The Bread Thread!

[Beekissed]

My Dad had a sourdough starter he kept going for years, and Sundays when he fixed his sourdough biscuits, served with butter and homemade jam, were a special treat.

LOVE sourdough bread and biscuits!!!! Was raised on it during our off grid days. I miss sourdough. I keep telling myself I'll get myself a little crock and start my own sourdough...even did it once, but never kept it up. Much better for a person than regular bread, that's for sure.

 

[Beekissed]

A near perfect rise!

Using disposable shower cap for covering the dough ball....

 

[Beekissed]

Today I changed my good ol' bread recipe back to its original ingredients and even added a few extra. It was originally meant to contain flax seed, sunflower seeds, raw honey but over the years I just took short cuts until I was just using the called for flour and then brown sugar for sweetener.

Today I used the ground flax seed and sunflower seeds, added half cup of rolled oats, raw honey and coconut oil instead of canola oil. The next change I make will be using even more of the whole wheat and slowly try to get rid of all the use of white, refined flour.

Then, I'd like to turn it into a sourdough and just keep it there from now on. All these changes are geared towards moving back to the old ways of eating that kept us healthy all the years we were growing up but from which we slowly moved away...with horrible results.

To date, this is the best tasting bread I've ever made, though Mom's bread was always this good because she used all the original ingredients in hers. A crispy, thin crust, a nutty flavor and a deeper flavor to the sweetness.

A more nutrient dense food that requires eating less of it to gain the necessary daily nutrients.

 

[Hinotori]

That sounds very good

 

[Britesea]

That sounds delicious! I sometimes added other seeds if I had them, like pumpkin or poppy; A bit of orange rind can add a wonderful flavor too, without adding any more sweetness. I also used to add some of Bob's Red Mill 5 grain Rolled Grain cereal- which has oats as well as rye and barley and a couple others I can't remember.

 

[Beekissed]

Today I made some bread, just with traditional yeast, but I also fed my sourdough starter, which is starting to bubble nicely. I hope to make my regular recipe with the starter dough next time and to make bread in smaller batches, though more frequently, this winter.

Every YT vid I watch on making sourdough bread all has them making it in round loaves....what's up with that??? Do they think this makes it more authentic looking or what? Unless you are just pulling hanks of dough off to eat with whatever meal, a round loaf is pretty awkward to eat....hard to toast the slices, hard to use them for a sandwich, etc. It's just not practical.

And the complicated measuring of the ingredients to feed the starter....it's utterly ridiculous!!! My mother kept a stone crock of starter bubbling on the back of the wood stove all the time....when it was time to make bread, she took some out, replaced the stuff taken out with a handful of flour and a little water(no measuring done at all) and went on with the bread making. Her bread was always spectacular...and never did we have a round loaf of bread. Weird to have a round loaf of bread.

Anybody else do sourdough? Do you do it often? Do you adapt it to any recipe you want or do you keep to the same recipe?

 

[baymule]

I used to make a sour dough French bread that was awesome. But it was so long ago, that I no longer have the recipe. It was not round. LOL

 

[Britesea]

DH preferred making a long roll for his sourdough. It was easier than a bread pan and still made very good sandwiches and french toast. We discovered that if you use freshly ground whole wheat flour for your sourdough starter, it already has the yeastie-beasties present (the same as grapes have the yeast they need to make wine on the skins)-- no need to add anything but some water.

 

[wyoDreamer]

I am going to try adding fresh ground wheat to my sour dough starter and see what happens.
I am trying to eat more whole grains and homemade wheat bread will be a step in the right direction for me. I really liked my Honey Wheat bread that I made out in Wyoming, but I think I lost the recipe somewhere in the move. I would need to adjust it for lower elevation anyway.

I like to make small round loaves of sourdough bread for hollowing out and using as a bowl for potato soup. Yummy.

 

[wyoDreamer]

Today I changed my good ol' bread recipe back to its original ingredients and even added a few extra. It was originally meant to contain flax seed, sunflower seeds, raw honey but over the years I just took short cuts until I was just using the called for flour and then brown sugar for sweetener.

That sounds quite delicious. Do you have a recipe for the "good ol' bread" you could share? Please