Shortly after we moved back to Chicagoland 5 years ago, Kelly & Gilbert came for a visit. Kelly brought me some sourdough starter and a sourdough cookbook. She had been given some sourdough starter by a friend of hers and since I love to bake, Kelly wanted to share her sourdough starter with me. Unfortunately, I discovered that sourdough was not my thing, so my starter finished out its days languishing in the fridge and was never really used. Sounds like the end of the story. But it isn’t.

When the pandemic hit and Eric started working remotely, he was home more than he had ever been in our past married life. Since he has always loved sourdough bread, he tried his hand at making a starter and turning it into bread. He enjoyed the process and continues to make delicious loaves for us on a regular basis.

One thing has always bothered me about sourdough: having to discard half of the starter every few days. It seemed like a huge waste, which is something I try not to do. Then I learned that the discard (the portion of the starter that is taken out and usually thrown away before the starter is fed with more flour and water) could be collected and used in recipes, also. But what to make?!

With this particular recipe in mind, Eric collected enough discard in a mason jar for me over the course of a few days to make this delicious maple breakfast bread. The recipe is also very timely. Maple sugaring season is just getting started throughout maple tree regions. And I had been gifted with some pure maple syrup just a few weeks ago. (Thank you, John & Cheri!)

Sliced and toasted and spread with a pat of butter, this bread makes a wonderfully scrumptious breakfast and brings back fond memories of our time living and vacationing throughout New England.

Sourdough Maple Walnut Bread (adapted from kingarthurflour.com)  Total Time Required: 1 hour, 25 minutes, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Bake Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes, Yield: 1 loaf of 16 slices

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup sourdough starter discard
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix together the starter, buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and maple syrup.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, stirring just until the mixture is evenly combined.

Stir in the walnuts.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and place it in the preheated oven.

Check the bread after 45 minutes. If it is already browning, tent the bread with foil. Bake for an additional 20-25 minutes, until the top of the loaf is golden brown and a paring knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. Turn it out of the pan and onto the rack to let it cool completely before slicing.

Serve the bread toasted, with a pat of butter. Store the bread, tightly wrapped in plastic, at room temperature for several days or freeze for longer storage.

Sourdough discard will never be wasted in our home again!  ~Linda

Sourdough Maple Walnut Bread (adapted from kingarthurflour.com)  Total Time Required: 1 hour, 25 minutes, Prep Time: 15 minutes, Bake Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes, Yield: 1 loaf with 16 slices

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup sourdough starter discard
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix together the starter, buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and maple syrup. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, stirring just until the mixture is evenly combined. Stir in the walnuts.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and place it in the preheated oven. Check the bread after 45 minutes. If it is already browning, tent the bread with foil. Bake for an additional 20-25 minutes, until the top of the loaf is golden brown and a paring knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. Turn it out of the pan and onto the rack and let it cool completely before slicing.

Serve the bread toasted, with a pat of butter. Store the bread, tightly wrapped in plastic, at room temperature for several days or freeze for longer storage.