Accountability Update & Bready stuffs

Loving the snowflake method for writing. First time using it, and feeling ridiculously empowered. Building from one sentence to one paragraph to one page... and on to a (short) prototype first draft takes all the overwhelmed feelings away from the process. No start at A and write 60K words and hope you end at Z, the gradual expansion makes it all feel very possible. It's comforting.

First draft goal has evolved. Harlequin announced a fast-track for their Romance/Riva subs, and since Riva is where I feel my voice belongs within the Harlequin family, I've derailed from eWife enough to start working on another story. Much as I am uncertain about my ability to write two projects at the same time, my first draft on eWife by April 1 goal has become Prototype First Draft by April 1, and actually I'm ahead of schedule on that.


Amending goals to include prototype draft of the Fast-Track Riva manuscript, along with first chapter and synopsis by April 23, which is the end date on submissions.

Finally, is it crazy to feel like I'm cheating on my wildyeast starter to contemplate baking with any other kind of leavening? Seriously, I'm like... if it doesn't use the starter, I ain't making it. That can't be normal. I don't even know if you can use it for stuff like... cookies. Or biscuits!

Bread pr0n

I am a big fan of the cinnamon raisin swirl breads, so decided to see how it would go with the sourdough recipe I've been using.

I don't add more sugar to the recipe, just the cinnamon and the raisins. I really should stop making it because every time I'm hungry my little brain says...THERE'S MORE RAISIN BREAD!

 

Now I can't stop wondering wondering what else I can add to the (basic) bread to make other interesting breads. Cheese? Spinach?  Some kind of dried meaty goodness? Whatever it is, I doubt it will be quite this pretty with melty butter.

Maybe I should ditch this writing malarkey and just make bread. Forever! Or till I get bored...like with all non-writing hobbies.

I Made Bread!

Out of my starter... and oh my GOD it was sour. The sourest sour to ever sour. I threw it away.  My starter just smells lovely, like baking bread, not sour smelling or acidic. The acid smell didn't come until I was baking it and then I knew something had gone very wrong.

Hey Google! Help, my sourdough is too sour! <-- lots of responses to those keywords.

With Google's help, I've come up with a new plan of attack:

• Maybe I should, I don't know, use a recipe. Genius, you say? Such forward thinking, that. Because last night when I decided the starter was ready to use and whipped up dough? I just went, "Hmm, what goes in bread? I know, water, flour and salt!" TADA, SURE DOES LOOK LIKE DOUGH. La la la...
• And, maybe only let it rise about two hours instead of, say, twelve. I didn't realize it gets more and more sour the longer it rises. Who knew? Not me.
• If those steps fail to tone down the sour, then eat it with some naked salad. Then it will just seem like the veggies have been given a particularly sour vinegrette. Lettuce, bread, chewchewchew... THIS BREAD IS AWESOME.

I will inform again once I have baked again. Looking for recipes that don't call for dutch ovens or other strange oven crockeries I don't have.

I plot my stories like a mad woman, but think I can make homemade sourdough bread without a plan. I used to be sane. I think. Maybe. That one time. Before I devoted my life to being ridiculous :o

Natural yeast experiment #2

So, my starter was growing along, happy as a clam, and people in my house started freaking out. "BOTULISM BOTULISM!" was shouted. A few times.

So, sadly, I killed my little yeasty baby(which had just been flour and water), and started again with a safer method: pineapple juice and whole wheat flour. Something about the acidic nature of the fruit encourages yeast and discourages other little bacterial beasties. We'll see. I was hoping to bake bread today, but that seems to be put off for 5 to 6 days.

Will check it tomorrow to see if anything's going on. Hopefully there will be signs of life after 24 hours rather than 48. My patience is thinning, probably because I was all hopped-up on the idea of baking authentic wild-yeast bread today! Alas. Sad. Sad sad.

Oh well, if it grew once, it will grow again! And it will be even more awesome because of the wait.

Or something like that.