- 2 c. warm water I used 3.5 cups as I thought it was too thick.
- 1 teaspoon, plus a little of mild honey I used 2 Tbsp clover honey as I wanted the yeast to have more food
- 2 TBSP yeast I used 2tbsp Red Star to give it a quick start, then whatever gets in there naturally lol.
- 4 cups all-purpose flour I used 4c of Gold Medal Unbleached bread flour.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the water, honey and yeast. When the yeast is dissolved and bubbly, stir in 2 c. flour until smooth. Add the rest of the flour 1/2 c. at a time, stirring until well-mixed each time. Cover the bowl securely with plastic wrap and let it sit. It will initially balloon up HUGELY, and then settle down. (Once it settled, I transferred it to a plastic ice cream bucket and put the lid on.)
I split it up into 2 glass crocks, as I don't like storing food in plastic. Let it sit and ferment for 4 days in a warm spot.
After 4 days, uncover the mixture and stir well. You can either store it in the refrigerator, in which case you have to feed it once a week, or on your counter, in which case, you feed it every day.
To feed the starter, take out 1 cup (after stirring it well) and either discard it or use it in a recipe. Then add 1 c. each of warm water and flour. Mix well and cover again. Note that, since you are removing 1 c. and adding 2 c. each time, the starter does grow gradually.
