If you’re craving a sweet sourdough loaf, look no further than this Peach Crisp Sourdough Bread. Sweet, juicy peaches paired with a cinnamon brown sugar oat streusel all stuffed into a loaf of sourdough bread. If you love peaches this is a must try!

You’ll notice that this recipe is slightly different from the others because of the decrease in water. That is because the peaches add a lot of extra moisture to the loaf so this recipe compensates for that by slightly reducing the water content.

Ingredients for Peach Crisp Sourdough Bread

For the dough

Bread flour- Sourdough bread is a higher hydration dough, so using flour that is efficient at absorbing water is ideal. Bread flour has a high protein content and works well for that purpose.

Active sourdough starter- You will need to use a starter that has been recently fed, bubbly, and has doubled in size in order to give the bread the natural rise.

Water– This recipe replaces most of the water with a simple peach juice made by simmering peaches, water and sugar. You do not have to do this but it gives the loaf more peach flavor throughout.

Salt– Any type of salt will work.

OPTIONAL: For sweet loaves, I usually add 50 grams of sugar when mixing the dough. For this recipe, I didn’t add in extra sugar because of the sweet peach syrup which makes it mildly sweet. However, if you would like sweeter bread, you can add an additional 50 grams of sugar at the very beginning.

For the peach syrup

Fresh peaches– peeled and diced. You will simmer the peaches to release their juices into the syrup. Then reserve the softened peaches to add to the dough.

Sugar-This helps the peaches release their juices and sweetens the juice.

Water

For the cinnamon oat streusel

Butter – Salted or unsalted butter will work.

Flour – You can use bread flour or all-purpose flour

Oats – Old-fashioned rolled oats work best.

Ground cinnamon – The cinnamon pairs so well with the peaches and oats.

Pecans (optional) – This is optional but adds a great flavor and crunch to the streusel.

Sample Baking Schedule

This schedule is based on rough estimates. The temperature of your dough, kitchen, humidity, and strength of starter will all impact the times, so while this will give you an estimate, it is best to look at the signs the dough is ready to move on. You are looking for about a 75% rise.

There is flexibility in this schedule to make it work for you. If 8am is not a convenient time to feed your sourdough starter, you could opt for a smaller feeding ratio like 1:1:1, 4-6 hours before mixing the dough. If you don’t have time to bake the bread around dinner time, you can always leave the dough in the fridge for an extra day or two. Do what works for you!

If you are looking for more precise timelines based on the temperature of your dough The Sourdough Journey put together a great resource. It looks at different temperatures and percentages of sourdough starter to give you an estimate of how long the first rise will take. My recipe below calls for 10% sourdough starter.

Steps	Time
Feed sourdough starter 1:4:4 ratio (i.e. 10 g starter: 40 g flour: 40 g water)	8 am
Make peach juice	6:00 pm
Mix dough	7:00 pm
Stretch & folds	7:30 pm-8 pm
Shape	~7 am
Final proofing in fridge	8 am-4 pm
Bake	4 pm

How temperature affects sourdough

Temperature is very important when it comes to sourdough and fermentation. If your house is cooler than 68F, the dough will have a hard time rising. If your house is cold, I recommend using a dough mat (use code country10 for 10% off) or finding a warmer spot in your house. Placing the dough in a draft-free area like a turned off oven or microwave may help. You could also try placing near a heating vent.

If your house is above 75F, I wouldn’t recommend leaving the dough overnight, as it is more likely to overproof. You can try using cold water to help cool down the dough and stick to a shorter timeline like 8 hours as that may help it from getting too warm.

How to make Peach Crisp Sourdough Bread

Feed Sourdough Starter

The first step to making bread is to feed your sourdough starter. The temperature of your house, activity level of your starter, and how much you feed the starter will all impact how quickly your starter rises. A 1:1:1 ratio meaning 1 part starter: 1 part flour: 1 part water will rise in about 4-6 hours. Whereas a 1:5:5 ratio meaning 1 part starter: 5 part flour: 5 part water will rise in about 12 hours. Feed based on the timing you want to make bread. Once the starter doubles or exceeds its size and becomes bubbly, it is ready for use. If you can’t use the starter while it is at peak place it in the fridge until you are ready.

Make the peach syrup

Before making the loaf add 2 sliced and peeled medium peaches (about 310 grams) to a pan with 325 grams (1 1/3 cup) water and 50 grams (¼ cup) sugar. Bring mix to a boil and then simmer for 10 minutes. Let the liquid cool for a few minutes, and then strain out the peaches and add the liquid to a jar. Let it get to room temperature before adding it to the dough. If you are in a hurry, place the juice in the fridge to cool off quicker. Save the peaches and store them in the fridge to use during shaping.

