SOUR DOUGH STARTER STOPPED!

This time of year there is a sense of calm in the month of January and February. There is a stillness that comes with chilly temps and snow.

Unless… you, like me, are up to your elbows in sourdough.

For Christmas, my boys gave me all the tools to make sourdough bread.

My middle, who has made sourdough) talked me through the steps in four minutes and then left me with a math problem and a scale.

No one told me math (and conversions) were involved.

I texted my son photos of my first attempt. It looked like a deflated Nerf football.

Once I figured out the math (with a page of notes), reminiscent of word problems in 9th grade.

Flashbacks to writing down any and all relevant information in a spiral notebook.

I searched “easy sourdough recipe and watched two TikTok videos ten times. I watched that video at least seven times and then found another one and repeated the process.

What I did not realize was that the videos were shortened, and I missed the “repeat “slap and folds x amount of times.”

Sidenote: No one could think of a better name for the technique to get the dough ready. It sounds the description of Spanx.

I am a Virgo I ike lists and written instructions with step by step directions.

On my second attempt with my starter portion of the word problem. I came downstairs and found this mess on the counter.

At this point, my husband walks into the kitchen offering “suggestions.” It was shaping up to be a Dateline episode over a sourdough starter.

I made two loaves over several days, which my son questioned because apparently, sourdough is a ten-day cycle.

My son was asking questions, taking notes, and talking like my sourdough needed a name because it was a living organism.

So not only is there math involved, but he also introduced biology.

My middle asked if the dough had risen. I thought, well, now I have flashbacks to Mary Our Queen Elementary School with math, spelling, gym class, and Jesus.

On my second attempt, the bread had a little bit more shape, but when my son asked (over the phone )if the bread had risen.

Well, I am praying for a sourdough miracle, so maybe all of the successes on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram are little miracles!

Mama needs a miracle because I think my starter has stopped! And now I might need a Hail Mary to get 1/3 of someone’s starter.

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