Thanks for the link re: sourdough bread/starter, etc.

[Guest guest]

       I want to thank whomever it was who sent the link to the site

(recipe/cooking blog, I believe it was) that had the stuff about baking

sourdough bread.  It got me going!

 

       Years ago (late '70's!), I baked bread regularly (like weekly), and it

was part of my normal routine.  I almost think I was busier then--worked

full-time and had all kinds of

other things to do...but still got bread baked at least every week. 

 

       We lived in Oklahoma then, and an elderly woman in our church gave me

some " antique " sourdough starter.  She was, I believe, part Cherokee, so it

might even have

been brought on the " Trail of Tears " to the Territory in the 1800's.  I kept the

starter and

used it regularly--it made the nicest brown bread...DH, later on, got into

making pancakes

every weekend (he started during one of my pregnancies and " made breakfast " so I

wouldn't have to (morning sickness) gag at the smell of cooking food!  The

sourdough

starter made some really AWESOME pancakes, too!

 

      In the ensuing years, I refused an offer for " Herman " starter and kept the

" Oklahoma "

one going.  Meanwhile, we had 2 daughters and moved 4 more times...finally, as I

was

not frequently using the starter, I thought it was " going bad " one day and

decided to get

rid of it.  --Wish I hadn't!!  :-(     However, I have a couple of times,

attempted maintaining

" starter " that I made from " bought " dry yeast...it never tasted quite like I

wanted it to and I

threw those out as well.

 

     SO, last week sometime, when someone put the link about the sourdough bread

& starter (on some blog--I deleted the link after visiting the site), I decided

to give it one more

try.  THIS time, I wanted to " capture " and culture the " wild yeast " from my own

kitchen for

the starter.  That's what my wise lady-friend, " Bertha " had said was the basis

of the " Oklahoma 1800's " sourdough starter--the " wild yeast " that some woman at

some time

somewhere had captured and kept going for her bread-baking, passed down to me

thru my good friend from church.  (Of course, I knew MY " wild yeasts " wouldn't

be the same as

Bertha's--but that made it interesting, anyway, to at least try doing it.)

 

      I set up the stuff--a slurry of flour and water in a covered crockery

bowl, covered with

a cloth.  I fed it daily, sometimes twice a day.  I fed it a time or two with

molasses or honey, mostly with flour and water.  It slowly began to make tiny

bubbles and VERY slowly

developed a nice tangy-sweet smell that I remembered so well from Bertha's

starter.  I was

so excited!!!

 

     I really could have waited yet another day before I used the starter for

the first time.  I guess I was too excited to hold back any longer.  Yesterday,

I mixed up a cup and a half

of starter and modified my (I have it memorized) " standard " bread-making recipe

to accommodate the extra moisture and volume of the starter.  I kneaded it up

and set it

to rise.  (I left to go exercise while it rose; my kitchen is never very warm in

the winter, so I knew it would take longer than usual, so I gave it a lot of

extra time.)

 

     The dough rose nicely, I formed 2 loaves and after the second rise, baked

them--Ohhhh!

How lovely THAT smell was!!!  The bread was finally done and I couldn't have

been more THRILLED!!!  The appearance, texture, smell and TASTE of this bread

was exceptional!

(I had made bread 2 or 3 times in the recent past and was terribly disappointed

in the results--not enough flavor, too heavy a texture, and so on...THIS pair of

loaves made up

for all the disappointing results of the recent past--it made me want to eat the

whole loaf,

and I really don't consider myself a huge " bread-eater " !  My DH cut and toasted

some this morning--this is the man who loves to skip " breakfast " if he knows he

will eat a larger lunch or dinner!'  Even in the toaster this bread has a

fantastic aroma!!!

 

      I made 2 loaves, and I am thinking I might give one loaf to a friend of

mine and her husband.  They are vegetarians and, in fact, are something of an

inspiration to me in that area.  I wouldn't have thought of giving away any of

the bread I made in the past 6 months--it was so unremarkable, but I think this

is good enough that I don't have to apologize for it and perhaps they would like

it.

 

     Anyway, I know this was a long, rambling post.  I just wanted to say " thank

you " for the

link and the inspiration.  I didn't know I could " do " my own " native yeast "

sourdough starter.

Whatever it is I have--it sure makes the BEST flavored bread I've made in a

long, long time!!

 

Peace and blessings!!

Laura B., in Illinois (I love how my kitchen smells now!)