potatoes

This recipe is an entirely sourdough, naturally-leavened dough that I often experiment with. It is extremely versatile and flexible in either a sweet or savory direction. I learned to make pizza with potatoes in Tuscany years ago, and I personally love it, though I know not everyone would agree. These sourdough bites with potatoes, scallions, and cream cheese are a sort of reference to classic potato pizza with an added flair of scallions and cream cheese. These sourdough bites will be sure to satisfy many cravings. 

Makes about 24 bites 

ingredients

for the dough

  • 50g butter
  • 150g water
  • 100g sourdough starter 100% hydration
  • 50g sugar
  • 350g flour
  • 18g salt

for the toppings and assembly

  • 2 ounces (¼ cup) cream cheese, softened
  • 2 russet potatoes, thinly sliced
  • ¼ cup scallions, sliced
  • ¼ cup chives, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons salt

steps

In a large bowl, mix together the butter and water then add the starter and mix until combined. Add in the sugar and mix, then add in the flour and salt and mix until the dough is evenly combined. It will be shaggy at first but become blended and somewhat sticky as you mix. With wet hands, pinch and press the dough until it is smooth then cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for 2 hours. 

After the dough has rested for 2 hours, stretch the top of it up and fold it over itself. Turn the bowl 90° to the right and pull the top of the dough up and over. Repeat this 8 times total. Let the dough sit for another hour then repeat the folding process 8 more times. Let the dough sit for one more hour then repeat the series of folds one last time, for a total of three stretch and fold sequences.

Let the dough rest for about 14 hours overnight until it has doubled in size. After this bulk fermentation, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and cut it into squares. I used a 2 ¾ x 2 ¾-inch square cutter, but you can just as easily use a knife or bench scraper.

Let the squares rest for 1-2 hours until they puff up. After this final rest, preheat the oven to 375°F.

Spread about ½ teaspoon of softened cream cheese on each square then layer with potatoes, scallions, and chives. Top each square with cracked black pepper and a pinch of salt. 

Bake for 20 minutes at 375°F, then turn the oven up to 450°F and bake for 10 more minutes.