Remnant starter impatiently reactivated then added to more of the same flour and water dough mixture, itself impatiently proofed before cold storage. With lecithin added to help keep the final baked bread, and salt added that inhibited proofing considerably. These two things, poorly reactivated starter retarded with mineral salt led to exceedingly long proofing. This starter is faster than that. Had I waited another day reactivating the starter and had I held back on salt until the loaf is prepared then the proofing would have been much speedier. But there you go. The trade off is that extra long proofing periods mean longer fermentation means more intensely acidic, sourdough flavor.
After a few hours proofing following addition of reactivated starter ↑
The same bowl following a few days in the refrigerator. ↓
The loaf has expanded X3.
What makes this sourdough so fine?
Well, my precious babies, time is what makes it so good, and certainly not my own expertise. The single essential element that mass produced bread avoids where time means additional storage, where production means incremental process, and where time means money. But all those hefty commercial concerns are irrelevant to us.
But why is sourdough bread more healthy for you than convenient store-bought bread?
Well, my fluffy special bunnies, sourdough falls into the category of healthy fermented foods. Go on, look it up on your internet here. You'll be presented with lists of fermented foods that include:
tempe (a type of tofu)
miso
natto (gross, truly gross, don't bother with this. You'll hate it for certain)
yogurt (the real kind that you make)
kefir (milk with probiotics)
raw cheese (but not pasteurized cheese. That wrecks everything)
kombucha (fermented tea)
kimchi
sauerkraut
pickles
oddly, lists usually leave out sourdough bread.
But what's the dealio, Emilio?
Well, my precious little darlings, the advantages are manifold encompassing all the reasons of the previous items listed plus a few of its own.
The bacteria present pre-digests the wheat and other grains, making digesting much easier for your gut while releasing micronutrients.
Like beer, the sugars are consumed by the process, by time, by the yeast helping stabilize your body's reaction to sugar, stabilizing the body's reaction and minimizing sugar's associated activity in production of body fat.
Sourdough takes longer to digest, even though it's easier because it has help and because your body is getting at everything that commercial bread locks out.
(Bread and beer go together, in its beginning, when it was invented, beer is basically liquid bread)
Sourdough is loaded with probiotics, even though it is baked.
The types of wild yeast cells in sourdough neutralize phytic acid making the bread easier to digest. Phytic acid binds with minerals making them unavailable to us.
Regular bread is digested faster due to un-predigested sugars, while skipping past nutrients locked up by phytic acids in modern commercialized bread and not releasing micronutrients. So although easier on your stomach and gut to digest, it takes longer as more nutrients are available causing your blood sugar to stabilize.
My darling delightful wiggling babies, I'm not selling the idea of sourdough bread, I'm explaining because I love you, and everyone loves bread. But your commercial loaves are killing you softly and this is your easy way out of that uniquely modern trap. You needn't be a pro either. Go on, try it, you'll be amazed by what you do.
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