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My sourdough starter went flat right before a big order
Had a wedding cake job this past Friday, needed three full sheet pans of sourdough cake base. Wednesday morning, my starter, which I've had for about five years, just looked... dead. No bubbles, a layer of dark liquid on top, the whole thing smelled like old gym socks. I panicked. I fed it twice a day with a 50/50 mix of whole wheat and rye flour, kept it in a warm spot by the oven. By Thursday night, it was still sluggish. I ended up making a quick, small backup with some dried starter I keep in the fridge, but it felt like a real gut punch. Has anyone else had a starter just give up on them out of the blue? What's your go-to fix when time is tight?
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skylerrobinson10d ago
Man that's rough, I had my starter crash before a big bake day too. What saved me was switching to pineapple juice instead of water for a couple feeds, it really kicks the yeast into gear. @mark_mitchell I find white flour alone doesn't give it enough of a boost when it's that far gone, needs the extra acidity fast.
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