Recipe Index

Ingredients

• 1¾ oz raisins
• 3½ oz strong Manitoba flour, for day 1
• 1¾ oz type 0 flour, for day 1
• 8 Tbsp water at room temperature, for day 1
• 5 Tbsp water, for the refreshments
• 3½ oz strong Manitoba flour, for each refreshment
• 1¾ oz type 0 flour, for each refreshment
• 2 1/2 tbsp sugar, for soaking the raisins
• about 1 qt water, for soaking the raisins
• type 00 flour, for dusting

Method

1. Day 1: soak the raisins in the 1 qt of water with the sugar for at least 2 hours, then squeeze them well and reserve 8 Tbsp of the soaking liquid — it carries the wild yeasts that start the culture. Discard the raisins.
2. Mix the 3½ oz Manitoba flour and 1¾ oz type 0 flour with the 8 Tbsp raisin water to a thick, lump-free batter in a clean glass jar. Cover loosely with cloth or a loose lid and leave at warm room temperature (about 75-79°F) for 48 hours, until bubbles appear.
3. First refreshment: take 5¼ oz of the starter, discard the rest, and mix it with 3½ oz Manitoba flour, 1¾ oz type 0 flour and 5 Tbsp water. Cover and leave for 24 hours.
4. Repeat the refreshment once a day for the next 5-6 days, always keeping the same proportions. The starter is ready when it doubles in size within 4-6 hours of a feed, smells pleasantly tangy rather than sharp, and a spoonful floats in water.
5. Once active, keep the starter in the fridge and refresh it once a week with the same flour and water proportions. Bring it to room temperature and give it one or two feeds before using it for baking.
6. Use the starter at its peak, a few hours after a feed when it has doubled and is full of bubbles.

Prep: PTM · Cook: PT0M · Total: 7 days

Nutrition not computed — no serving count in the source recipe (per-serving values cannot be derived without one).