Sourdough Baked with Flowers 🌼 | Garden-Inspired Bread with Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms

This sourdough loaf brings the garden right into the oven - soft zucchini flowers, gently stuffed with herbed ricotta, nestled inside a rustic artisan dough.


❇️ Sourdough with Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms
A rustic artisan loaf with creamy herb-filled blossoms baked inside.

🥣 Ingredients
Sourdough Dough:
500g all-purpose flour (I used 350g all-purpose + 150g freshly milled hard white wheat)
375g water (adjust slightly if using all-purpose only)
120g active sourdough starter
1/2 tsp of diastatic malt powder (optional - helpful if using fresh, unsifted flour)
1 tsp salt

🌼 Stuffed Blossoms Filling:
10-12 fresh zucchini flowers
100g ricotta (or cream cheese)
1 tbsp chopped fresh herbs (thyme, chives, basil, mint)
Zest of ¼ lemon (optional)
Pinch of salt and black pepper, to taste
Olive oil, for brushing (optional, helps blossoms brown and stay tender)

🧑‍🍳 Instructions
1. Make the Dough (Morning)
Mix all ingredients, let it rest for 60 minutes.
Bulk ferment with 3–4 stretch and folds over 3–4 hours.
2. Prepare the Blossoms (During Bulk Rise)
Gently remove stamens/pistils from inside blossoms.
Mix filling: ricotta, herbs, lemon zest, salt, and black pepper.
Use a small spoon to gently stuff each blossom.
Twist the tops lightly to close them.
3. Incorporate into Dough (Before Final Shaping)
After final stretch and fold, flatten dough gently into a rectangle.
Tuck the stuffed blossoms into the dough like treasures - space them out.
Shape the dough carefully to keep them inside.
Place shaped dough into a banneton.
4. Final Proof
Proof overnight in the fridge.
5. Bake
Preheat oven and Dutch oven to 475°F (245°C).
Score gently - avoid blossoms if they’re close to the surface.
Bake 20 min with lid on, 20 min uncovered, until golden and crisp.
6. Cool, Slice, Reveal
Let it cool a little bit.
Slice to reveal the creamy, herby filling pockets. Serve warm.

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