Were you one of those people who got into sourdough during COVID, only to give it up?

I wasn't.

I'd already been the queen of Sourdough (check my backhistory on HIVE if you doubt it) and had given up because of the inconsistant house temperatures of my house and winter making it almost impossible to get a rise. My Mum's been begging me to watch a sourdough video for ages by a blogger called Grant Bakes - you can watch it here and I felt reinspired again.

With sourdough costing over $8 a loaf here, I was pretty sure I could make a savings and cost a loaf for around $1.50, especially if I baked during the day when the solar panels were firing.

Cough cough, check the result. I am again the QUEEN of sourdough.

I loved Grant Bakes masterloaf recipe - it's simple and straightforward. The dough turned out great - after the rest and ferment in the fridge overnight, it was firm and easy to handle, and the razor blade created a lovely cut that created a lovely ear - how lovely! It took at long time to rise in the end - six hours or so - but I hastened it by putting it in the oven with the light on and a pot of boiling water. Still, it didn't look like it was bubbly and light as I'd expect, but Mum told me to trust the process. It went back into the fridge overnight and then into a hot dutch oven for half an hour, with ten minutes to brown it - and voila, a good looking loaf of bread!

Absolutely no point telling you the recipe - just follow the link to Grant Bakes and you'll find the video and his master loaf recipe. Don't be turned off by the long process - it's much more straightforward than you think, when you get into it.

You Don't Need a Plastic Bag to Store Bread 🦔🍄‍🟫

I was also chuffed to find a use for that hedgehog and mushroom bag I'd bought on Dartmoor, Devon whilst I was away. They were gorgeous homemade bags in the general store with all kinds of patterns, and I asked if there was a mushroom one. No, she said. I looked anyway as they were so well made, with reversible patterns. Then I spied a mushroom inside the handle of the bag - turns out it was hidden in the reverse side of the bag. I was so excited. What I'd do with it, I didn't know, but it was so cute I could not resist. Turns out it makes a wonderful bread bag that makes me smile every single time I get it out.

Punk Hummus

I can't stand chickpeas. I used to eat a lot of them. I find them dry and they usually make me fart. They totally make Jamie fart. So my hummus recipe gets a little punk - it still has garlic (in this case, garlic sprouts, hence the green colour), lemon juice and olive oil, but I use canneloni beans instead. Really, you can use any kind of bean. It makes a kickass easy hummus. Just use a can of beans, squeeze in a lemon, a clove of garlic or a leaf and shoot like I did, and a splash of oil to blend. De-freaking-licious.

Inauthentic Chimichurri

I love the word 'chimichirri'. It has such a playfulness to it. Traditionally and authentically, it's an Argentinian paste is made from parsley, garlic, vinegar, and olive oil, and is typically served with grilled meats. But if you know me, I don't do typical. I whipped up this in seconds, totally changing the vibe.

I think with traditional chimichurri, you fine chop everything, but I whacked mine in the blender. Note that the asterisked ingredients meant there was no need to add vinegar as they're pickled anyway, but lemon juice would have been nice if I'd remembered and might have made for a smoother paste in the blender.

However, for this kickass toast, I already had garlic and lemon in the punk hummus, so it seemed a perfect blend to me. With a few cherry tomatoes for the fresh crispness, it made for an absolutely kickass lunch on toasted homemade sourdough.

Oh yeah baby, the Queen is back in the kitchen.

Do you make sourdough, hum

ous or chimichurri? Do tell!

With Love,

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