The easiest bread I've ever made ~ chapter 2 ~ sourdough rye

I'm about to run out of that other loaf that I blogged about a few days ago, so last night before I went to bed, I started another batch and changed the recipe. 

Here is the new version:

Sourdough Crockpot Rye Bread

In a glass bowl, combine:

1/4 cup active sourdough starter
1.5 cups warm water
1.25 cups whole wheat flour
1.25 cups whole rye flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon Caraway seed

Stir together well and cover tightly with plastic wrap.  Let rest at room temperature for 12 hours.

Butter a 2.5 quart Crockpot.

Pour a Tablespoon of Extra-virgin olive oil onto your bread board or counter and smear it around with your hand to make a place to dump out the dough.

Scoop the dough out of the bowl.  It will be very soft and sticky.  Gather it up and place it in the Crockpot.

Put on the lid and set the temperature to "high" and cook for 2 hours.

Remove to a cooking rack.  Allow to cool quite a bit before attempting to cut your loaf.

Cool completely before storing it on the counter or in the refrigerator in a plastic bag.  It will keep for a few days on the counter, and much longer in the fridge.

This bread makes heavenly toast.  Serve with real butter or cream cheese, or make into sandwiches.  If you like a moist, dense, flavorful sourdough bread, you will love this!

Here are some pictures so you can see what went on...

Here is the dough after 12 hours of fermenting:

 The Crockpot, the butter and the dough waiting...

 The Crockpot has been buttered:

 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil on bread board:

 The oil has been smeared around...

and the dough scooped out of the bowl onto the bread board:

 I used my dough scraper for this, but you can use any obliging spatula as well...

 and just sort of pile it up on itself:

 Pick it up with your oily hands and place it in the buttered Crockpot:

 Put on the lid and bake on "high" for 2 hours.  Here is what it looks like then:

 I had to run a knife around the outside of the loaf to loosen it and then put it on a cooling rack:

 Here it is, after cooling, sliced.

I love rye bread with Caraway.  If you don't like Caraway, then just leave those out!

This won't last long. ;)