Starter:
1/4 teaspoon brown sugar
2/3 cup hot water
3 tablespoons warm nondairy milk
1/2 teaspoon granulated yeast
1 cup unbleached white flour Dough:
1/2 teaspoon yeast
1 cup hot water
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1. Prepare the starter the night before you want to serve it. Don't be tempted to use more yeast than stated. To make starter, dissolve vegan sugar in water. Add milk and sprinkle yeast on top. Do not stir. Leave until frothy. Mix in flour to form a loose batter. Cover bowl and leave overnight.
2. To make dough, sprinkle yeast onto water in a small bowl. Do not stir. Leave for 5 minutes to dissolve. Add to the starter, along with the olive oil. Mix well. Mix in the flour and salt to form a wet sticky dough.
3. Beat with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes. It will be too wet to knead. Cover bowl and rise until tripled in size, approximately 3 hours. Do not stir. Generously sift more flour on 2 ungreased baking trays.
4. Scrape half the dough out onto a tray. Don't expect the dough to resemble regular bread dough. It does not! Much, much softer. Using well-floured hands, or a spatula, shape carefully into a rough rectangular or oval shape.
5. Dust loaf with sifted flour. Repeat procedure with remaining dough. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Leave loaves to proof, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Bake in center of oven for approximately 30 minutes.
Don't be put off by the absence of whole-wheat flour. This bread is not fluffy and has a good chewy crust.