It’s so long ago I forget but it’s a very basic method add equal amounts flour and water each day discarding half each time you add the new lot. Now mine’s established I feed it 75g of each either once a week whether I’m baking or not (but don’t bother discarding any) or feed it about 8 hours before baking and then again before I put it back in the fridge.

Inspired by this discussion I did a bit more research and baked a very successful loaf with big holes at the weekend. I’ll post what I found out and pics on the other thread later.

It’s not a real le creset but a different brand. Any heavy cast iron pot will do. If you get a bigger one you can do a bigger loaf. Mine is smaller hence why I do 2/3rds of Henry’s sourdough. If you like cooking it’s an essential kitchen item imo. I use mine all the time for casseroles and curries. Brant I was getting frustrated with tipping the dough in too. It’s so much better now I use a square of parchment.

So I can get the outside looking like that every time now but the inside bubble size varies. It’s a dark art I think. I’m still using that hobbs house method but my starter is rye. 200 starter, 300 white, 35 wholemeal (sometimes all white), 230g warm water, 7g salt and sesame seeds. Tweaks I’ve made are that I use 2/3rds the recipe amounts to fit nicely in my pot and makes it easier to handle and shape. I also stopped getting the bread out of the fridge an hour before baking and now it goes in cold to a hot oven apparently that increases oven spring also I think it was over proving before. 250 for 25 mins then 200 for 20 to 25 all with lid on. I used to try to get it from the banaton straight to the le cruset and it would go in wonky but now I turn onto a baking parchment and lift it into the pot.

I got a set free with my new phone. I’ve never owned noise canceling headphones before so I have nothing to compare with but they are nice fitting easy to set up with app. Nice carry case, battery life OK but I’m used to not worrying about batteries with headphones. Wore them in the airport and on the plane to oz and they definitely helped reduce external noise but not quite what I imagined noise canceling headphones would be like. You can still hear someone speaking next to you.

Thanks it only took me about 2 years to get to this stage 😂

Bump

Think I put my method down in the old thread. I still play about with it but normally use 200g of starter which is 50 50 water and rye. It’s a very wet dough so I use the no knead method keeping it in the bowl till the final shaping. I find sourdough is only good as bread on day one of baking but is awesome for toast for a week as it never goes mouldy. I don’t mind this as I only make one a week I’ll have it as toast every morning and if I’m wanting sarnies or whatever I just buy rolls, pittas etc in my food shop. If I want to show off for a party I might bake a loaf to have as bread with cheeses or pate.

Sadex punk I bake about once a week also. Keep starter in the fridge feed it night before using and leave it on the side it should live for weeks without a feed like when on holiday. If you can be bothered try whole organic rye flour. Could have been the brand of flour you were using maybe or do you keep your fridge really cold?

Might give that a go myself brant for a change from my usual. I do mine over the course of a day normally and it’s lovely and flavourful but quite dense.

Freshly baked chicken and leek pie from local butcher/sandwich shop for lunch and just made beef burgers with thyme, wild garlic, chilli and goose fat for extra moistness in a brioche bun with gherkin and cheddar served with sweet potato fries and salad!

Thanks all I understand a bit more about it now. He’s done it today. mot, full service, belt and water pump for £460.

Make your own in a week. All you need is good quality flour and water and a glass jar. I changed from organic white to wholemeal rye and it’s so much more active.

I just got one through the door and someone had already defaced the picture of nigel before delivery. Gotta love Brighton!

It seems to take 3 or 4 double presses plus a long press to kick in!

It’s an impossible situation and whatever happens someone is going lose out but

I can’t imagine having med’s to reduce your natural hormone levels can be good for you?

Millions of women alter their hormones and their bodies natural cycle and rhythm every day for the sake of contraception. It is not ideal but we make that choice for the sake of convenience.

Watched episode one of The umbrella academy last night as was really enjoying it which surprised me alot as I really don’t like marvel stuff or super hero genre although I do love Sci fi.

Surely nobody on this planet would butter toast and then add peanut butter?

Oh yes I would. Can’t imagine it any other way unless you’re vegan of course.

Any vivaro sized vans on the horizon? Looking to purchase in a couple of years.

Puppy will grow out of it. My lab used to love playing with the cat even if she got a claw in the face but now the cat is boss and lab is averse to any type of pain. It’s funny as sometimes the cat tries to get her to play like she used to but she just goes and hides.

Nice. I didn’t know she was into mtb. She was my uni lecturer 20 years ago. Lots in the class had a crush.

It’s funny but as I’ve grown up with the archers I actually do see them as real people rather than actors so no idea who that baron is but sad that he has also passed.

Rip Joe Grundy. Aged 86.

Friston is great but not marked and quite easy to get lost in but you might be able to all chip in for a guided ride? Marmalade mtb do rides there.

Good one. It will take time. Don’t give up.

Do something else. Be self employed.

Worth having a go at improving diet. I do subscribe to you are what you eat. Nothing wrong with egg on toast but try and buy decent whole grain or rye bread, make pack lunches to avoid canteen food, big hearty salads with grains and seeds in, if sandwiches make sure it’s something healthy, mackerel, tuna etc on sourdough or wholemeal and some fruit. Dinners max out the veg in your stir frys and curries and have meat free days and fish days. Nuts and fruit to snack on or dark choc. I used to mess about trying different suppliments when I felt sickly but now I just eat a hugely varied healthy diet and make my own bread to avoid supermarket sugary crap. Biggest change to my diet was from subscribing to an organic veg box as I had to learn new recipes to use up all the different types of veg that arrive.

What’s your diet like currently?

Use m and s extra strong tea leaves in a tea ball thingy. I tsp puts hairs on your chest.

Biked lol! We will try out some of those routes dovebiker thank you. Hope we get some surf!

Ride some trails in Friston forest which will be running fast then plant out my tomatoes as hopefully that was the last frost and they are flowering already so need putting in their big pots.

Gaming. I do xbox during the darker months.

What is a an a?

I’m so confused about how to vote in these local elections. Choice of green, blue and red in Brighton and I know it’s not all about brexit and I want anything but tory but if voting for Labour is going to be used as evidence of wanting brexit I don’t want to add to that so erring towards green.

Pasta definitely as I tend to favour Asian cuisine in general and you can do so many things with potato… Even make pasta out of it! Gnocchi anyone?

We want the finest wines available to humanity…we want them here and we want them now. Feel like ranting about cake and wine whenever I go into one of those old fashioned tea rooms.

We have a zero waste store down the road now so I’m getting dried goods, washing up liquid, shampoo etc all from there by taking along my containers to fill.

I’ve had exactly the same but off road on a bridleway. I just gave a big smile and said ‘or I could just be polite and say hello and have a nice day instead!’

It’s so annoying that people want to bring you down but don’t let them. They will come out feeling a bit shit about themselves if you are nothing but nice and no I’m not putting a bell on my bike. I’ve got a lovely tidy cockpit with only 2 clamps and it would unbalance it.

I wouldn’t worry about it. Laurel are slow growing, only need cutting once a year when established and you are within rights to cut anything that goes over your side and as it is such a narrow strip they will never do that well if you cut them back every year whilst they are small.