Tuesday, August 11, 2020

Cabin Baking: Refreshing Sourdough Starter

Sourdough bread baked in a Dutch oven at the cabin.
After being away from my float cabin home for nearly six months due to the pandemic, I was worried my sourdough starter might be dead.

When we left in January for our Snowbird RV Adventure, I took my starter to town because we turned off the propane fridge.

Active yeast bubbles formed while warming in the kitchen. It's ALIVE!

After the two week mandatory quarantine at the cabin after re-entering Canada, we went to the condo and I immediately checked my starter. 

I have two separate containers. One is my cabin batch that's been working since 2005. The other is my cloned city backup batch. Over time they've diverged in flavour, so I treat them separately. I've heard that's because natural environmental yeasts differ.

Float cabin batch on the left and city batch on the right.

I put each batch into a separate bowl and let them warm on the stovetop. I was socked to see how active they became.

To feed them, I stirred in 1/2 cup lukewarm skim milk, 1/2 cup white flour and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar.

I feed each batch separately to preserve their unique flavorss.

I left the bowls uncovered to capture natural yeast from the air. I covered them overnight. In the morning, both batches were active and bubbling. There was no need to add commercial yeast to revive them. I gave them a second feeding and another rest overnight before returning them to their plastic containers for refrigeration.


I was careful to use non-reactive bowls and utensils (plastic, ceramic, glass or wood). Why do I have a town backup you ask? One year my cabin propane fridge went on the fritz and I lost my starter. Having a backup in town saved the day.

Do you have sourdough starter? How do you take care of yours? -- Margy

9 comments:

  1. I'm glad your starter survived. That bread looks so yummy.

    Have a fabulous day. ♥

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    1. Me too. It was a funny thing to worry about during this difficult time, but sometimes it's the little things that get us through. - Margy

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  2. Margy - yay for you! I have never had a sourdough starter ...

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    1. They are quite easy to get going and then last for a long time. I find the older it gets the better the flavour. I like my bread to have that sour tang. - Margy

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  3. Very interesting, but I solve everything with the bread machine. I put dry yeast and what else she needs, and she prepares everything.
    https://zinnaida4.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/paine-de-casa-4/

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    1. Up at the cabin there isn't enough electricity for a bread machine. I've had fun learning how to do things the old fashioned way. - Margy

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  4. Once upon a time I made bread every week, sometimes every day using an old Amish friendship bread starter my friend shared with me. I fed it and used it for 3 years then gave it to a friend because we were moving. I've never done sourdough but would like to.
    Dawn aka Spatulas On Parade
    Miss you over at Mosaic Monday

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  5. Back in the Spring, I started a sourdough starter. After a bunch of weeks, it went bad because I forgot all about it. I might try again when I get new yeast.

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  6. Sourdough starter became very popular when yeast was hard to find during this pandemic. I try to limit carbs so I don't dare make bread as i'd want to eat the whole loaf at one sitting. I know how good it tastes hot out of the oven. Yum!

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We welcome your comments and questions. - Wayne and Margy