Sourdough Starter

I finally did it! I made my sourdough starter!

Sourdough bread is my ABSOLUTE favorite. I have been thinking about starting to make it ever since my first try with homemade bread.

Growing up, we had neighbors across the street who always had a sourdough starter in their fridge.  They'd had it for years and perfected it, when the cleaning woman found it and thought it was something that had gone bad, and threw it out.  Needless to say, they were NOT happy.

I am so excited for next week when I get to turn this into bread!  Do you think I could sell parts of the starter on Craig's List? 

Sourdough Starter

from Annie Eats

Ingredients:
2 cups warm water
1 tbsp. sugar or honey
1 tbsp. active dry yeast
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Instructions:

Pour the water into a 2-quart glass or ceramic jar or bowl.  Stir in the sugar or honey to dissolve.  Stir in the yeast.

Gradually whisk in the flour.  Cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel or dishcloth (not plastic wrap) and place it in a warm area.  (My kitchen in the winter definitely has no warm location, but my starter was just fine.)

Let it develop 2-5 days, stirring once a day due to the separation that will occur.  When bubbling has subsided and a sour aroma has developed, stir once more and refrigerate until ready to use.

Storing and Maintaining Your Starter
Once your starter is stored away in the refrigerator, it only needs to be replenished once every two weeks or so.  I put a little note to myself in my calendar as a reminder to either bake with or feed my starter.  You should feed your starter each time you remove a portion for use in baking, but if it has been two weeks and you don’t intend to bake with it immediately, simply remove a cup of the starter and discard.  For every 1 cup of starter removed, replace with 1 cup of flour and ½ cup of water.  Stir to blend, and let sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours before returning to the refrigerator.

I promise to share the bread recipe as soon as I make it!