Yesterday I baked my best loaf of sourdough bread so far. I used King Arthur Flour’s recipe for Extra Tangy Sourdough Bread, which I started on Wednesday evening.

I kneaded it using Sourdough Home’s Stretch and Fold technique.(Thanks to commenter Teresa C for tipping me off to that one!) I also oiled the bowl I used for rising the dough.

As a week-end wrap-up, thank you to everyone for your SLS-free suggestions! I also wanted to clarify something. There’s a lot of “woo-woo” and scare tactics on the topic. I gather that SLS is the fluoridated water of the 21st century.

I don’t know if SLS and other sulfates will give you cancer, or make your hair fall out, or cause kidney damage. All I know is, I’ve been acne-free all week for the first time in, oh, about 25 years!

And last night when I washed the dishes, I was startled to realize that my hands weren’t burning afterward. I thought that was normal! You know, with the chapping and the redness and the stinging. Doesn’t everyone get that after washing a sink of dishes? No? Well why didn’t ya say so?

I’m going to ease into the “washing knitting in warm water” thing today with a linen/silk yarn. We’ll see if I can avoid fiddling with it while it’s soaking!

Tags: other things that start with S, SLS sensitivity, sourdough, sulfates

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I’m still under the gun today, I have a lot of knitting to talk to you about, but I want to wait until I can draw a breath and sit down and, you know, talk about it. TODAY IS NOT THAT DAY.

Instead, here’s a Makoto picture! I realized that I completely forgot to feed him on Sunday (which is his feeding day). Sorry, little buddy!

And now the question: do you have a bottle of Kookaburra Wool Wash on hand? Does it have the ingredients listed? Can you tell me what they are?

I did an experiment this weekend which dramatically demonstrated that I’m sensitive to sulfates. Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Ammonium Laureth Sulfate, and Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate are all things which are added to make suds. Shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, laundry soap, dishwashing detergent – you get the picture.

These things are known to be irritants. I mean, duh. But the rules say it’s okay if it’s going to be washed right off. Well it turns out that this isn’t really the case for a lot of people who have sensitive skin.

News flash! Irritating chemical irritates.

In the case of SLS stuff, this irritation can take the form of dandruff, acne, dry skin, and (specific to toothpaste) a variety of stomach/intestinal upsets.

If you suffer from any of the above conditions, do this: spend 48 hours without coming into contact with SLS, SLES, ALS, or ALES. Go on a “suds fast” for the weekend. For two days, this may mean washing your hair with a vinegar rinse and brushing your teeth without toothpaste (my dentist says this is fine, by the way). If you have a sensitivity, you’ll see a clear difference by the end of the weekend.

I have a bottle of Dr. Bronner’s on hand, which I’ve been using for shampoo and dishwashing detergent. And some leftover sample soap nuts for laundry. But neither of these work well in cold water – like washing knitting.

Soak and Eucalan both contain The Bad Stuff. How about Kookaburra? Or do you have any other recommendations? I’m open!

Tags: cold water non-SLS soap, SLS sensitivity, sourdough, wool wash

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I was startled to realize that it was 8PM already. The light was fading fast (that was my clue), and I had to go tuck the chickens in for the night. Then I came inside and of course it was too dark to take any pictures.

I paged through the images folder on my computer, hoping to find a neglected gem. (It happens fairly often actually.) Something that I could pass off as “fresh today.” But no such luck!

At about the same time I remembered that it was about time to do something with today’s batch of bread dough. I’m trying a new recipe from King Arthur Flour, Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread. (I left out the citric acid, even though I do have some.)

Confession: I don’t know how to properly knead dough. When it came time to knead in ingredients this morning, I was in the middle of something and didn’t want to take the time to track down “how to knead bread” videos on YouTube. (Although I am sure there are tons, just ripe for the watching.)

Instead, I just turned it out on my silicone pastry mat and faked it.

It’s baking in the oven now. It smells good. I am cautiously optimistic. I guess “cautious optimism” is sometimes the best you can hope for on a Monday evening.

Tags: Makoto, sourdough

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(I shouldn’t joke – half the time when I title a post “X [day of the week]” it becomes a real thing, like Sims Sunday or the erstwhile Puppy Wednesday.)

Loaf #3 turned out considerably better. It’s shaped a little oddly, because I baked it in a casserole dish.

It has a great sourdough flavor, and a pretty good texture. Next time I think I will let it rise in the pan for a little while longer, because it turned out a little on the chewy side.

Mozzarella, ridiculously expensive vine ripened cherry tomatoes from Mexico, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Oh it’s SO hard to eat these vegetarian meals! THE DEPRIVATION.

Tags: Makoto, sourdough

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Evidently Cat Bordhi has an instruction in one of her knitting patterns that you should check the fit of your sock toe by trying it on. If it’s too big, “pinch off N stitches” meaning literally pinch the extra fabric with your fingers and see how many stitches you need to remove to get it to fit.

Needless to say, this instruction – and the concomitant Ravelry thread, titled “What does pinch off mean” – sends me into fits of hysterical giggling. Particularly when people posted comments just to clutch their pearls in horror and say, Well I never!

I think you can see where I’m going with this.

I made a loaf! Would you like to see a picture of the loaf that I made?

In all seriousness, this loaf did turn out better. I wouldn’t call it “a success,” but it was definitely “less bad.”

You see, the thing is that bread-baking people are crazy for weighing their ingredients. Not weighing your ingredients – or committing the sin of asking “How much is that in cups?” – is almost as bad as making a poop joke on the main Ravelry boards (the “Big Six”).

For the first recipe, I diligently weighed out so many ounces of starter, so many ounces of water, and so many ounces of flour. Turns out that if you weigh out the ounces of starter and flour, but measure the ounces of water in a measuring cup, it works out better. Less sloppy-wet.

After all, no one likes to pinch off a sloppy-wet loaf.

Tags: Makoto, poop jokes ahoy, Ravelry gossip, sourdough, yes I am eight years old

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