8th Annual Sourdough Month

On January 3, 2025January 3, 2025 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, Giveaway, sourdoughLeave a comment

It’s January, which means Sourdough Month here at Twice as Tasty. Since 2017, I’ve dedicated this month to encouraging you to keep a sourdough starter in your kitchen and use it to bake all sorts of tasty doughs. This year, my recipes in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon will focus on a couple of sweet mother doughs that can be used in countless ways. I’ll share some of my favorite loaf and roll shapes to get you excited about using sourdough starter when you bake brioche-style doughs.

I’ve been maintaining my sourdough starter since 2014, through weeks of constant feeding as I built it up to share with hundreds of new bakers—and months of neglect as I traveled. If life got in the way of your sourdough habit, you might not have had the same faith in your unused jar of starter. But as I explain in this week’s column, wild yeast is unbelievably resilient, and an ugly starter lurking at the back of your fridge might still be full of life. If you’re still skeptical after reading this week’s column, just check out this post and photos of a sourdough starter I woke up after 2 years of dormancy.

7th Annual Sourdough Month and Sharing Starters

On January 4, 2024December 31, 2024 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, Giveaway, sourdoughLeave a comment

Since 2017, I have declared each January to be Sourdough Month here at Twice as Tasty. What began as encouragement to fill chilly winter kitchens with the aroma and warmth of baking fermented bread—by sharing recipes and giving away the sourdough starter needed to follow them—has grown into a record-breaking annual giveaway. Hundreds of people in northwest Montana and around the world have had the opportunity to bake with my personal sourdough starter.

As I explain this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, the numbers show more than the giveaway’s success. If you need starter, there’s now a large group of people to tap into who have made their Twice as Tasty sourdough starter their own. If you’re among that group, you’re all set to share your love of sourdough—and your starter.

Stovetop Sourdough English Muffins

On January 26, 2023December 27, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdough3 Comments

I baked up a batch of sourdough English muffins a few weeks ago and rediscovered just how easy they are to make. That’s not how I had remembered them, and looking back over my notes, I realized it was because it took several tries to create a recipe that had almost no kneading, allowed a long ferment time, and could be cooked entirely on the stovetop.

That latter quality was the reason I pulled out the recipe after ignoring it for so long: we’re in the middle of a house remodel, so I’ve been a bit transient for the last few months, most recently staying in a family guesthouse with a functioning stovetop but a nonworking oven. I’m now baking a new batch of sourdough English muffins every time we polish off the last one. It seemed well worth sharing as the final Sourdough Month recipe in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon.

The 6th Annual Sourdough Giveaway has been a huge success; so far, I’ve sent out more than 250 packets of sourdough starter! It is winding down, so sign up by January 31, 2023, if you want me to send you a free packet of my own sourdough starter.
Learn to make Stovetop Sourdough English Muffins

Pillowy Sourdough Pita

On January 19, 2023January 4, 2024 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdoughLeave a comment

It’s always rewarding to pull a sourdough creation from the oven, but pita bread has a bonus fun factor. As they bake, sourdough pitas puff into floury pillows, holding their shape until they hit the cooling rack. When they cool, they collapse into flatbread ready to be stuffed with fillings or rebaked as chips.

As I explain this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, a few tricks help with the rise and fall of sourdough pita bread, but don’t worry if a few pita rounds refuse to puff evenly—they’ll still be tasty, and with practice, you’ll become better at rolling the rounds and timing the baking for pillowy sourdough pita.
Learn to make Pillowy Sourdough Pita

Sourdough Power Waffles

On January 12, 2023December 27, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdoughLeave a comment

When you think of sourdough, you probably picture a loaf of tangy, tasty bread. But you have so many more ways to use sourdough, as I’ll be sharing all month in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. Some of my favorites can use what many people call sourdough discard. I consider the word “discard” to be a misnomer, because I never actually throw out starter—even when I’m waking up a starter that’s been dormant for months or rehydrating a new-to-me starter, like the one I’m giving away until January 31, 2023. You can learn more about the giveaway here.

