It’s National Coffee Day. Your brain is running on caffeine, your planner is full of sticky notes, and your students are asking for extra credit while you’re just trying to remember if you ate lunch.
So I made a solution. A sourdough solution.
I swapped the water in my usual sourdough recipe with cold brew coffee and, honestly, I may never go back. It’s toasty, rich, and slightly nutty…just like you after grading essays at 1 a.m.
This is your new favorite loaf, powered by coffee and teacher survival instincts.
Why Cold Brew Sourdough?
Aside from being a hilarious coping mechanism, using cold brew in place of water adds an aroma like no other and a subtle coffee flavor that pairs perfectly with butter, jelly, or more coffee!
If you’re already making sourdough, this is the easiest upgrade you’ll ever make.
And if you’re a teacher? Consider this your new form of self-care. Peep the video below and the full recipe below that.
Cold Brew Sourdough Recipe
Ingredients:
- 325g cold brew coffee (room temperature and unsweetened)
- 100g active sourdough starter
- 500g bread flour
- 12g salt
Instructions:
- Feed your starter and let it double.
- Mix cold brew and starter in a large bowl until combined.
- Add flour and salt. Stir until shaggy.
- Put on a glove (optional but recommended) and mix until fully incorporated.
- Perform slap and folds for gluten development.
- Cover with a damp towel and rest for 1 hour.
- Do 4 sets of stretch and folds, 30 minutes apart.
- Let it bulk ferment until doubled and jiggly (between 6-8 hours).
- Shape into a ball, place into a towel-lined, floured bowl.
- Cover and cold-proof in the fridge for 24 hours.
- Preheat your Dutch oven to 475°F.
- Score the dough and bake (lid on) for 25 minutes.
- Remove lid and bake 15–20 minutes more (until internal temp hits 200°F).
- Cool on a rack for at least 1 hour. Eat with coffee. Obviously.
Ready to Bake and Grade?
If you’re surviving conference week with caffeine and carbs, this cold brew sourdough is your new best friend. Share your loaf, tag a fellow teacher, and treat yourself to something warm, crusty, and deeply caffeinated.
Your inbox can wait. Your dough cannot. Buen provecho!