August 13, 2010 - 4:19pm
Happy starter
This is the most recent bake from my firm starter using the formula in Crust and Crumb...I love this book! I am very pleased with the dark color and crust...not so much with the shape and slashing...but overall my best effort to date. I have been nurturing this starter since January and am becoming increasingly happier with the results, as are friends and family. These two loaves will go to the Outer Banks for the weekend, so there will be no crumb pictures, but hopefully the good results will continue and I can get some good shots from the next bake. Thanks for everyones help. This is a great site!
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Beautiful loaves!
Crust & Crumb got me started.
Shaping instructions weren't sufficient, but the rest of the book is great.
The Bread Baker's Apprentice improved on the shaping instructions some, but I didn't find the pictures overly helpful.
I think you have to SEE someone shape bread, either in real life or on video.
That's what I do. I try to find videos on YouTube and elsewhere.
The entire book is available for free on Google Books if anyone's interested. Here's the link.
The longer you have your starter the better your sourdoughs will taste. Mine was "born" in 2001.
Karin
I think all of old starter mystique and veneration is a bunch of hocus pocus.
Ja, I'm probably the only one who does.
Nee, nee, I don't venerate my starter - I'm actually a pretty bad "starter mother", don't cuddle it and don't refresh it more than once a week - or even less.
I do not really know whether a two year old starter gives a better taste to a bread than one that was maintained over six years. But there's definitely a difference in tangyness between a two month old starter and a two year old one.
Karin