Things have been really hectic lately, so I have been a little lacks in posting. Blog posts this spring will be sparse, but I promise I am still thinking about you guys! I figured I would update you on how my sourdough journey is going since baking has been about the only consistent thing I have done recently. I have only made bagels one more time, but I bake bread, calzones, and Stromboli nearly every week.
Sourdough bread
Sourdough bread is probably my favorite bread, which is partially why I have started baking with sourdough. I love to toast a slice and slather it with butter and honey. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it! I have made sourdough loaves a few times since I last posted, and I am happy to announce that the loaves have gotten better over the weeks. My Counter Mother is happy as a clam, bubbling away, which really helps the bread baking process. My loaves rise well now instead of staying flat and dense. One week, I forgot to cover my loaves with a damp towel, and those ones turned out drier than I would have liked. But other than that, the bread is coming along nicely.
Calzones
A calzone is basically a pizza that has been folded in half, and the edge pressed together. So it is pretty hard to go wrong with this recipe! The first week I made them, I made a pesto chicken filling. It was delicious, but my family (I give my parents and grandparents part of my baked goodies each week) isn’t a huge fan of chicken. So I have used beef in the more recent calzone recipes. I will share the recipes I have used in a later post!
Stromboli
Stromboli has become my go-to breakfast. It is relatively simple to make and isn’t very time-consuming. So I bake on on Sourdough Saturday and eat it for breakfast the rest of the week (if it lasts that long!). In this recipe, I use beef salami from Holmes Beef, pepperoncini, olives, feta or ricotta cheese, and mozzarella (if I have it) or cheddar cheese. All you do is make the dough, slice and arrange your ingredients on the rolled-out dough, let it rise, and bake. It only takes me about 1-1.5 hours total in the kitchen. I refrigerate the dough after making it so I can bake it whenever I am ready. The dough only lasts for about 24 hours in the fridge, so if I’m not going to be ready to bake it I throw the dough in the freezer.
It has been fun to do a little experimenting with my sourdough and find what works best for my busy schedule. I would love to hear about your baking journeys, whether they include sourdough or not! Leave a comment below, and don’t forget to subscribe to my email list!