Toasted Pistachio Cardamom Sourdough Loaf

1Toast the pistachios. Toast the raw pistachios in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, for 3 to 5 minutes until fragrant and lightly golden. Pull them off the heat the moment you can smell them, nuts go from toasted to burnt fast once they start browning. Let them cool completely before chopping, warm nuts turn gummy under a knife.

2Dissolve the starter. In a large bowl, dissolve the active starter into the lukewarm water, whisking until no lumps remain. The water should turn faintly cloudy once the starter is fully worked in. This is the same first move as the plain loaf, dissolving the starter before any flour goes in keeps it from clumping later.

3Mix in the flour, cardamom, and salt. Add about half the flour along with the ground cardamom and mix well, then add the salt, then add the remaining flour and mix until you have a shaggy, sticky dough. Mixing the cardamom in with the first half of the flour, rather than sprinkling it on top later, is what spreads the fragrance evenly through the crumb instead of leaving streaky patches. The dough will smell warm and a little floral even at this early, shaggy stage.

4Rest. Cover the bowl and rest 30 to 40 minutes. This short rest lets the flour fully hydrate before the first stretch and fold. In a humid South Florida kitchen the dough may already look faintly puffed by the end of this rest.

5First stretch and fold. Pull the dough up at the side of the bowl and fold it toward the center, rotating the bowl to fold every side, then scatter the toasted pistachios over the top and fold them in the same way. The chopped pistachios will feel a little sharp against the dough at first, that is normal. Fold gently so the pieces distribute evenly instead of bunching in one spot. Cover and rest 30 minutes.

6Repeat three more rounds. Repeat the stretch and fold three more times, for a total of four rounds, resting 30 minutes between each. By the last round the pistachios should be evenly distributed through the dough rather than sitting mostly on the surface, and the dough itself will feel smoother and more elastic under your hands.

7Bulk ferment. Cover the dough and let it ferment on the counter until it has risen about 50%. Watch the rise, not the clock. In a hot, humid kitchen this usually takes 2 to 3 hours. The cardamom does not affect fermentation speed, so treat the timing the same as a plain loaf.

8Turn out, pre-shape, and shape. Turn the dough onto a floured counter, pre-shape by folding the edges in, then roll it into a tight boule with the seam pinched closed. Cup both hands around the dough and drag it toward you in small circles to build surface tension, the same motion as a plain loaf. A pistachio piece or two poking through the surface is fine and looks nice once baked.

9Transfer to the banneton. Flour the banneton well, flip the dough in so the smooth shaped side faces down, pinch the seam closed on top, and dust with flour. A well-floured banneton keeps the dough from sticking, especially where a pistachio piece sits close to the cloth liner. Cover with a breathable cloth.

10Refrigerate overnight. Place the banneton in the refrigerator and let the dough proof overnight. An overnight cold proof slows fermentation down and gives you control over exactly when the loaf goes in the oven the next day. Take it straight from the fridge when you are ready to bake.

11Preheat. Place the Dutch oven inside your oven and preheat to 475°F, letting it heat for at least 30 minutes. A fully preheated Dutch oven is what gives this loaf its oven spring in the first few minutes of baking. Use the full 30 minutes even if your oven claims to have reached temperature sooner.

12Score and bake. Turn the dough onto parchment, score at a 45 degree angle, transfer to the Dutch oven with 4 ice cubes tucked under the parchment, and bake covered 30 minutes, then uncovered 10 minutes. By the time the lid comes off, the kitchen should already smell like cardamom. Look for good oven spring with the score mark opened into a clean ear and the pistachio pieces near the surface lightly toasted a second time.

13Finish on a baking sheet. Move the loaf to a baking sheet and bake open about 5 minutes more for a deep, golden crust. Keep an eye on any pistachio pieces sitting right on the surface, nuts can darken fast in these last few minutes. Pull the loaf a minute early if the crust already looks as dark as you want.

14Cool completely. Move the loaf to a cooling rack and let it cool completely, at least 1 hour, before slicing. Cardamom’s fragrance actually gets more noticeable as the loaf cools and the crumb finishes setting, so the wait pays off twice here.