Guest guest Posted September 4, 2004 Report Share Posted September 4, 2004 ----- Original Message ----- From: " Heidi Schuppenhauer " > > > OK, I made a batch yesterday so I could write down the ingredients. Well, MWAH! I'm gonna give this a go. I might just tweak it a tad, though, since my boys can tolerate whey, but seem to have problems with whole kefir. The whey would do the breakdown, right? I'll try this tomorrow when I've got a little more time to baby this! Thanks, Heidi! --s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 >Well, MWAH! OK, I give ... what is MWAH? >I'm gonna give this a go. I might just tweak it a tad, though, since my >boys can tolerate whey, but seem to have problems with whole kefir. The >whey would do the breakdown, right? Actually if you even use plain yeast it will sour eventually (a day or two). If you use whey, I'd add some regular baker's yeast too ... or make a sponge and catch some from the air. Or use a kefir grain in some fruit juice to make some " kefir beer " which has yeast and bacteria. >I'll try this tomorrow when I've got a little more time to baby this! >Thanks, Heidi! Have fun! > Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 ----- Original Message ----- From: " Heidi Schuppenhauer " > > >Well, MWAH! > > OK, I give ... what is MWAH? > A big fat kiss! > Actually if you even use plain yeast it will sour eventually (a day or two). If you use whey, > I'd add some regular baker's yeast too ... A couple of teaspoons, then? or make a sponge and catch some from the > air. Or use a kefir grain in some fruit juice to make some " kefir beer " which has > yeast and bacteria. > Make a sponge? --s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 >> OK, I give ... what is MWAH? >> > >A big fat kiss! Heh heh. I'll remember that. Thanks. >> Actually if you even use plain yeast it will sour eventually (a day or >two). If you use whey, >> I'd add some regular baker's yeast too ... > >A couple of teaspoons, then? Or just a quarter teaspoon. For " artisan " bread you add a TINY amount of yeast and let the rise go slower ... it picks up LAB (which will be in the whey anyway) and that gives the bread these neat overtones. If you let it set longer it just gets really sour (hence sourdough!). Then just keep some of the last batch to make the next batch. >or make a sponge and catch some from the >> air. Or use a kefir grain in some fruit juice to make some " kefir beer " >which has >> yeast and bacteria. >> > >Make a sponge? (Ok, now I'm having pictures of Sponge Bob dancing thru my head!). If you mix up some flour and water (and maybe a little sugar) to a kind of goopy consistency, and just let it sit out in the air, eventually it picks up yeast from the air. There is a methodology for doing this, I think it is in NT. It is a lot of fun, though the wild yeast in your area may or may not be " tasty " which is why folks kept a good starter and gave it to their friends. Here are a couple of good links though: http://www.io.com/~sjohn/sour.htm Select a container that your " pet " will live in. A wide-mouthed glass jar is best. I use a glass jar with a rubber and wireframe seal; you can find these for $2-$4 in any antique or junk shop. A small crock with a loose lid is also great; these can be bought in cheap sets for serving soup. You can also use a rubbermaid or tupperware container. I've begun starters using the plastic containers that take-out Chinese soup comes in, and then transferred them to jars later! A wide-mouthed mayonnaise or pickle jar will also do just fine. Metallic containers are a bad idea; some of them are reactive and can ruin your starter! Blend a cup of warm water and a cup of flour, and pour it into the jar. That's the whole recipe! I find that whole wheat flour makes a vigourous " starting point " for starter, and I suggest you give it a try. Whole wheat flour also makes good " food " for the starter (more on feeding it soon). If you want, you can add a little commercial yeast to a starter to " boost " it. If you do this, sourdough snobs will look down their nose at you - but who cares about snobs? I personally find that (at least here in Virginia) no yeast " boost " is necessary, and I can make " real " sourdough with no trouble. But if you are having trouble, go ahead and cheat. I won't tell. Note that starter made with commercial yeast often produces a bread with less distinctive sour flavor than the real thing. Every 24 Hours, Feed the Starter. You should keep the starter in a warm place; 70-80 degrees