Chocolate Chunk Sourdough Bread from the Bakehouse
Dark chocolate chunks take Better Than San Francisco Sourdough to a super-tasty new place
One of my favorite Bakehouse breads! These loaves are the kind of food I love most: very simple, reliant only on great ingredients and great technique. It starts with the Bakehouse’s Better Than San Francisco Sourdough, a classic from the 19th-century California Gold Rush era—organic flour, filtered water, sea salt, and our sourdough starter. The sourdough is studded with chunks of excellent bean-to-bar dark chocolate from Belgium, and then baked until the crust is golden brown. Naturally leavened, it takes about 18 hours of skilled work by the Bakehouse bakers to make.
Although few Americans are familiar with it, eating bread and chocolate together is an everyday activity in Europe. This bread makes it easy! My late friend Daphne Zepos grew up in Greece but went to boarding school in France. There, she shared, chunks of bread and chocolate were a regular afternoon snack. She was in heaven! The image makes me smile—every time I eat some of this wonderful Chocolate Sourdough bread, I come back to it.
With the Chocolate Sourdough Bread, mostly, I just tend to tear off a chunk and eat it as is. You can also pop the whole loaf in the oven for about 15 minutes. Your entire kitchen will be filled with the delicious smell of warm chocolate and good bread. Great with good coffee—the Coffee Company’s Burundi, this month’s Roasters’ Pick, would make a beautiful pairing because it’s got such nice, naturally present cocoa flavors. It’d be pretty darn good if you warmed the loaf and then served it with vanilla gelato or ice cream. It’s also great spread with the Georgia Grinders Almond Butter, or some of their terrific Hazelnut Butter. Or try chocolate and cheese—toast lightly, drizzle on a bit of extra virgin olive oil, and then spread with some fresh ricotta.
Let me conclude with an unsolicited testimonial for the beauty of bread and chocolate from one of the food world’s great writers, M.F.K. Fisher, who said in Serve it Forth, “My mouth was full of fresh bread, and melting chocolate, and as we sat gingerly, the three of us on the frozen hill … we peered shyly and silently at each other and smiled and chewed at one of the most satisfying things I have ever eaten.” In stressful times, that sure sounds wonderful!
Ask for a taste next time you’re in the Bakehouse or Deli. The loaves come out of the oven on Mondays and Fridays around 2 pm. Or ship a few loaves to a chocolate-loving friend—it’s a sure hit as a gift. Check it out!
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