RawKneePees BLOG

 I have been reading back to some of the posts from back in the Day.  It was a lot of fun for a couple years when there were five or six of us pumping something out every day or so, and there were people who read our BLOGs and commented.  Sometimes the same person would come back several times to see what else we had to say.  I particularly enjoyed one RawKneePee posted about some gal that had been reading his stuff.  I will quote the entire BLOG here, but the title of this Blog is a link to alll of RawKnee's BLOGs.

I was able to read your post and I could have even went in there and changed something, but I could not see a place I could make a comment.  I am working with a computer that used to be Donna's and I have been wanting to create myself a Login instead of always opening hers.  Well, I finally figured out how to go in as a Guest, and there was nothing there, not even a browser, so the first thing I  had to do was download Firefox, and then I started getting myself in there with a lot of new favorites, starting with my Gmail account.  Right away, Gmail wanted me to download Chrome, so now I have that on here, too.  I got both the Plarium and the Online Guy to load up but I could got get in with Facebook, or Facebook Klondike.  I still do not have that figured out, but then I decided to try Blogger and Lo and Behold, it popped right up and I did not have to do anything at all.  It just worked.   I sure do have a lot of trouble figuring out how these tarnation computers work.

 

 Hello, it's me.  I thought I might begin to blog again, but there is a learning curve.  And so it begins.

Today I am attempting to learn to make sourdough bread.  I have done this before, even made my own starter a couple of times over the years.  It should not be so difficult for someone who learned to make bread at the tender age of 9 years.  I have failed time and again to produce a nice bubbly bread.  I was trying to use my knowledge of experience with a nice yeast dough. 

I recently got a starter from a friend, added 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of bread flour and mixed well, let it set over night and this morning, finding it bubbly and active, I added the same amounts again.  Then I went to my laptop and read the instructions on two different sites, by two different bakers.  The process seems quite different from making the white bread I grew up with.

first issue, there is no sugar, no shortening, and no milk, just water, flour and salt, and of course the starter for the rising agent.

Instead of a stiff dough that you begin to knead after the initial resting period of 20 minutes, this recipe, says I should stretch and fold the dough in the mixing bowl, pulling and stretching and let it rest 30 minutes, then repeating the process every 30 minutes for 3 or 4 sets.

To my dismay the texture of the dough is very sticky and there is no way I can use my fingers to stretch and fold the dough.  After 3 sets with a spatula, i thought, I have to add flour, if I am ever going to get to a point of using my hands, so I added about 1/4 cup of flour, and began another 30 minute resting period.

So now after 3 hours, the dough is still very sticky.  I have to wait another hour, according to the recipe, then I should be able to turn it out on a floured board and fold it into a square, and then take the opposite corners and fold them over the center, forming it into a round loaf and gently turn it into a pan lined with flour or corn meal so it will not stick.  Still no oil is used.  I don't understand how I can make a loaf out of it. 

 I will refrigerate it overnight as instructed.

It is 7:30 AM and the bread is in the oven.  

Now I plan to take a picture and add to my blog.  Another curve in the learning to Blog, since my pictures are stored in the web and my phone is my camera.

So that turned out ok, but still, I'd rather bake bread as I learned as a child.