour if you can-- wet hands and a very lightly damp work surface will do). Square off the dough, fold each side into the middle, and roll into a loaf shape the approximate length of the loaf pan. Place the dough seam side down into the pan and cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap.
5. Proof: Allow the loaf to rise at room temperature until the dough just reaches the top edge of the pan. The timing on this can vary based on the temp in the room, but this can take anywhere between 3 and 5 hours. Alternatively, you can let it rise at room temp part of the way, and then refrigerate until you want to bake it.
6. Bake: Once the dough has risen to the top of the pan, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Score the loaf, if desired, and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown. Immediately remove the loaf from the pan and allow to cool on a wire rack fully before slicing.