| 1 | Warm a large bowl. |
| 2 | Pour 1 ?cups warm water into warmed bowl. |
| 3 | Sprinkle yeast over water. |
| 4 | Set aside to soften 5 minutes. |
| 5 | Stir in sourdough starter, sugar and salt. |
| 6 | Beat in 3 cups flour until blended. |
| 7 | Cover with a cloth and set in a warm place free from drafts. |
| 8 | Let rise 1 ?to 2 hours or until doubled in size. |
| 9 | Lightly grease a large baking sheet; set aside. |
| 10 | Stir down dough. |
| 11 | Stir in enough remaining flour to make a medium stiff dough. |
| 12 | Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. |
| 13 | Knead dough 8 to 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. |
| 14 | Add more flour if necessary. |
| 15 | Shape kneaded dough into two 10x3 ? loaves. |
| 16 | Pull out ends of each to make them narrower than center of loaf. |
| 17 | Or shape into 2 round loaves. |
| 18 | Place on prepared baking sheet. |
| 19 | Cover with a cloth and set in a warm place free from drafts. |
| 20 | Let rise 1 to 2 hours or until almost doubled in size. |
| 21 | Preheat oven to 400°F. |
| 22 | Pour water 1" deep into a 12x 7? baking pan. |
| 23 | Place in bottom of preheating oven. |
| 24 | Use a pastry brush to brush tops of loaves with water. |
| 25 | Use a very sharp knife to cut diagonal slashes across tops of loaves. |
| 26 | Bake in preheated oven 45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and loaves sound hollow when tapped with your fingers. |
| 27 | After 30 minutes, if loaves are golden brown, cover with a tent of foil to prevent further browning. |
| 28 | Remove from baking sheet. |
| 29 | Cool on a rack. makes 2 loaves. |
