Here is the recipe for the SF bread I showed on the other post. You should have a digital scale and thermometer to get accurate weights and finished temp on bread. Note that there are ox as well as grams given for each item. You need to have your wild yeast already going well before you do this recipe . Then you make the starter and cont. with the dough. PLease ask any quesitons. c ( the yeast at the end of the recipe is opt. I did not need it. The starter is plenty of leavening. ) Sourdough Starter (SF Sourdough Bread) ### (### ounces) (### grams) xxx ### Golf ball size 3 oz. 85g "mother"starter (the "mother" starter can be cold from the refrigerator or at room temperature) 9 oz 255g Unbleached bread flour . 6 oz. 170g Water (room temperature 18 oz. Total 1. Put all the ingredients in a mixing bowl with the paddle attachment (or mix by hand). Mix on slow speed for one minute and then increase to medium for about 30 seconds. The dough (which we will call "starter" from this point on) should feel like regular French bread dough, tacky or slightly sticky. Adjust flour or water, if needed. 2. Transfer the starter to a lightly floured work surface and hand knead for about 30 seconds. Place it in a lightly oiled bowl or container, cover the bowl (not the starter) with plastic wrap or a lid, and leave at room temperature for 4 to 6 hours, or until the starter increases in size by about 1 1/2 times. If you plan to use the starter on the same day, allow another hour of fermentation so that it nearly doubles in size. Otherwise, put the starter in the refrigerator. It will be good for up to four days. SF Sourdough Bread ### (### ounces) (### grams) xxx ### Use all 18 (1# 2 oz.) 510g Wild yeast starter (see below for instructions) 4 cups 20 oz. (1# 4 oz.) 567g Unbleached bread flour 2 teaspoons table salt; OR 2 1/2 teaspoons Mortons Kosher salt or 0.75 oz. 14g Salt 1 cup plus 5 ounces 13oz 369g Water (lukewarm) 2 1/4 teaspoons 0.25 oz 7g Instant yeast (optional) . 51.75 oz. (3# 3 oz.) Total 1. Build and ripen your starter according to the instructions above, at least one day and not more than three days prior to making this final dough. 2. Transfer the ripened starter to a lightly floured work surface and cut it up into about 10 pieces. In a mixing bowl, combine the starter pieces with the flour and salt. If using instant yeast, sprinkle it into the lukewarm water and whisk it to dissolve the yeast. Let it sit for 1 minute to hydrate, then pour the yeast mixture into the dry ingredients. If not using instant yeast, simply add the water to the mixing bowl. Mix with the dough hook on low speed for 2 minutes (or by hand, using a large spoon) to form a coarse ball of dough. It should be very tacky and slightly warm. Let the ball of dough sit for 5 minutes. 3. Resume mixing on low speed for 2 additional minutes, adding additional flour or water, if necessary, to make a soft, supple, very tacky ball of dough. Increase the speed to medium high for about 15 seconds to more fully develop the gluten (or, if mixing by hand, knead for an additional minute). 4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and hand knead for a few seconds to form it into a ball. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl (large enough to hold the dough when it doubles in size), cover the bowl tightly, not the dough, with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator. It will be ready to use the next day and for up to three days (Note: if you need to bake the dough on the same day that you mix it, for the yeasted version allow two hours for the first rise at room temperature, or 4 hours for the first rise if not using instant yeast, and then proceed to shaping and baking as described below). 5. Day of Baking: (Note: You do not have to use all of the dough, but can cut off, with a scissors or a knife, the amount of dough you wish to bake and return the remaining dough to the refrigerator where it will be good for up to 4 days.) For the no yeast version, remove the dough from the refrigerator 6 hours before you plan to bake it (4 hours to wake up and rise, then shape it, then 2 hours for final proofing). . For the no yeast version, after the 4 hour fermentation period, gently transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface, degassing it as little as possible. 6. Shaping: Divide the dough with a pastry blade into the desired size (suggested size 16 oz. for a 1 pound loaf; 24 oz. for a 1 1/2 pound loaf, etc. You can also bake the entire dough as a large, 3 pound miche (round, country loaf) or as a large torpedo loaf. Shape and proof the loaf as shown on page 00 . You can raise the dough free-standing, or in floured bannetons (proofing baskets), or on couches (linen proofing cloths), the same as you would for traditional French bread. Allow 1 1/2 to 2 hours for the final proofing; the dough will increase in size by about 50%. It may spread as it rises, but it will rise as it bakes. 7. Allow 30 minutes to preheat the oven to 500 F./260 C.. If you have a baking stone, position it in the middle of the oven and preheat it along with the oven (allow an extra 15 minutes for preheating the stone thoroughly). Also, place a cast iron frying pan or a sheet pan on the lowest shelf to preheat along with the oven and stone, for steaming. Score the dough in the design style you prefer . 8. Transfer the dough to the oven either with a peel or on the pan in which it is rising (if free standing). Pour one cup of hot water into the steam pan (be careful to cover any glass oven windows with a towel in case of splash-back that could crack your window; also, wear an oven mitt to protect against steam burns). Reduce the temperature to 450 F./232 C. and bake for 12 minutes (note: if baking a large miche, reduce the oven another 25 °F.). Then, rotate the bread or the pan for even baking, and continue baking until the loaf is done, about 15 to 35 minutes, depending on the size of the loaf. The bread should have a rich, caramelized color, sound hollow when thumped on the bottom, and register approximately 210 F. /90 C. in the center of the loaf. Cool on a rack for at least one hour before serving.

