When Everett celebrated his first birthday this past month he got the usual cake, lots of photos, and a jar of bubbling flour and water.
“I loved the idea of creating a starter for my family that I could pass down to him and thought it would be a fun hobby for us to connect with and share as he gets older. I had no idea the COVID situation was going to become a pandemic and so the timing of creating the starter could not have been more serendipitous,” said Keith O’Brien, Everett's father.
The first-time dad and recreational baker had a few mishaps with his starter but overall has been successful.
“It’s going really well so far: I’ve made three different kinds of bread, pizza crust, waffles and pancakes,” said O’Brien.
Sourdough starter is flour and water that has fermented and can be used to bake bread. It’s an alternative to yeast which has been in short supply recently at some stores. With flour, water and patience you can make a sourdough starter and within a week or so, be baking delicious, comforting bread.
As O’Brien’s concoction was beginning to ferment, he didn’t realize he was now part of a trending hobby. With people being homebound and some groceries being limited the old-style way of baking bread is now in. Sourdough starter is a ‘thing’.
No really, look at the google trend.
“I do think it’s also ironic that everyone is loving having a starter right now, which is basically germs in flour and water— it’s a good reminder that not all germs are bad and many are beneficial and healthy,” says O’Brien.
