Sourdough!

I gotta tell ya, there is nothing quite as satisfying as the moment you slice into a loaf of bread that you have made with your own two hands. Except, of course, eating said bread. My jam (bread joke) is to listen to the band Bread while I bake bread, and it always turns out great!

Now, the thing about real sourdough bread (no commercial yeast!) that makes it so special, is the starter, or "mother". This is basically a mixture of flour and water that has been colonized by airborne bacteria (that lactobacillus that is so good for our gut) and yeast. The yeasts break down the flour into sugars and carbon dioxide which create leavening, and the bacteria ferment those sugars to make acid, which creates the delicious "sour" flavor. Flour and water mixed together doesn't sound too glamorous, unless you imagine that flour and water being mixed together for the first time generations ago, being "fed" lovingly over the years (the bacteria and yeast need an ongoing supply of sugar to stay alive), and being passed down from one mother to her daughter and to her daughter over the course of 90 years. "Wilma", my sourdough starter, was the name of my chef instructor's great-grandmother, and has blessed me with countless numbers of beautiful loaves. I love the idea that she has been around so long, feeding loved ones bread and pancakes for years. She's a little piece of history! And I refer to her as if she is alive, because she is. The longer a starter is used and fed, the stronger the good bacteria and yeast become, innoculating the starter against bad bacteria, like mold. Wilma is so strong, she is pretty much immortal. I have neglected her (inadvertently) for months in the fridge, and she always comes back strong and bubbly after one feeding!

In present times, when it comes to baking, reaching for that jar of "active dry yeast" feels so natural. However, when we leaven our baked goods with this processed yeast (a 'modern' invention, considering that old-fashioned bread-making has been around for thousands of years), we are skipping over a very valuable process. This process is - you guessed it - fermentation! By allowing the bread to ferment slowly, the proteins in the flour are being broken down. Fermentation is effectively a form of pre-digestion. Is it a coincidence that instances of gluten-intolerance are rising along with the ommission of the fermentation process? I think not. There have been studies, and I've heard some personal accounts, of people with gluten intolerance having no ill effects from bread that was made the long way.

Yes, again, food that is worth eating always takes longer to make. I reserve my sourdough bread-making for the weekend, after having fed Wilma for a few days to get her good and active. Many bakers love formulas, and if you're a formula person, the rule for feeding is to weigh the existing starter, and create a mixture of flour and water that is equal to that weight. So, if I have 100 grams of starter, I would make a mixture that is 50 grams flour and 50 grams water, and add that to the starter. This does cause the volume of starter to grow very quickly, so you may start having to eat a lot of sourdough pancakes. If you're not a formula person (me), I just look at Wilma, make a mixture of flour and water that is no larger than she is, and feed this to her twice a day for 3 or 4 days before I want to make bread. She lives in the fridge the rest of the time, where she lies "sleeping" in the cold, and only needs to be fed once a week. Don't have an heirloom starter from someone's great-grandmother? Maybe you can be someone's "Wilma" by starting your own starter today! Mix some flour and water together, keep it alive by feeding it from time to time, and in 90 years, your great-grandchildren could be making their own bread from your starter! Amazing! And it's easy! Read this, and in 5 days, you'll be ready to bake your first loaf!

When your starter is ready for baking, it will look bubbly, active, and "fizzy":

Gather the following ingredients:
1. Organically-grown all-purpose or bread flour (once you have your rhythm, you can start experimenting with other types of flour)
2. Filtered water
3. Lots of time. I make bread on days that are focused around home, where I can do small pockets of work and occupy the waiting time by running errands nearby or walking the dog. The actual mixing of the bread takes only 10-15 minutes, so just structure your day so you can mix the bread, do something else for a couple of hours, shape the bread, run errands for a couple hours, then come home and bake.

For the formula people, an easy method that I have found to figure out your measurements for baking a loaf is the "1-2-3" method:

1. Weigh your active sourdough starter.
2. Multiply that weight by 2 - this will be the weight of the water you'll add.
3. Multiply the original weight now by 3 - this will be the weight of the flour you'll add.
4. The amount of salt will be 2% of the flour weight.

For people like me, that cook by "touch" or "soul" (aka hate doing math), here is what you do: Pour some starter into the bowl of your stand mixer. Add what looks like an equal amount of flour, and a large pinch of salt. Start mixing with the dough hook. If the mixture comes together after a few minutes and feels like the moisture content is right, then go with it. If it's too dry, add some water. If it's too wet, add some flour. Lick a little of it off your finger, and see if you like the salt level. Add more as desired. This is the fun way, if you ask me. It allows you to experiment with different levels of moisture and the results of your bread-making are always a surprise! As you practice more and more, the surprises tend to start getting better.

My favorite texture of bread has resulted from dough that is nicely moist without being sticky, and that cleans the bowl while being mixed. 10 minutes of mixing on a low setting usually get the gluten developed enough for a nice, chewy and tender crumb.

When your dough is mixed, form it into a ball (wet your hands slightly to make it easy to handle) and place into a bowl that has been coated with olive or coconut oil. Cover this with a kitchen towel and place in a warm spot until doubled in size, 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Turn it out onto a floured counter, use your fingers to deflate it slightly, and form it into the desired shape. I always make mini-baguettes, since I don't have any fancy bread-making baskets and it's easy to use kitchen towels to prop it up while it does its second rise. Just place it on a floured pan, and sprinkle it generously with flour to prevent the towels from sticking. This second rise will take another 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

When it has doubled in size again, remove the towels, slash it a few times with a razor, and place it in a 450-degree oven. I am lucky enough to have a clay cloche, which creates an optimal level of moisture inside of it and contributes to a beautiful crust. If you don't have a cloche, don't fret - just put a small pan of water inside the oven so there is some moisture to assist the caramelization of the crust. Or don't do either of those things and your bread will still be delicious, just a little more pale and not as robust-tasting on the outside. It usually bakes for 30-40 minutes total, and will sound hollow when you tap on the bottom when it's finished.

Be sure to let the finished bread rest for at least an hour before cutting it!

Questions? Comments? Stories? Please share!