You might want to go ahead and get started with the culture as it takes a bit for some folks to get it going. If you will use the bit of rye as suggested on The Fresh Loaf site I linked you will have a little more luck. Don't put any regular yeast. Resist using anything else...pineapple juice etc. Just use the formula. And by the time you have it the bread will be gone. You can use any discard as an additive to almost anything you are making. Just throw it in...quick breads,pancakes,waffles..you name it. Let me know if you would like any more info. I don't know about a sep , thread...what do you think ???? c

hello all : Been looking at this page for a while - and was inspired to try something I read - a wild yeast captured from Caraway seeds. After 5 days and a few additions of my own - think I have a live sponge - Started with soaking FRONTIERS ORGANIC Caraway seeds ( I read this - dont remember what site - said organic would be sun dried as to heat dried) in some water in jar - dash of flour - not really sure why next morning drained seeds , added 1/2 of flour closed cap of jar and shook to mix - within 1 hr I had froth - next day still frothy - so put into bigger jar and added 1/2 flour and water - shook to mix - cracked lid for outgas - very frothy and smelled like fermentation next day less froth strong fermentation smell - so added some apple cider vinegar from a dropper I was cleaning out - secured cap and shook - cracked lid for outgas - next day, little movement but lots of hooch and strong fermentation smell - so I added more vinegar , did the mixing etc... this morning I was making bread with yeast - decided to play with the concoction - used up organic fruit juice sweetened apricot fruit jam jar took 1/2 of the mix I started - just shook that to mix and cracked the lid - could smell a touch of vinegar in the mix - the main jar I just added some home stone ground white winter wheat flour - maybe 2 tablespoons and mixed with wooded spatula I mixed the yeast dough I had started last nite -now thick like pancake batter - just checked it a moment ago and appears to be live and starting to bubble I shall report back tomorrow with more result - thought those might be interested in my experiment cheers:

Those are lovely! Re sourness, if you want a really sour flavor, use less starter and no yeast and let it do a really slow rise. At least, that's what I've read. :) You can also get more sour by feeding up with newly milled flour which still has lots of wild yeasts and other stuff, which I've experienced myself. My whole wheat starter is much sourer because of that, and the 3/4 white buns I made recently with my white starter, and sugar, but no yeast, have hardly any tang at all. How fun to have a clay oven to play with!