I love my sourdough starter. There is no bigger feeling of accomplishment than seeing a magnificent, crusty loaf of sourdough bread after the many hours of effort put into baking it.
My sourdough journey started when a fellow mom offered me a starter while we were watching our daughters in a tennis match. This mom regularly brought cookies to the meets that all of the girls raved about, and I had gone to ask her for her recipe. The cookies, I learned, were from sourdough discard – the portion of sourdough starter that is removed before feeding what’s left in the jar with fresh flour and water.
I was a little nervous, but I said “sure”, and the next practice she showed up with a mason jar with a little bit of white goo in the bottom. She rattled off instructions about how to care for my starter, and off she went, leaving me with this newborn to care for.
“Happiness is freshly baked bread”
-Unknown
Being a researcher at heart, I went home and searched up everything I could about taking care of a sourdough starter. And, most importantly, I gave my starter a name, Fluffy.
Fluffy and I have been through a lot together since that day. Like any relationship, sometimes she isn’t very happy with me, and sometimes I’m not very happy with her. But, we are patient with each other, and together, we have navigated the highs and lows of baking sourdough bread, and using discard to create delicious recipes.
I’m going to let you in on a little secret: sourdough starter is forgiving. It’s resilient, adaptable, and not nearly as fussy as it seems. And honestly, what’s the worst that can happen? If it doesn’t work out, toss it and try again.
I’m no sourdough professional – you won’t learn about the different hydration or science behind sourdough from me, but I love sharing all of my tips and tricks and lessons learned, as well as my favorite recipes! You’ve got this—and I’m here to help make it easier (and way less intimidating)!
