Any Home Bakers Here?

[DigMyChicks]

Who is Hattie? Perhaps I need a Hattie to protect my Flock.
Just mixed a 2 pound loaf of Sourdough AND put my Sourdough
Starter in a CLEAN JAR. And Thanks again to Penny, I have the
other jar soaking overnight.
Both the Cakes look so GOOD. YES. Coconut Cake Recipe Debby.

Our German Shepherd. Her back leg got hurt that weekend so whatever happened she must have been involved.

 

[jnicholes]

That is a lot of fun!

Is the starter bubbling today?

Well, I actually have not started that yet. Main reason was there was a family emergency yesterday and my mother had to go to the doctor. She's suffering from severe tendonitis. I was really busy cleaning the kitchen, making sure she didn't have to work that much, taking care of her, that kind of stuff. I didn't have a chance to start it yesterday because of that.

I actually did have a question. Does the jar need to have a lid? And if so, does the lid need a hole or something?

Jared

 

[jnicholes]

Dang, I'm on a roll. I just found another fossil inside a rock. This time, it's part of a spinal cord.

Unfortunately, I'm out of the rocks that have the fossils in them. I examined all the ones I had.



This is under a magnifier.

 

[jnicholes]

Who is Hattie? Perhaps I need a Hattie to protect my Flock.
Just mixed a 2 pound loaf of Sourdough AND put my Sourdough
Starter in a CLEAN JAR. And Thanks again to Penny, I have the
other jar soaking overnight.
Both the Cakes look so GOOD. YES. Coconut Cake Recipe Debby.

When I had chickens, I had a flock defender. Her name is Sophie, and she's my rabbit living with me today. Yes, you read that right. She killed a stray cat that went after the chickens once, She chased off a peregrine falcon once, she went after another rabbit once, she's the defender of the chickens.

She's still alive and kicking!

 

[wyoDreamer]

The jar for your starter should have a top - it keeps stuff out of the starter since you are letting it sit on the counter to activate. Stuff I have to worry about would be dust, cot hair, mosquitoes, etc. But, it shouldn't seal tight as the starter is alive and will need to breathe. AND the starter will expand as it bubbles up, so it needs a way for the air to escape.
A loose lid will make sure it doesn't explode and go all over when it pops the lid off. Just ask how I know that an active starter will pop the top off ... what a friggin' mess to clean up.

I use a glass jar with a glass top - one of those that uses a rubber seal on the top and has a clamp to close it tight. ONLY, I don't have a rubber seal on it, so it sits loose yet the top is closed so nothing can drift by and fall in.

 

[wyoDreamer]

My jar is like this - only I bought it at goodwill and it doesn't have a gasket.

 

[Aria]

Well, I actually have not started that yet. Main reason was there was a family emergency yesterday and my mother had to go to the doctor. She's suffering from severe tendonitis. I was really busy cleaning the kitchen, making sure she didn't have to work that much, taking care of her, that kind of stuff. I didn't have a chance to start it yesterday because of that.

I actually did have a question. Does the jar need to have a lid? And if so, does the lid need a hole or something?

Jared

Jared, I use a coffee filter over the Ball Jar I have and secure it
with a rubber band. Makes a nice enclosure. Aria

 

[ronott1]

Well, I actually have not started that yet. Main reason was there was a family emergency yesterday and my mother had to go to the doctor. She's suffering from severe tendonitis. I was really busy cleaning the kitchen, making sure she didn't have to work that much, taking care of her, that kind of stuff. I didn't have a chance to start it yesterday because of that.

I actually did have a question. Does the jar need to have a lid? And if so, does the lid need a hole or something?

Jared

For storage after the starter is going.

I put a picture of the jar I use in the pm I sent yesterday. I will post a picture here too:

 

[ronott1]

My jar is like this - only I bought it at goodwill and it doesn't have a gasket.
View attachment 1824451

I use the gasket and keep it in the fridge.

With the gasket, the jar will let air out but not in so the starter lasts longer

 

[DigMyChicks]

Having a quality woodstove makes a huge difference when using wood to heat a house. We had 2 Quadra-Fire wood stoves in Wyoming and hardly ever had to use the propane furnace for heat... maybe during the day when we were at work. When we bought our current place, we installed a Quadra Fire pellet insert into existing, granite fireplace. Not only does it heat that 1/2 of the house + the upstairs somewhat, but it also closes up the chimney to reduce heat loss that way.

I made cut-out cookies yesterday, the cookie dough is extreamely sticky so I think I need to add more flour. Maybe its the eggs, my hens are laying super sized large eggs right now, they fit in the egg cartons from the store but just barely. Also, I ran out of granulated sugar and used bakers superfine sugar for 1/2 the sugar quantity called for. I wonder if that has any impact on how sticky this dough is also.

The large eggs can affect your dough. I don’t think the sugar matters.