sourdough sponge
I tried to make sourdough bread again last weekend. I had better luck with the sponge this time, but that was it for the good news. I repeated a mistake from last time – I started too early in the day. I did it without thinking, but then I decided that I would just let the sponge rise for a really long time (the recipe says to let the sponge rise for at least 8 hours or overnight). I got started somewhere between 10 and 11 in the morning. I checked my sponge before going to bed and it was really bubbly. I was very optimistic at that point – this was much different than last time.
In the morning I found that the sponge was still very bubbly, but that it had deflated somewhat from the previous night. The picture above was taken after I had stirred the sponge down, but even then it was bubbly.
It was downhill from there. I added more flour and some salt to make the dough and then left the dough to rise. The first rise was supposed to take an hour or an hour and a half, but I left it quite a bit longer. I checked it from time to time but there was little progress. At some point I decided to go ahead and shape the loaf and start the second rise. I tried putting it in a slightly warm oven, but it did nothing. I let it go for several hours, but there was no sign of life. I decided not to bother with baking it.
I’m going to give it one more shot – I’ll let the sponge rise for 12 hours or so and see how it does. I’m also tempted to try it without the salt. After that, unless I get a decent loaf of bread, I think I’ll be tossing the starter – either that or start charging it room and board.
5 comments:
Hi Cathy,
So sorry to hear you're having so much trouble with this. =( I think maybe that's why I've never attempted to make sourdough. Good luck to you though! I'm sure you'll succeed! =)
Hi Reid - oh well, it's been an interesting experience in any case. I may even try again sometime using different directions. I think once I have a lively starter making the bread shouldn't be a problem. Thanks for the encouragement!
Sorry to hear about another disappointing attempt. I applaud your decision to keep trying, though! You'll be so much more thrilled when it finally does work out just right!
Alice
Hi Cathy!
I've tried doing the starter-thing a dozen times as well, using all kinds of different recipes and instructions - The first 4, 5, 6 - 10?!? loaves are poor excuses for a sourdough bread - but then things start shaping up! PATIENCE is definetly a key word!
What I tend to do now - even though I actually managed to start a REAL sourdough once or twice it always dies on me - is to just pinch a cup-full of bread dough off, when I do a normal yeast-based batch, and use that as my sourdough. I know it's not the real REAL McCoy, but it's still really good and not as difficult to get started. And I guess you could say that after a while, there aren't that many of the original yeast cells left...?
Good luck with your house guest ;-) and thumbs up to you for not giving up!
Zarah
Hi Alice - thanks, you're right - when (if) I eventually succeed, it will be thrilling! In the meantime, though, I sure am throwing alot of flour down the drain. Oh well, I guess it's no worse than spending alot of money on a cooking class AND it's probably more instructive!
Hi Zarah! welcome to my blog and to blogging (I took a peek at your new blog)! It is encouraging to hear that you've had a starter work after a number of failures. I'm actually on my third attempt today, so we'll see what happens. Something has already happened that has given me a glimmer of hope for a possible fourth try - normally I leave the starter out of the refrigerator for about 4 hours after feeding it. Since this time I fed it right before going to bed last night, I left it out overnight. What a difference! It had visibly risen in the bowl. My sponge looks about the same as last week - although it hasn't deflated as it did last week. So keep your fingers crossed...
Post a Comment