sourdough goat cheese honey and pecan bites
This dough is a really wonderful way to mix up any sourdough routine. It is very adaptable and can be made savory or sweet. Here, I opted for sweet with these sourdough goat cheese honey and pecan bites which are a cross between a pastry, a bun, and flatbread. The dough is entirely naturally leavened with no commercial yeast. They are best served warm as the dough is softest and fluffiest when heated, and the savory cheese and sweet honey charmingly meld together.
ingredients
for the dough
- 70g butter, melted
- 150g water
- 100g sourdough starter
- 50g brown sugar
- 350g all-purpose flour
- 18g salt
for the topping
- 4 ounces goat cheese
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup pecans
steps
Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl and pinch and squeeze the dough to work the ingredients together until all is incorporated. Wet your hands and stretch the dough up and fold it in half over itself. Turn the bowl clockwise 90° and stretch and fold it once again. Turn the bowl twice more, each time 90° and stretch and fold each time, for a total of four stretches and folds. Then let the dough sit for 30 minutes. Repeat the stretch, fold, rotate, and rest sequence for a total of 6 times, over the course of 2 and a half hours. Then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a dish towel and let the dough sit until it has doubled and nearly tripled, about 14-16 hours at room temperature.
Roll the dough out and divide it into 12 roughly even pieces. I used a cookie cutter to cut out shapes, but feel free to simply form them with your fingers. Cover and let rest for another 2 hours.
After this final rest, preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly indent the centers of the dough pieces with your fingers and slather about 2 teaspoons of goat cheese over the top, followed by a streak of honey. Top with pecans. Bake for 25 minutes until golden.