One Hundred Sourdough Breads

Sourdough Penny #100

So proud I've just pulled out of the oven my 100th and 101 sourdough breads! To think that I started back in February, 10 months ago with a handful of youtube videos, curiosity and hopefulness.

Sourdough bread is such a science and yet there lies beneath basic, ancient simplicity. A colony of yeast and bacteria eat up flour, water and salt and their gases causes your bread to rise! And, there is no better taste than that of your own sourdough starter, since it is a signature of your landscape, your home. Back in February, before the lockdown but not because of it, I started my own starter out of necessity and strong desire. We love bread. Jorris in particular loves bread. He even has said before how he loves my sourdough starter Penny, after Roua and I. Actually, once, in the midst of being in Penny heaven (after taking a bite of freshly baked Penny, still warm, with a slather of butter), he said he could propose to her. I furrowed my eyebrows, turning away from my work for a quick, confused glance at him. Should I be worried of my husband's fidelity!? Oh, wait, he's just making a joke about marrying my sourdough starter...but really, all jokes aside, she is 3rd on the list of all our family and friends and other things in life that you could love. Or maybe the order is: Roua, Bees, Penny, Tiffanie....I forget but you get the point. 

Jorris isn't the only one who loves Penny. Many of our friends have commented on how yummy Penny tastes, her soft inside and crusty outside. And she is 100% organic, whole-wheat flour. Our shepherd friend Samuel likes Penny and that was a big compliment for me because this guy really knows his bread and bakes his bread too for his family. He was surprised by how Penny rises so well, even though she's 100% whole-wheat. I suppose whole wheat is heavier than white flour or other flours so typically perhaps trickier to rise? I am lucky enough to use a whole wheat that is fine and high quality. It's also local which is the cherry on top of the sundae. It's one of my greatest joys to give one of my sourdoughs freshly baked to friends. People appreciate it so much, especially here in France where bread is such a fundamental part of our meal. The table is just not complete without a loaf of bread. 

Nice crumb

I say all of this not to brag. I'm just the baker. The magic lies in the power of the culture of bacteria and yeast which I have simply captured with some water in a jar and time. Penny has gotten stronger with each bread. It's amazing to see that sometimes I can go a few weeks without feeding her and when I do, she puffs just like that! After giving birth for example. Penny was the last thing on my mind, so I admittedly neglected her for a few weeks, but when I fed her, POOF! Incredible. 

It takes trust in the bacteria, yeast, time, temperature...the process. I trusted this process so much when I first started and told Jorris I wouldn't stop until I made a bread like I see online. He told me in so many words not to get my hopes up, that those bakers have been at their craft for years...."don't be disappointed"...after my first bread, he was stunned and shared in the joy and excitement with me. In fact, it Jorris who inspired the name Penny...when I was thinking of what to name my sourdough starter, Jorris was outside singing "Penny Lane..." from The Beatles, and bam. I said, there it is. Since then we have used Penny interchangeably, referring to Penny the sourdough starter or Penny the loaf of bread. 

A fed and active Penny. 

Penny puffed and ready for action!

I wrote about sourdough bread and the benefits years ago when I got to tour the sourdough master of this region. He uses the same flour as we do, actually. Never did I imagine then I could bake bread too. In fact, it was not being able to get to the local artisanal store to get his bread that I was determined to make my own. Without my French driving permit and Jorris being so busy in Spring, I could never get down there in time and neither could he, so we didn't have bread. So, necessity drove me most I'd say, to making my own. At least I could try I thought. I stayed up late watching hours of youtube videos, sometimes the same ones over and over. I immersed myself in forums. I loved learning about it all. I started a journal "Penny Vol 1" where I began documenting every single bread I made, the date, the time, the outcome, the questions...from there I learned. This was a tip from my favorite teacher/baker whom I am so thankful I stumbled upon his youtube channel. Bake with Jack is the name of his channel and he is from the UK. 

When I filled up that journal, I started "Penny Vol 2". Less notes in that one, but I counted every bread and dated when I made them. 

Sourdough Penny's 100 and 101

Building my week around baking bread adds some structure in a chaotic, uneasy time. No matter what was going on in the world, I knew I could trust on Penny and myself to make my family a good loaf of bread. And she's opened doors to sourdough: pancakes, cinnamon rolls, X-Mas logs. I also have to thank Lisa from a Farmhouse On Boone for her sourdough recipes and inspiration. 

Cheers to 100 Pennys and many more to come. 

I'm going to give the 100th Penny to our neighbors who will kindly take care of Bodhi, the bees and my houseplants and Winter Garden while we are in LA!!! We fly out tomorrow morning!!!!!

*photos by me