Meet my Mother

So, listen. I've been thinking... we've been together a little while now, you and I, and I think it's time you met my Mother.

Isn't she something? It's my first successful sourdough starter, and I've got some dough rising (and it IS rising!) right now.

How to:


Start with about 1/2 cup of wheat flour and 1/3 cup of water. If your local water contains a lot of chlorine, you can either let your water sit out for 24 hours or use bottled water. Mix together in large container. Now, feed it two times a day. To do this, simply discard half of it, add half back in (if I discard 1/4 cup starter, I add back 1/4 cup flour plus enough water to get a good paste again. -I find a thicker starter holds up better to neglect, so if I miss a feeding, no big deal.). Once your starter is viable, you can set this amount aside rather than toss it to make up a loaf of sourdough.  You can also add some sugar now and again to it, I added malt syrup on the first feeding and it grew like a... Mother. You should be able to spot some visible changes with it over the first week or two, it'll get bubbly and frothy and have an airy but very sticky consistency. After a couple of weeks, you'll notice some the smell changing. It'll take on a consistent smell and a spongy look when ready to use.


Tips: you can also do a refrigerator mother, some say it's not as good, but it only needs feeding once a week so you can go on vacations. I used a discarded portion of the original to make a second mother to keep in the fridge in case I ever accidentally kill my first Mother. I've named her Thursday so I remember when to feed her. 

Happy bread baking!

XO, Debbie