We all know that I have plenty of whole wheat. All I had to do was grind it into flour, get a starter going, and get to baking! Which is what I did with all my extra summer vacation time.
Once upon a time I tried making a starter using my Betty Crocker Cookbook for instructions. I obviously didn’t understand the instructions because my starter was yuck. This time, I fed and discarded according to instructions I found online and I created a beautiful set of starter jars. The hardest part of establishing a good starter was all the discarded starter. So of course I started baking up a bunch of snacks that used discard and a little bit of leavening.
I made crackers, pancakes, waffles, pizza crust, and whole wheat bread. I have not made an artisan loaf that has risen with just the power of my naturally occurring yeast beasts. I did however use my Nana’s vintage Bosch mixer because my Kitchen Aid bread hook is missing! A vintage mixer in a vintage kitchen.
What I learned about myself is this: I am not at all interested in making true sourdough bread that rises without added yeast. To get those crunchy farmers market loaves, one must have a two day timeline of mixing, stretching, folding, and rising, but watching carefully so it doesn’t over rise and stretch the gluten too much. They are baked at high temperatures in Dutch ovens or on baking stones with added steam to get that crunchy thin flexible crust. I’ve seen too many pictures of broken stoneware from people following instructions and adding ice cubes to create the steam and little bubbles. And too many pictures of failed loaves.
Turns out I love discard baking! I love using my whole wheat flour and my old yeast and things that are done in a few hours. There’s no guarantee that a project I start today will be interesting tomorrow! I could be wanting to sew…
