About Levain Breads
Levain is a bread-leavening agent used traditionally in France and today by artisan bakeries around the world. It produces breads with rich aroma, pleasant structure and excellent keeping properties. Levain is a type of pre-ferment, which is made in two fermentation steps from an active sourdough starter culture, flour and water. It yields a rather dry and porous dough, which can be kept refrigerat- ed for up to a week.
The process consist of a sour starter made from a wild culture of organic white grapes wrapped in cheese cloth and placed in water and flour that is mixed together and allowed to sit in the open for several days. This exposure to air encourages the natural growth of fungus and bacteria. The fungus or yeast that grows tends to inhibit the growth of dangerous bacteria, making levain safe to use. Once the levain is prepared, a process that under the best of circum- stances usually takes at least a day, bread dough is mixed with the starter, and the mixed dough will naturally rise. The dough is then covered and stored in a warm place for quickest rising. Rather than simply remaking it each time, the levain is maintained and mixed into bread dough, a portion is removed, put back in the starter receptacle and remixed with flour and water to maintain the starter so it is readily available for the next batch of bread.
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