Hunger has a long memory. In America, we’ve been insulated by abundance, which makes us oddly comfortable with mediocrity. Industrial bread is a symptom of that privilege. We forgot how to demand more because we never had to fight for less. This applies across the board John :)
I grew up on San Francisco sourdough, which back then you could only get in San Francisco. I've been meaning to create my own sourdough starter, and this inspires me to get started. Why did it take me so long? One of our Portland, Oregon, stores has ovens in some stores as well as a central bakery and makes fresh bread daily--and all the breads are made with flour from a local grist mill from local sources. (https://www.camascountrymill.com/our-mill). For the princely sum of $5.99 we can enjoy a fresh-baked four-ingredient loaf any day of the week!
One of the reasons I have been attracted to Montreal as my new city of choice in place of my hometown of NYC is exactly this—there is a real bread bakery on every other street. The farm markets have bakeries. The air smells of croissant and coffee in the morning.
For us on the mountain here in the Catskills, the two year break of Covid was a return to the land. I started making my own doughs and brew my own kombucha. But the one thing I never thought to do was create my own starter, and now I am sorry I didn’t experiment more when I had the time.
Would you (this to Rob or John) recommend a starter that I could order? This new chapter in my life will not keep me in one kitchen long enough to nurture one properly.
3) My mom used to make homemade bread from a starter, and she got hers from a friend who was taking out half and putting in more flour and water—with the admonition that if my mom didn’t keep it alive she couldn’t get another from her. She kept it alive for many years. The moral of the story is that you have to attend to it regularly, depending on the temperature in your home.
My brother sent me a San Francisco dry starter like #2 which requires flour and water. While I can get King Arthur flour at my local Kroger I would like to buy from a Eugene, Oregon, grist mill (Camus Country Mill) that New Seasons Market uses for its in-store sourdough.
These are great suggestions. I realize it’s something to upkeep, then use again and again over time. It’s the conditions to start that may be difficult to maintain. We’ll see!
Hunger has a long memory. In America, we’ve been insulated by abundance, which makes us oddly comfortable with mediocrity. Industrial bread is a symptom of that privilege. We forgot how to demand more because we never had to fight for less. This applies across the board John :)
Happy Friday!
So so true, Neela - thanks for reading!
I'll be stealing this beautiful phrase: "We forgot how to demand more because we never had to fight for less."
steal away John :)
I grew up on San Francisco sourdough, which back then you could only get in San Francisco. I've been meaning to create my own sourdough starter, and this inspires me to get started. Why did it take me so long? One of our Portland, Oregon, stores has ovens in some stores as well as a central bakery and makes fresh bread daily--and all the breads are made with flour from a local grist mill from local sources. (https://www.camascountrymill.com/our-mill). For the princely sum of $5.99 we can enjoy a fresh-baked four-ingredient loaf any day of the week!
One of the reasons I have been attracted to Montreal as my new city of choice in place of my hometown of NYC is exactly this—there is a real bread bakery on every other street. The farm markets have bakeries. The air smells of croissant and coffee in the morning.
For us on the mountain here in the Catskills, the two year break of Covid was a return to the land. I started making my own doughs and brew my own kombucha. But the one thing I never thought to do was create my own starter, and now I am sorry I didn’t experiment more when I had the time.
Would you (this to Rob or John) recommend a starter that I could order? This new chapter in my life will not keep me in one kitchen long enough to nurture one properly.
Two answers, then I’ll tell you what I am doing.
1) You can order a live sourdough starter from King Arthur Baking: https://shop.kingarthurbaking.com/items/classic-fresh-sourdough-starter
2) You can buy one that requires water and flower to rehydrate: https://culturesforhealth.com/products/san-francisco-sourdough-starter
3) My mom used to make homemade bread from a starter, and she got hers from a friend who was taking out half and putting in more flour and water—with the admonition that if my mom didn’t keep it alive she couldn’t get another from her. She kept it alive for many years. The moral of the story is that you have to attend to it regularly, depending on the temperature in your home.
My brother sent me a San Francisco dry starter like #2 which requires flour and water. While I can get King Arthur flour at my local Kroger I would like to buy from a Eugene, Oregon, grist mill (Camus Country Mill) that New Seasons Market uses for its in-store sourdough.
These are great suggestions. I realize it’s something to upkeep, then use again and again over time. It’s the conditions to start that may be difficult to maintain. We’ll see!