I have noted in past materials that I am an aspiring bread maker, known in the family as Boulanger Edward, who loves to try new bread recipes, but what took me so long to tackle sourdough? I came across the website Ballerina Farm that made making sourdough not only seem like fun, but made the process required exciting. So, I ordered my first Sourdough Kit from Ballerina Farm and I was off and running (so to speak).
Ballerina Farm has an extensive line of products from Farmer Protein Powder, High Protein Farm Flour, Sourdough Kit, Premium Burger Box, Wild Garlic & French Salt, Baking Tools, Raw Honey, a variety of flavored salts, and so much more. The amazing story behind Ballerina Farm is as extensive and varied as their products. From diverse backgrounds, the owners, Hannah and Daniel Neeleman, met in New York City while Hannah was attending The Juilliard School for ballet and Daniel was a college athlete at BYU before ending his athletic career and moved to NYC to be with the love of his life, Hannah. The journey took them to Brazil for 4 years where the yearning to own a farm blossomed. Back in the United States they headed to Utah, Hannah’s home state, and the hunt for a small farm was underway. Searching for a name for the small business they were growing, the unique name “Ballerina Farm” was born. As Hannah has noted, “We have many dreams still to accomplish and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
Hannah & Daniel Neeleman
So, let’s take a look at sourdough and how the Ballerina Farm Sourdough Kit was so beneficial to moving sourdough to the top of my bread list. First off, sourdough is just 3 simple ingredients, water, flour, and salt, which creates that amazing crusty exterior and a chewy, slightly dense interior with an airy crumb structure. Though just 3 ingredients, there is a process required to create a symbiotic culture of wild yeast and bacteria, which provides both the rise and the characteristic tangy taste.
Sourdough does not use Baker’s Yeast that you may purchase in most grocery stores, but it uses time and nature to create the naturally occurring yeast and bacteria (healthy bacteria) that will be the base for your sourdough recipes be it bread or pizza dough.
The type of flour you use is your choice from using just one type of flour (i.e., whole wheat, rye, or all purpose) or a 50/50 mix of your liking. The key is in the initial steps and there are two basic processes to start from where you could jump start by using a dehydrated sourdough starter or add a few extra days to the initial processes and start with just flour and water. After being engaged on the Ballerina Farm website, I opted to order the Sourdough Kit which came with a Sourdough Recipe Book, two Wicker Proofing Baskets, Sourdough Spatula, Bench Scrapper, and a Dehydrated Willa Sourdough Starter.
The Sourdough Recipe Book contains detailed bread-making instructions and photographs for each step in the process, which for novices or aspiring bread makers is extremely helpful.
I followed the Sourdough Recipe Book’s 5-day process which will require just 5-minutes a day to establish your sourdough base as you will discard half the base and infuse it with new flour and water. If you are not a budding bakery and only occasionally bake sourdough bread, there is a section on storage and how to “refresh” your starter when the sourdough urge pops up. The Sourdough Recipe Book contains a section for “Frequently Asked Questions” as well as a “Glossary,” both sections were helpful for my initial foray into making sourdough bread.
Working the sourdough
After the 5-days of preparation to establish the sourdough base, I was ready to tackle the bread dough. The Sourdough Recipe Book contains step-by-step instructions on getting your dough ready to bake. The first set of steps requires a span of 2 to 2.5 hours consisting of mixing (5-10 minutes), resting (1.5 to 2 hours), and mixing (5-10 minutes). The next step is a longer rise time of either 4-5 hours at room temperature, or my number one option when making bread dough is overnight in the refrigerator for a slower fermentation, and with sourdough that will require 8-10 hours in the refrigerator. The next morning you will stretch and work your dough, then shape it into a round ball before moving the dough to a floured proofing bowl to let it rise in a refrigerator for a couple of hours.
Sourdough Proofing Bowl
Time to bake. Almost all recipes for sourdough bread recommend using a Dutch Oven to achieve the crispy crust and chewy center for which sourdough bread is known. With regards to a Dutch Oven, I am a big advocator for the Dutch Oven, which I use for many of my breads, but you can also use a baking stone. The last step before placing your dough in the oven is when you use your bread lame to create your unique illustration on the top of your bread, which will result in the ooh-and-aahs when it comes out of the oven.
Sourdough is a bread that allows for your individual creativity via mixing the type of flour used, having fun with your bread lame to create an illustration as you bake a loaf, as well as how to use the sourdough starter discard for pancakes, muffins, and other fun recipes, as nothing goes to waste.
Let’s Eat!!
You can order your Sourdough Kit ($89) from Ballerina Farm and get your sourdough urge satisfied, as I did and will continue to do so now that I have a solid sourdough base created.
Ballerina Farm
1476 W 200 S
Kamas, UT 84036
Phone: +1 435-513-6058
Website: https://ballerinafarm.com/
Hours: Monday – Friday 9am – 6pm, Saturday 9am – 5pm, closed Sundays
101 W Main Street
Suite 102
Midway, Utah 84059
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 9am – 8pm, closed Sundays and Mondays
Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ballerinafarm/ @ballerinafarm @ballerinafarmstore
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