This past fall, I made a goal to make all of our own bread. I have always wanted to, but for some reason, I never followed through. I like the idea of having a major staple in our house be completely homemade. We eat sandwiches on a regular basis. (My son seems to want peanut butter and jelly sandwiches every.single.day.) A sourdough starter has always interested me, so I decided to start there. There is a starter recipe in one of the bread cookbooks I have, but seriously, I cannot comprehend the recipe. It seems way too over complicated. Luckily, my trusty blog site had a very simple starter recipe. This starter is something that is ready in a matter of days. Then, it can sit in your fridge, untouched for nearly 2 weeks. And, if you still don’t have time at the end of the two weeks to bake sourdough bread, you can just remove a portion and add in more flour and water. So easy! I try to make bread every Saturday with my daughter. She likes to call it our bread making day. It’s something she really looks forward to. (Don’t worry, I will be sharing in the near future the simple sourdough sandwich bread that we make regularly.)
Recipe from Annie’s Eats
Sourdough Starter
Sourdough made super simple. It lives in your refrigerator and only has to be changed every two weeks if you don't bake with it regularly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 Tablespoon sugar or honey
- 1 Tablespoon active dry yeast
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the warm water and sugar to dissolve. Then, stir in the yeast.
- Gradually mix in the flour. Cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel (not plastic wrap), and place in a warm area.
- Let the sourdough sit for 2-5 days, stirring once a day, due to the separation that will occur. When the bubbling has lessened and a sour smell has developed, stir one more time, then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. (I like to use a large Tupperware container.)
- For maintaining your sourdough; it should be fed every two weeks or so. I remind myself by baking bread just about every Saturday. Or, you can always make a note on your calendar. To feed your sourdough, for every 1 cup of starter removed (either discarded or used in a bread recipe), replace with 1/2 cup of warm water and 1 cup of flour. Stir until combined. Cover, then let sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours before returning to the refrigerator.
