Oven Fresh

August 14, 2023

I guess that bread baking is a pandemic trope now and I’m late to the game, but a couple of months ago I started my sourdough journey. The lure of hot, fresh bread whenever I wanted was enticing and I took the plunge. After a bit of research I found a great sourdough starter and things escalated from there.

I named my starter Nigel, as you do.

The directions are cheerful, fun and easy to follow. At one point Nigel bubbled over the top of the jar and I thought I had mis-measured or mis-timed something. Honestly though, it’s kind of fun to watch your starter become so excited that it exhuberantly overflows the jar. It’s a milestone.

Nigel has been completely reliable and easy to work with. I’ve been experimenting and steadily improving my process and results. I started with a high-quality wheat flour but missed the greater glutenous growth of All-Purpose, so for now I’m just trying to get the best rise I can. I want to get the crust darker and crispier too.

The important thing though is it’s bread, it’s delicious, and I bake a loaf every week. The process is a salve from sitting in front of a screen and keyboard.

Today would have been my father’s 86th birthday. He loved bread. This next loaf’s for you Dad.