<aside> 💡 Did you begin feeding a sourdough starter in March, around the time the whole world shut down? If so, you are not alone! I was gifted my starter by a friend's mother, and it has lived in my fridge happily for a while.

While there are lots of fun things to do with sourdough, one of the easiest breads to get started with is focaccia, since it's forgiving and easily customizable.

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Ingredients

• 300g Warm Water
• 11g Salt
• 11g Olive Oil (use the good stuff)
• 68g Sourdough Starter, fed within a day or so (you can probably use discard also, but it will take a while)
• 250g Bread Flour
• 125g AP Flour
• 10 - 15 Figs (or other toppings)

Directions

1. Pour 300g of warm (warm to the touch, not hot) water into a large bowl

2. Add 11g of salt and 11g of olive oil to the water, and swirl with a spatula or spoon to dissolve the salt (the water and oil won't totally combine - science!)

3. Mix in 68g (why 68 you ask? The original recipe calls for 60g, but I always pour it out too fast and end up with 65-70, and now I just do it that way on purpose) of starter and mix to break up / combine, but don't worry about completely incorporating it

4. Add 250g of bread flour and 125g of AP flour and stir until a shaggy dough forms. Cover with a shower cap or towel and set a timer for 30 minutes

   

   Shaggy dough formed in step 4.

5. After 30 minutes, perform a set of stretch and folds, taking a wet hand and sliding it underneath the dough, and then pulling up and over. Rotate 90º between folds. I usually do about 6 turns. Re-cover and set a timer for 30 minutes.

   

   Photo from https://littlespoonfarm.com/sourdough-bread-recipe-beginners-guide/

   

   Dough after 1 set of stretch and folds (step 5).

6. Repeat step 5 by performing 6 more stretch and folds, covering the dough, and setting a timer for another 30 minutes.

7. After 30 minutes, perform a set of coil folds. Using wet hands, slide your hands underneath the center of the dough, lifting high into the air and letting the edges fall ("coil") underneath. Turn 180º and repeat. Then turn 90º and repeat the opposite way (it can be helpful to think of it as top/bottom and then left/right). Cover and set a timer for 30 minutes

   

   Photo from https://homegrownhappiness.co.nz/homemade-sourdough-step-by-step/

8. Repeat step 7 four more times and 30 minute intervals (they don't have to be exact, if it's 45 minutes or even an hour that will be totally okay), for a total of 5 coil folds (plus the 2 stretch and folds you did earlier)