Only took me 6 years to figure this one out...

I finally achieved something I have been trying to conquer for 6 years, this week.

I give you, the no-recipe, no-knead, sourdough loaf.

I made 2 loaves last week using this method in my oven at home.

So, naturally, I wanted to push this method to the extreme...

I took some sourdough starter with me, up to elk camp on Thursday, to see if I could pull it off with charcoal and a woodburning stove, inside a canvas tent.

It was a hit!

Nothing tastes quite like Sweet Sourdough Success.

Here's the process, if you want to try it out yourself (hopefully I can save you a few years of trial and error, haha!):

-Empty your sourdough starter into a bowl.

-Mix in some flour and about the same amount of water.

-Mix this all up until it all looks like thick pancake batter.

-Take some out and put it back into your starter jar, and put your starter back in the fridge.

-Put the bowl in the fridge for some time. (I usually forget about mine until one or two days later, but I also made a loaf just yesterday and skipped this step entirely and it turned out fine.)

-Add a bunch of flour and about the same amount of water until it is thicker than pancake batter but still very wet.

-Mix until the texture is somewhat even and leave it on the counter.

-Get your hand wet and pull out the sides and fold them over, do this about 20 times, add some salt (I can't really tell you how much salt, I cover the surface of the dough in a light dusting, 2 times.)

-Leave it in a warmish spot and keep doing this pull/stretch/fold motion every 30-60mins or so, until you have done this around 5-10 times, this stretching and folding is what helps your gluten form the bubbles in your loaf.

-If it starts drying out on top add a splash more water to it.

-Preheat a Dutch oven at 500 degrees F with the lid on.

-Fold your sourdough one more time and dump it, foldy-side-down, into the hot Dutch oven, put the lid on and bake for 20 mins.

-Pull the lid off, turn the oven down to 425 and bake another 15-20mins until the crust is golden brown.

-Pull out your Dutch oven and try to endure the suspense as long as you can before you cut off a slice to enjoy.

Want to try it out with coals, over a fire? Here is the cooking chart I used.

Want to learn more about making your own bread. Here is my favorite bread-making book, Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast.

*Hint, you can find used copies pretty easily for cheaper!*

Want to explore the benefits of fermenting your doughs/grains before eating them?

Check out this video and this article from one of my favorite sources on nutrition and traditional diets.

Want a little more instruction and step-by-step how to on bread-making in person?

My good friend Maureen Johnson (who makes all the ahhhhmazing bread we sold at the farmers market this summer) is teaching a sourdough bread making class at the Alice-Hardy Stevens Center in Laramie, on November 29th.

I'll send more details, including how to sign up, in a future email.

Need some sourdough starter?

Reply to this email, I'll give you some.

I can even dehydrate it and mail you some, if you live far away.

Or you can make your own too!

Another success story of the week was this year's Ewe-Pick Extravaganza!

We had so much fun.

I witnessed a good group of people gain skills, respect, and confidence in their own food.

I tried the best wine I have ever tasted- hard work always improves flavor, but this wine was really good!

There was warm soup, roasted lamb, a sauna, sword fights, family, friends, a little bit of snow, and freezers being filled.

Peter spent the whole day bundled up like a kangaroo in my jacket and there were smiles all around.

It was an overall-awesome day.

Due to popular demand, we are sending a couple lambs that didn't quite make the cut (pun intended) to the butcher to make some

All-Natural Lamb Snack Sticks!

Stay-tuned for when those will be ready in our online store.

If you missed Ewe-Pick 2023, don't worry!

We will definitely be hosting this event again next year.

A couple of the Ewe-Pick participants are also enrolled in my Hide-Tanning Course this fall.

I still have a couple of hides left, that I will be mailing out this week, if you want to join in on the fun.

Sign up for my self-paced, virtual, hide tanning course HERE.

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Have a great week!

-BJ, Peter, and the Taste of the Wind Crew