Farenheit is perfect. This allows the yeast already present in the flour (and in the air) to grow rapidly. Temperatures hotter than 100 degrees or so will kill it. You can take comfort from the fact that almost nothing else will do so! The way you feed the starter is to (A) throw away half of it and then ( add a half-cup of flour and a half-cup of water. Do this every 24 hours. Within three or four days (it can take longer, a week or more, and it can happen more quickly) you should start getting lots of bubbles and a sour smell. The starter may start to puff up, too. This is good. Here's the gist: When your starter develops a bubbly froth on top, it is done. You have succeeded. If this sounds brain-dead simple, that's because it is. People who didn't believe the Earth was round did this for millenia. Surely somebody smart like you can manage it. Refrigerate the Starter. Keep the starter in your fridge, with a lid on it. Airtight is fine, but mostly airtight is better. If you're using a mayo or pickle jar, punch a hole in the lit with a nail, that kind of thing. Once the starter is chilled, it needs to be fed only once a week. Realistically, you can get away with less; it's important to remember that your starter is a colony of life-forms that are almost impossible to kill (except with extreme heat). Even starving them is difficult. See also: http://www.recipesource.com/baked-goods/breads/sourdough/wild-yeast-sourdough1.h\ tml ------------------------- Lambic ale is made from " wild " yeast/LAB in certain areas. Kefir beer is really a lot like Lambic ale, to me, but I use the kefir as a starter instead of " wild stuff " because it is more consistent. Tho actually, in my kitchen, most of the wild microbes probably ARE from kefir! Anyway, kefir whey can be used for the yeast/LAB starter too ... when you said " whey " I jumped to " yogurt whey " (which has no yeast) but if you mean " kefir whey " then that will make a nice sourdough starter. If you like sourdough, keep some of the starter per the instructions in the link above (read the whole thing, they added some nice details) and you can make sourdough easily, any time! Sourdough starter is a lot like " friendship bread " (which really was a sourdough, I think) and you can use any of those old recipes. You can make sourdough cookies and cakes etc. > Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 ----- Original Message ----- From: " Heidi Schuppenhauer " > > >> OK, I give ... what is MWAH? > >> > > > >A big fat kiss! > > Heh heh. I'll remember that. Thanks. > Or just a quarter teaspoon. Do you add the yeast in when you first mix up the soak or closer to bake time? Sorry....gf cooking tends to be twitchy and I'm anal about these details. For " artisan " bread you add a TINY amount of yeast and > let the rise go slower ... it picks up LAB (which will be in the whey anyway) and > that gives the bread these neat overtones. If you let it set longer it just gets > really sour (hence sourdough!). Then just keep some of the last batch to > make the next batch. Thanks for all the resource stuff! Mind if I pass your recipe along? --s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2004 Report Share Posted September 5, 2004 >> Or just a quarter teaspoon. > >Do you add the yeast in when you first mix up the soak or closer to bake >time? Sorry....gf cooking tends to be twitchy and I'm anal about these >details. Yeah, well I'm a programmer and we are REAL anal! <G> You add the yeast when you first mix it up to soak, so it has a long time to work. > >Thanks for all the resource stuff! Mind if I pass your recipe along? > >--s Generically, it's ok to pass on anything I say publically (like, I think this list might be private?? ;-) I don't guarantee any of it will WORK though, like you say, GF recipes tend to be twitchy. Flatbread always seems to work though ... actually my family is beginning to prefer flatbread for texture (you can wrap it AROUND something). Heidi Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 2, 2008 Report Share Posted February 2, 2008 Does anyone have a good sourdough recipe? I've tried a few in different GF cookbooks, but just looking to try a new one. I think it was good the first time, but the second time I don't think I let my starter settle long enough after getting it out of the fridge. My sourdough ended up being more sweet than sour! Thanks in advance for any suggestions, Caitlin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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