Nicole, over at Pinch My Salt, has gotten me interested in making sourdough bread, again. I set the starter on Sunday, and today made my first loaf of what I call Maine Sourdough. It is a very simple loaf. The starter consists of one cup flour, and one cup water. This batch soured up quick, it was ready to use this morning. I took one cup for my bread recipe, added one more cup of flour and water, and let that set until this afternoon. Next I added a pinch of sugar and salt, a one half teaspoon yeast, and a tablespoon of olive oil. I mixed that all together and kneaded it for about fifteen minutes. After that, I rolled the dough into a loaf, and let it rise a bit. Finally, baked it for 15 minutes, in a 425º oven.
When it was cool, I did a taste test. Then I did another one, this time with some of my friend Carol’s rhubarb-ginger marmalade. It passed. The house smells really good, too!