In fact I am more an 'intuitive' baker & like to just simply mix fresh yeast, handfuls of wholemeal flour & white flour, add warm soy milk, sugar or honey - oh and a pinch of salt for luck!
My breads often come out dense with a medium crust comparable to sourdough bread.
My family enjoy the taste and with most homemade bread because it lacks the preservatives, emulsifiers & other additives that supermarket varieties contain, it has a limited shelf life.
However, I have never been able to keep my homemade bread for more than 1 day because it is normally gobbled up by then.
I have just finished making a loaf of white bread which I used a sourdough bug I started a few days ago. The raw dough was a lot more pliable & elastic when I was kneading it.
Geez, that reminds me I forgot to feed my sourdough starter! Well they're pretty easy to start, just take some flour & water, mix to make a paste & leave it in a wide mouth jar.
It is best to leave it out on the counter for a few days, when you notice it start to bubble on the surface & a stronger yeast like smell coming from it, than it is ready. Keep in your fridge & as long as you keep feeding it with flour/water at least once a week, you will have a sourdough starter, pretty much for life!
If it gets mouldy whilst in the airing out stage, first few days of beginning your starter, just dump that mixture in your compost & start again. Simple!
Anyway, here are some pictures of my 'intuitive sourdough bread loaf' - the smell of baked bread wafting from your kitchen is enough to send the neighbours into a frenzy! It is so rewarding to whip up a batch of homemade bread & so tasty too...
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