Yeaston's Summer Vacation (And Why That Was a Bad Idea)

Okay so I took basically the entire summer off from baking. Not intentionally, but like, when it hits 115 degrees outside and your house feels like the inside of a Dutch oven that's already been turned on, even I need a break. I know, I know, I literally wrote a whole post about how the Las Vegas heat made me a better baker, and that's still true. But there's a difference between working WITH the heat and just melting into a puddle on your kitchen floor.

The thing is, Yeaston (yes, that's my starter's name, yes I'm 11, and yes I made that pun myself because my name plus yeast equals Yeaston) did not appreciate my vacation time. When I opened up his jar about two weeks ago, he was looking pretty sad. Like, genuinely grumpy. There was this brown liquid sitting on top and he smelled a little like nail polish remover, which honestly means he was HUNGRY. Like, really, really hungry.

I had to bring him back to life myself. I started doing daily feedings with filtered water and a good organic flour mix. It took about a week of consistent care before he was back to his bubbly self, doubling in size and acting like he actually loved me again. The lesson I learned (again, apparently) is that starters need commitment. Even when it's blazing hot outside and you'd rather be at the pool.

Now that summer's winding down and I'm getting back into the homeschool routine, I'm ready to start baking again. I've been working with sourdough for almost a year now, and I'm excited to get back into it. It's pretty wild that I went from knowing nothing about starters to keeping Yeaston alive and healthy, even if I did temporarily abandon him.

I'm planning to ease back in this week. Gonna do a simple white sourdough, nothing too fancy. Fresh starter (well, resurrected starter), good long bulk fermentation, nice stretches and folds, then shape it up and let it cold proof overnight. My mom's been helping me get back into the groove, and it feels good to have her in the kitchen with me again. I'm actually excited to feel that oven spring again and score a loaf that actually opens up the way it's supposed to.

The moral of the story? Don't abandon your starter during summer break. Trust me, rehabilitating Yeaston was way more work than just keeping him fed and happy all along. Lesson learned, and now we're ready for what comes next.