Mix Ingredients

Pour cooled peach juice into a large bowl. In total, you will want 325 grams of liquid added to the loaf. If your peach juice mixture is short, just add a little extra water to get to 325 grams. Add in the flour, salt and starter and mix together with a danish dough whisk (10% off with link), spoon or hands until incorporated. The dough will look shaggy at this point. Cover bowl with a lid or dinner plate and let it sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.

OPTIONAL: If you want a sweeter loaf you can add in an additional 50 grams of sugar in this step.

Stretch and Folds

Stretching the dough helps build strength and aerates the dough. Typically I aim for 3-4 sets in my traditional recipe but with this simplified version I aim for 1 or 2. If you do 2 sets wait 20-30 minutes in between the sets to let the dough relax. You can also do more sets if you have time. Cover the dough in between sets.

To stretch and fold grab one side of the dough with a damp hand and gently shimmy the dough up and then fold it on itself. Repeat this 3 more times rotating the bowl 90 degrees each time.

First Rise

After stretch and folds let the dough sit overnight on the counter covered until the dough has risen about 75%, not completely doubled. The dough should be aerated with bubbles showing on the sides and bottom of the dough and jiggle when the bowl is shook. If it does not show these signs continue to let the dough sit, preferably in a warm spot to finish bulk fermentation. The temperature will affect how quickly the dough will rise, see the temperature section for more details.

If the dough is very pillowy, sticky, and deflates when working with it, it is overproofed. At this point you can try to bake it if it will hold some shape. Personally my favorite thing to do with overproofed dough is to make focaccia. Put it in an oiled 9×13 pan with more oil on top. Dimple the dough and bake at 425F for 25-30 minutes.

Make the cinnamon oat streusel and peach filling

Mix together the ingredients for the streusel: the butter, flour, oats, cinnamon, and optional pecans. Squeeze the butter to break it up in the mixture until crumbly.

Take 140 grams of the reserved softened peaches from the peach juice and chop into small pieces.

Shape Dough

The goal of shaping is to create a taut, outer skin on the dough. The skin creates tension, helping the dough to hold its shape when baked, which translates to a good rise and a crispy crust.

Shaping instructions

1. Dump the dough on an unfloured surface and gently spread the dough into a big rectangle. Avoid tearing it.
2. Sprinkle 2/3 of the softened peaches and streusel on the dough.
3. Roll the dough up like a cinnamon roll and then sprinkle a little bit more struesel (leaving a little more for the top) and the remaining peaches.
4. Roll up the dough and gently shape it either into an oval or round shape.
5. If you have an oval-shaped basket, pinch the ends closed and place the dough seam-side up in the proofing basket.
6. For a round basket take your hands in cupping shape and rotate the dough counter-clockwise towards you to get a smooth surface on top of the dough.
7. Add the remaining streusel to the banneton basket liner and then add the dough on top.

Second Proof

Place dough in the fridge covered for the final proof. The fridge slows down fermentation which allows your dough to sit for longer periods of time. Let it sit for 8+ hours. Longer fermentation times will make for a more sour loaf.

If you prefer to bake the same day, leave the dough on the counter for the second rise. Within 2-4 hours your dough should be ready to bake. To know when it is ready you will poke the dough with a floured finger. If it springs back immediately it needs more time. If it doesn’t spring at all it is overproofed and needs baked asap. If it slowly fills back in it is ready to use.

Scoring

Preheat the oven with the Dutch oven to 450F once the dough is ready. Flip the dough onto a bread sling or parchment paper and score the dough. Hold the blade at a slight angle and quickly slice the bread about 1/2 inch deep.

Baking

Bake the loaf at 450F in a Dutch oven for 45 minutes with the lid on. If you want to brown the top more, you can bake 3-5 more minutes with the lid off just watch because the crumble can burn on top. The loaf should sound hollow when you tap on the bottom. That is how you know it is baked through. Once done baking, remove from the Dutch oven and place onto a cooling rack to cool.

Storing Peach Crisp Sourdough Bread

Store a whole loaf, or a side that can be placed cut side down with only the crust exposed, on the counter up to 2 days with just a tea towel over it. If the inside of the loaf is exposed I store it in a bread box or in a ziplock back.

Sourdough will not hold its crunch for extended periods of time but can be revived in the oven or toaster. To refresh a loaf preheat the oven to 450F. Run the loaf quickly under water and then place in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the crust is crispy again.

Sourdough bread also freezes really well. To freeze a loaf, either place the whole or half a loaf into a freezer safe bag or preslice the loaf and place parchment paper in between each slice before placing in a freezer bag