It's alive!!: Part II Return of the Kitchen Monsters

So a little more discussion on the things growing in my kitchen.

YOGURT

How good for you is yogurt?  I'm sure I don't have to sell you on that.

I've been making my oatmeal in the mornings a little on the thick side, with milk instead of water.  Then I'll mix in a quarter cup of vanilla yogurt.  It's so creamy and good!  Boaz (my one and a half year old) digs it too.

SOURDOUGH STARTER

I'm super excited about this little experiment streak I'm on with sourdough bread.  I love sourdough, and Jesse told me he did not, but when I made it last week, he said it is one of his favorite breads I've ever made.  I guess homemade bread will have that effect.

I made mine with the basic recipe from the bread machine book.  And then I tweaked it.

2 1/4 t. active dry yeast
2 c. hot water
2 c. bread flour

Wisk them up with a fork in a bowl where it can double, because it probably will.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap, a new shower cap, or a lid.  Let sit in warm place and get nice and bubbly.

After that, based on my internet gleanings, feed morning and night with a couple tablespoons of flour and water.  You want to keep feeding the yeast regularly to develop that nice, sourdough flavor, and you can expect there to be a yeasty, beer smell when you take a whiff of it.

If you don't use it often enough, you'll end up getting a lot of starter.  It's ok to throw some away to keep a reasonably sized volume around,  And after a few days, I don't know, four or five, switch containers.  The edges of the container can grow mold (there's no live yeast competing with it) and you don't want to have to throw the whole thing away.

I make mine in the bread machine because I'm short on counter space and this way I don't make a big floury mess to clean up.  But if you are up for it, you could do it by hand, or in a mixer with the dough hook.

One more thing:  sourdough starter releases alcohol as a byproduct.  You can see this clear, watery substance on the top.  I either mix it in, or drain it off.  It's called "hooch," a low grain alcohol.  Miners used to actually drink the stuff.  Sounds gross to me, but I guess that's sort of what beer is.  Anyway, it's normal and would cook off in the baking process.