I think we can all agree, there’s just nothing like Mom’s home cookin’. It just tastes better, doesn’t it? For that reason I’ve asked my Mom to submit some of her favorite recipes for me to share with y’all each Monday. Let’s get cooking in the kitchen with Mom!
I’ve mentioned this a few times in past recipes, so some of you may already know that I am attempting a more gluten free lifestyle. As it turns out, I am highly intolerant to gluten and I’d been having a hard time missing out on my favorite foods – pasta, cakes, cookies, basically all the yummy stuff. One item I missed the most was BREAD! Let’s face it, gluten free bread just doesn’t cut it – it’s crumbly, not nearly as tasty and it just doesn’t hold up like regular bread does (at least the store bought brands don’t). So imagine my delight when I found out that TRUE Sourdough breads are technically gluten free! If done right, the fermentation process that gives sourdough it’s trademark tang breaks down all of the gluten before it’s baked, which means your body doesn’t have to deal with it. So for this week’s recipe I thought we’d share with you how Mom and I started our own sourdough starter, which we will hopefully use next week to bake up loaves of fresh sourdough bread. Yum!
- 1 quart wide mouth canning jar
- 2 cups whole grain rye flour
- water
- Add the two cups of flour to your canning jar; then add just enough water to make a thick batter. Your starter should be thick, but still pourable (you will use more flour than water here).
- Give your starter a stir; the batter should stick to the spoon if it is the right consistency.
- Cover your starter with something that keeps little critters out, but still allows air to flow into the jar; store your jar in the warmest place in the house, but out of direct sunlight.
- For the next few days you'll need to feed and stir your starter - once in the morning, and once at night. To feed your starter, simply add more flour, one tablespoon at a time, and enough water to get it back to the same consistency that it was when you first began. Remember, it should be thick and sticky, but still pourable.
- After a few days you should notice little air bubbles on the surface of your starter along with a very tangy odor. If you'd like to expedite the fermentation process a bit, go ahead and dump out about half of the original starter; then add enough flour and water to get it back to the same spot on the jar as before. This helps give the yeast a stronger foothold and helps move the whole process along. Remember to keep your batter consistency thick, yet pourable!
- After a few days to a week you'll begin to see more and more little bubbles and you should notice a yeasty, sour smell. When you notice these two it means your little starter is fermenting and is ready to be baked with!
Hey Cuz! How successful have you been going gluten free??? I’m really intolerant to gluten too! Dairy also!! Guess it’s a “Will” trait perhaps. 🙂 Have you tried baking a loaf of sourdough yet with your starter?? I was reading up about cultured and fermented foods and how they are very healing for your gut. This page on Facebook “Donna Schwenk’s Cultured Food Life” had a sourdough recipe on it also. I wanted to get the book and start trying some stuff out.
Hey!!! Oh my gosh, it’s been tough. But so worthwhile – I never knew how much better I could feel since cutting out gluten. I’m not *totally* gluten free yet (I can’t seem to give up tortillas yet), but I’m learning my limits. Haven’t done any baking with the starter yet, but it is already starting to ferment so we are hoping by this weekend we’ll have something to work with. I’ve found that when I do eat sourdough I have no reaction – so I am THRILLED that I can finally eat some bread that isn’t rice flour based. I will definitely have to check out that Facebook page and read up on cultured foods! Sounds like it makes a lot of sense!