Cabin Baking: Refreshing Sourdough Starter
Another thing I found when I got to my float cabin after a four month absence was my sourdough starter. I was afraid it might be dead. But rather than add some commercial yeast, I took some advice that Sue G gave on my January 2 post. She uses natural yeast from the environment, flour and water. So while I was working in the garden, my starter was "working" on the front deck hopefully gathering spores.
I knew my starter also needed feeding. I usually use skim milk, flour and a bit of sugar. But there was no fresh milk at the cabin. I remembered reading another recipe that used potato water. So I got some of my potatoes out of storage, diced them up and put them on the woodstove. I strained the liquid and let it cool to lukewarm. I then mixed in approximately 3/4 cup potato water, 3/4 cup white flour and 1 tablespoon sugar.
When the sun went down, I put the starter next to the woodstove and left it there overnight to stay warm. I was careful to use non-reactive plastic utensils (glass and wood are also good choices). When I went to bed, there were only a few bubbles so I was doubtful it was going to work. My only recourse would be commercial yeast in the morning.
But when I got up, the starter was working like crazy. Way beyond what I had hoped for. The result was more starter than I could put back in my refrigerator container. So I had enough to take home to Jeanne as a thank you for her help while we were gone. -- Margy