Tasty Tuesday - Sourdough Starter

I really like making my own bread, but most of the recipes that I've tried end up too heavy and the kids don't want to eat it. A while back I decided to give sourdough bread a try because I love sourdough, but hate paying the high prices the stores charge for it. I also have read that sourdough is supposed to be healthier for you, so maybe this will help me eat better and keep my blood test levels down. The first thing you need to do to make sourdough though, is to get a starter going. Here is the recipe that I used and so far have had great success with it.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups bread or all-purpose flour
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) regular or quick active dry yeast
2 cups warm water (105-115 degrees)

Directions:
Mix flour and yeast in 4 quart or larger container. Gradually beat in water until smooth. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let stand in warm place 2-4 days until bubbly and sour smelling. Transfer to 2 quart or larger container with a tight fitting lid. Refrigerate.

Your container doesn't need to be anything fancy. I reuse old food containers because after a while the starter starts to build up on the sides of the container and every once in a while I can just transfer the starter to a new one and toss the old one. Here is what my current one looks like:

The starter needs to be kept active by feeding or replenishing at least once a week. If you use some for baking, replace that with equal amounts of flour and warm water. For example if you use 1 cup starter, replace it with 1 cup flour and 1 cup warm water. If you don't use any for a while, you will need to feed it once a week at least by stirring in 1 Tbsp flour and 1 Tbsp warm water until smooth. After replenishing or feeding, you need to cover it loosely and let stand in a warm place 12-24 hours. Then cover tightly and refrigerate again. Here is what it should look like after sitting in a warm place for a while, nice and bubbly:

After it sits in the fridge for a while, it will begin to separate and not look so good, but you just need to stir it up until it is all blended again. As long as you store it in the fridge and keep feeding it, your starter could last you a long time. I've even heard that some bakeries have used the same starter for hundreds of years!

Hopefully I will get a few sourdough recipes that I've tried posted soon so you can start using your starter if you decide to give it a try!

Please leave me a comment and share your favorite recipe so I can try out some new ones!