• ⅓ cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 1½ teaspoons aniseeds
• 1 teaspoon mahlep
• 3 cardamom pods (optional)
• ½ recipe Old Dough Starter
• 2½–3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup barley flour (see Sources)
• 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
• About 2 cups cold water

In a small bowl, combine the warm water and yeast and let stand for 5 minutes, or until frothy.

In a mortar or spice grinder, finely grind the aniseeds, mahlep and cardamom, if using.

Place the starter, flours, salt and spice mix in a food processor and pulse to blend. With the motor running, pour in the yeast mixture and 1⅔ cups cold water to make a soft, sticky dough. Let the dough rest in the food processor for 15 minutes.

Process the dough for 1 to 2 minutes more, or until slightly sticky and elastic (add a little water if the dough is too stiff).

Lightly oil a large bowl and a piece of plastic wrap. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it briefly, adding a little more flour as needed until the dough is soft and elastic. Shape the dough into a ball and transfer to the oiled bowl. Cover with the oiled plastic wrap and let rise until 1½ times its original volume, 4 to 5 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape into an 8-x-11-inch oval or an 8-inch round. Place in a well-oiled oval baking dish or a 9-inch round cake pan, cover with the oiled plastic wrap and let it rise for 2½ hours. (It won’t rise much.)

At least 20 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450°F.

With a wet, very sharp knife or a baker’s razor, make 3 diagonal slashes in the surface of the dough. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for 45 minutes more. Wearing oven mitts and using a spatula, remove the bread from the pan and place it directly on the oven rack. Bake for 10 minutes more, or until the bread sounds hollow when you tap it on the bottom.

Let cool completely on a rack before slicing.