Get Starter

Instead of discarding weak starter, I use it in numerous baked goods that don’t need a lot of rising oomph, including pancakes and waffles. Either sourdough breakfast option has enough flavor that you can simply serve them with butter and syrup, but more filling toppings give the waffles in my latest column their “power” name.
Learn to make Sourdough Power Waffles

6th Annual Sourdough Giveaway

On January 5, 2023December 27, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, Giveaway, sourdough2 Comments

Welcome to the 6th Annual Sourdough Giveaway! I’ve been sharing my starter every January since I started this blog, but last year’s giveaway broke all of my records, with 154 sourdough packets leaving my kitchen and heading out into the world.

Many of those packets went to readers of my Twice as Tasty column in the Flathead Beacon, so thank you for supporting local journalism, as well as reading my column and blog. Twice as Tasty starter has now traveled to Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Slovenia, and throughout the United States, and I hope to share it with even more new sourdough bakers this year. Request your starter by the end of January to get in on the sourdough adventures.
Read more about starting with sourdough

Sourdough Pizza Dough

On January 20, 2022December 27, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdough1 Comment

A wise chef once said everyone should have a ball of pizza dough in their refrigerator—and I think that’s doubly true for sourdough. The recipe I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon has so much going for it. It’s straightforward, relatively quick (for a low-knead, long-ferment dough), and has so many uses, including one of my new favorite recipes: garlic knots.

You can make this dough with bubbly active starter that’s begging to be used, or you can make it with lackluster starter that wants to be refreshed before you attempt bread. The dough can sit in the fridge for up to 3 days and bake up beautifully; it also freezes well. All you need is some flour (I use two types for better flavor, but you can stick with just all-purpose), water (unchlorinated is best), salt, and starter.

How do you get starter? I’m giving away my personal starter to help you jump-start your sourdough adventures. The 5th Annual Sourdough Giveaway runs through January 31, 2022.
Learn to make Sourdough Pizza Dough and Sourdough Garlic Knots

Overnight Sourdough Pancakes

On January 13, 2022January 4, 2024 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdough2 Comments

Got starter? If yes, you’re likely all set to make the recipe I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. If no, get some of my starter and get in on the fun! The 5th Annual Sourdough Giveaway runs through January 31. Learn how to get free starter here.

When I was gifted my original starter in 2014, it didn’t wake up quickly, like the dehydrated starter you’ll receive from me. It had been lurking in a refrigerator until it was in full hibernation mode. It lacked the rising power necessary for a loaf of bread. As I cared for it, the starter became stronger and bubbled more quickly. In the process, I removed weaker starter that wouldn’t power a loaf of bread but could be turned into delicious pancakes.
Learn to make Overnight Sourdough Pancakes and Sourdough–Yogurt Pancakes

5th Annual Sourdough Giveaway

On January 6, 2022December 27, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, sourdough3 Comments

It’s January, which means Sourdough Month here on Twice as Tasty—and the 5th Annual Sourdough Giveaway! It’s hard to believe that I’ve been sending my sourdough starter out into the world for so many years. I’ve been committed to sharing my starter every January since I started the blog, with additional packets distributed during the extended giveaway last year and occasional random requests throughout each year. Twice as Tasty starter has now traveled to Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Slovenia, and throughout the United States.

This year, I’m excited to share sourdough starter across the world but also closer to home. I’m offering my starter and will be sharing sourdough recipes all month through my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, as well as here on the blog. Request your starter by January 31 to get in on the sourdough adventures.
Read more about starting with sourdough

Sticking with Sourdough

On January 28, 2021January 27, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Baking, Fermenting, Giveaway, Topic5 Comments

Sourdough baking should fit into your lifestyle and let you build a habit of using it. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
Another Twice as Tasty sourdough giveaway is winding down; there are just a few days left to get your starter. This month, I delivered jars of bubbly starter to local bakers and shipped dehydrated starter as far away as Slovenia. People have been sharing their creations of longtime and new Twice as Tasty recipes, including this month’s cracker, cookie, and ciabatta recipes and variations. I’m excited to see what everyone makes in the coming months.

For some of you, just remembering your starter may be the biggest challenge as the year takes off. Sourdough baking should fit into your lifestyle and let you build a habit of using your starter often enough to keep it lively. It may take a few attempts, and I’m always happy to resend starter if you need a fresh try. But a sourdough culture is more resilient than you think. So as life distracts you from baking, you have several options to bring your starter back to life.
Read more about sticking with sourdough