It’s been warm here in Central PA for the last few weeks so it’s a wonder that I concocted this recipe.  Oatmeal and Rye make me think that it would pair well with hearty soups or stews but, as it turns out, this light and tangy bread is a nice companion to PB&J, butter, eggs, or just about anything else.  The flavors are pretty subtle but definitely there.  It’s certainly a bread whose recipe I’ll keep around and I’ll probably try it again this winter, maybe with a hearty soup!

To make this loaf, I started with my mature levain, which is just a 100% hydration AP flour starter.  I added 25g of it to 100g of rye flour and 100g of King Arthur AP flour, resulting in what I dub the yin-yang starter for the weak AP flour and the strong rye.

I then added enough water to make it a 100% hydration starter, or 225g.  After about 10 hours my starter was alive, bubbly, smelling healthy, and looking good!

I then proceeded as follows.

• 350g of the starter
• 600g of KA AP flour
• 100g of freshly milled oat flour
• 425g of water
• 25g of salt

Mix all the ingredients together and let sit for 30 minutes.  Stretch and fold every 30 minutes for the first 3 hours per the Tartine book method.  After the last stretch and fold, divide the dough and preshape.  Let the dough relax and shape, then place in your proofing basket.  I put my loaves in the refrigerator overnight but you could let it rise for another 2-3 hours and bake right away.  It was hot in our kitchen so I decided to wait until it was a bit cooler the next day.

• Preheat your oven to 450°F.
• Turn your proofed loaf on to a peel and slash the bread as desired.
• Cook under steam for the first 15 minutes and complete without steam until done, roughly 30 minutes more.