Sourdough

Sourdough is an interesting thing.   I ordered some sourdough last Christmas '12 and gave away as much as people would take.  It is a good thing, but it is like having a pet that must be fed all the time.  Some time during last summer while getting two houses ready to sell and selling and closing them, the sourdough quit being fed.  Something had to go and it was the responsibility of the sourdough.  It was kind of gross, although it was in the fridge the whole time so not that gross.  But none the less it had to go.  I decided recently that I wanted some sourdough bread and pancakes.  So I ordered some more sourdough starter from King Arthur Flour.  It is a great place to get things like this.  But I am back to feeding and letting it bubble, and dividing and feeding and letting it bubble....well you see.

See the bubbles?

It does have a wonderful pungent smell.  Really it smells good!

Here it is being mixed to make a rustic sourdough bread.

Left to rise in the oven, turned off with a pot of steaming water with it.

This is about 90 minutes later.  Beautiful!

Divided to make two loaves.

After they have risen, now they are ready to bake.

This is the pretty one after baking.  This one went to my mother and the BIL's dinner tonight.  The sister will be home soon and she can use some of it to make a great sandwich.  One of my favorite things to make with sourdough is Sourdough Buttermilk Pancakes.  I am not a lover of pancakes, but these I love!  They are so good.  They need nothing but fresh fruit or a sunny-side-up egg, or just a bit of peanut butter to make them good.  They are the real reason I ordered the last sourdough starter.  If I were really a susie-homemaker, I would start my own sourdough starter.  For now I'll just use King Arthur Flour.

I have been on a mission to find a new way to recycle old t-shirts or left over fabric.  I want to figure out a way to make rugs using discarded things.  But I am stuck between doing a latch hook rug or a braided rug.  I think fabric would make a better braided rug and t-shirts would make a better latch hook rug.  All I have read about the latch hook rug is how time consuming it is.  Nothing wrong with time consuming I just fear that I would become too easily bored it is takes forever.  I guess I should just jump in with both feet and try both.  Pictures to follow...  

The reason I must figure this out is that while there are lots of people out there doing recycled, re-purposed things, a lot of them are using discarded things and simply making them into knick-knacks that just take up space and will end up being discarded again.  Not that there is anything wrong with making cutesy things, it is just not my style.  Whatever I re-purpose needs to have a real purpose.

But on to TBT 

Hair for miles and a smile to match.

Daughter doing what she loves, swimming and helping cousin's son.

Eating cake, who needs hands.

Just one of the many faces of the son.  One day I'll do a post on the many faces of my son.