I baked this loaf of sourdough tonight

[housewolf]

I've been working on it for a couple day. Full flavored and delicious, if a little over-baked (forgot to turn the oven down mid-way). I'm pretty happy with it and wanted to share will you. It's a 1.5 batard made of naturally-leavened sourdough starter (no bakers' yeast), flour, water, salt along with some love & passion. It's a new sourdough starter that I started up 2 - 3 weeks ago and been working with since, and this is only the 2nd loaf I've made from it.

[Callalily]

1. That looks super yummy!

I was too lazy to make bread this weekend, maybe next.

[Tesha]

2. oh my...

That is one beautiful loaf!
Nice sized holes, well distributed, lovely crust.

You have a winner -- mmm I can almost taste it.

[hippywife]

3. There ya go!

Showin' off, again! First your bisuits and then your loaves...have you no decency woman???!!!


:rofl:


Looks great but then that's why you're the expert bread baker in this group. :hi:

[EFerrari]

4. I got a rock.

:rofl:

[housewolf]

5. Awwwww... I'm sorry!

What happened???

[EFerrari]

11. Well, using nice Arrowhead water, not using warm water for yeast

Zool is bubbly and smells nice and does not double. He is more bubbly with this better water but still won't double. And the last time I tried to see if he'd play ball with me, the dough barely would swell, let alone rise.

Maybe he doesn't like his plastic container -- which I did because I can see into it. Maybe he needs to move to ceramic.

If that doesn't work, he's gotta chose between therapy or leaving the house. lol

[housewolf]

14. I'd kinda still like to see a pic

when he's at his top level of bubbling, if you get a chance some one of these days

In the meantime, here's a suggestion - add a couple of spoongfuls of rye flour when you feed him, see if that makes a difference. You can buy a small amount in bulk at many health food stores.

[EFerrari]

15. The light in the kitchen isn't great and I'm shooting into a container

but I'll see if I can get a clear shot.

Could I ask, why rye?

[housewolf]

16. Rye flour has more natural yeasts than white or whole wheat

The strong infusion of natural yeasts could be just what the doctor ordered for Zool. If you can get some, take just a small amount of Zool (like 4 - oz) and put into a separate container. Add 2 - 3 oz of water and 2 - oz of flour (with the rye flour amount of 1 - 2 tablespoons and the remainder white flour). Let it sit out for 8 hours and then repeat (re-feed the new stuff with water, rye & white).

Just something to try...

[EFerrari]

17. Thanks, housewolf. This whole process sort of fascinates me

:hi:

[housewolf]

18. Me too!

When I first started with sourdough I was sort of what you might call "obsessed" with it all. I was living with my brother & sister-in-law at the time and gave them quite a bit of amusement (not to mention great bread for a couple of sourdough lovers!). My sister-in-law used to refer to all my various starters as "feeding your pets". I scoured the web for information (and there was a LOT less in 1997 than there is now!), bought a whole library-full of sourdough books, checked out whatever forums I could find and finally started up my own bread forum. Those were really fun days!

[EFerrari]

19. Here's what Zool looks like today about 2 hours after his meal.

The dark spots are bubbles. He seems happy enough but not motivated. He didn't double but maybe he increased his volume by 1/2 after the feeding, i.e., 1c Zool + 1 cup feeding = 2.5 cups

[housewolf]

20. Is this the maximum bubbline you ever see in him?

He's alive alright, but not a terrifically happy starter, sorry to say

Tonight I'll post a picture of my starter after feeding, and that will help give you a point of reference. :-(

[EFerrari]

21. Maybe a wee bit more but not much more.

A point of ref would be really helpful!

[EFerrari]

22. This is Zool five hours later.

It's hard to tell from this awful shot but he's bubbling and separating a little. But he's not getting much bigger, really.

[hippywife]

13. Elizabeth...

you funny chick. :rofl:

I love having you join in this group so I don't have to frequent the drama forums to enjoy your company.

[Mira]

6. PERFECT crumb. Can I come over for some? N/T

[housewolf]

9. Gladly!

I live alone so don't bake full-sized loaves like this very often, would be happy to share with you (and any other comers as well...)

:)

[Warpy]

10. I live for the day when there will be a steady enough stream

of people knocking on my door and asking for food that I'll be able to justify baking like this again.

Daily bread plus a neverending pot of bean and veggie soup on the stove will be what I'll do for the world.

Just like my granny did in the Depression.

Until then, my efforts will be limited to small boules in my smaller Le Creuset oven once or twice a week.

(FWIW, I like overbaked crust. The caramelization makes it special)

[Mira]

12. Soooo dear of you! I'll remember it when/if I'm in the area.

Thanks for responding!

[Inchworm]

7. Mmmmmm

That looks yummy! :9

I've been "waking up" my starter for the last 2 days (since I got a seal-a-meal dealy). I plan to make a gazillion dough balls and pop in freezer for those days where I want to make personal pizzas/calzones/etc.

I think I've asked this before in C&B and will find it if so, but you might know. Would you freeze the balls before the initial rise, after punchdown, or later in the stage? Thanks in advance.

:hi:

[housewolf]

8. I've never tried this

I've frozen sourdough bread after baking, but never the raw dough, so you'll have to try it and see if it works for you. The gluten and yeast in sourdough is not as strong as that in baker's yeast-leavened bread, so it may not hold up as well.

An alternative is to partially bake your pizza crusts and then freeze them, then thaw and finish baking as needed.

Good luck and let me know how it works out for you.