Celebrating Sourdough September 2023
First off, here is an intro to Sourdough September (pulled from their website; see below) -
2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the annual international Sourdough September.
The ninth month of the year is when the Real Bread Campaign goes on a mission to help everyone worldwide discover that life’s sweeter with sourdough!
Launched in 2013, the main aims of #SourdoughSeptember are encouraging people to:
Bake genuine sourdough bread.
Buy genuine sourdough bread from small, independent bakeries
Boost the Real Bread Campaign, the charity behind Sourdough September.
The campaign promotes real bread in general for 12 months of the year, with September being a focal point for sourdough in particular.
When I discovered that it was Sourdough September, I felt compelled to write about it. I realised that Sourdough bread actually plays quite a big role in my life, haha. That sounds mad. From what my mum’s recipe (and starter) gave me during the pandemic (part cure of boredom and part sense of achievement), to my now eagerly anticipated weekly visit along with my family to Stroud Farmers Market, Sourdough bread rules my world for many quite cool reasons.
Whilst I appreciate that it probably isn’t the healthiest option, I have come to understand that when made either at home or by a trusted local supplier, you can almost guarantee it isn’t filled with preservatives and processed ingredients to keep it looking fresh on the shelf for a year. For someone who is not overly concerned about what I eat, I do consciously try to eat clean products, healthy or slightly unhealthy, especially when it concerns my children.
Where I’m Buying the Best Sourdough
Stroud has been long known for its Farmers Market, it really is a wonderful place to visit if you’re ever nearby and, for me, an excellent excuse to eat Asian food first thing in the morning.
But more than that, having moved back to Stroud in 2019, the farmers market has offered the hustle and bustle not too dissimilar to those in London, such as Borough Market. A fear of mine was that leaving London would be the end of anything exciting happening ever (I get proved wrong on this thought almost daily)...
It’s a cool place swarmed with local suppliers, also my Achilles heel, in a town so familiar to me but for different reasons. Having grown up here during the 90s, it’s a fantastic evolution for a town that, to be honest, when I was growing up felt somewhat bit lacklustre, and I only really remember it for Stratford Park Leisure Centre, its small yet very busy and sweaty nightclubs, cigs in pubs, along with a massive Woolworths (Those are my vivid memories anyway).
Stroud is now a weekly trip at the very least and hosts a range of brilliant events. The most recent we attended was a bike ride from the Long Table in Brimscombe all the way into Stroud. On the first Saturday of each month, they run an initiative encouraging more people to ride their bikes, and we ride along in a large group; my 4-year-old son loved it. Cycling is one of my favourite hobbies, so it fills me with joy watching him love it as much as I do.
Anyway, we are here for the sourdough, and that can lead me to only one place: Salt Bakehouse. An extraordinary little company that is in line with where Stroud appears to be going, it is forward-thinking and innovative not only in their produce but also in their presence. I often drive to local village hall car parks where they have a mobile bakery selling bread out of the back of a van (it’s all legit, I promise). I usually add in a cinnamon bun to go to.
If we go beyond the awesome cinnamon buns, their flagship sourdough loaves are to die for. Big, they last a week (family size dependent / greed) and taste fantastic whether with eggs (recipe to follow), just butter, peanut butter, jam, Bovril, olive oil, balsamic vinegar glaze, toasted cheese… any way you like your toast.
Please go check them out….
The Lockdown Sourdough Recipe
My mum is an excellent cook. She ran her cooking school, has written a cookbook called ‘Not Another Bloody Cookbook’, now runs her own catering company providing high-end home-cooked food to functions & local businesses, and pretty much taught me everything I know and love about cooking.
As with a huge chunk of the population, I started making bread during lockdown and used a recipe courtesy of my Mother. A bit like riding a bike; once you’ve done it a few times, it’s easy but feels a little overwhelming to begin with. I have the recipe, and if you are interested, drop me an email, and I will happily share it with you.
A little recipe I love, which can quite frankly be breakfast, lunch or dinner.
So this is my go-to lunch, usually when I’m on my own and need a quick fix. Carbs, protein (the perfect Personal Trainer combo) and yumminess, especially if, like me, you like a bit of heat in your food. Quite frankly, this bread is super with eggs anyway. Boiled, scrambled, fried, poached, soldiers… literally any.
Here’s what you need -
One slice of Salthouse sourdough (probably cut in half)
Two eggs boiled, runny is pretty important
Chopped coriander
Sriracha mayonnaise
If you enjoy extra hot, some red chilli to top. (finishes the plate of nice, too)
Slice the bread. If you're using Salt Bakehouse sourdough, it’s long, so cut it into two. Pop it in the toaster, ready to go.
Put two eggs in a saucepan, cover in cold water, and boil over medium heat. When boiling, turn off the heat, cover it, and let it sit for 6 minutes.
In the meantime, chop the coriander and chilli if using
When six minutes are up, pour out the boiling water from the pan and refill with cold water to stop the eggs from cooking.
Pop the toaster down and then get to peeling the eggs
Butter toast and place an egg on each slice, cut in half. Hopefully, the egg yolks will ooze out.
Sprinkle with coriander, a nice zig-zagged sriracha mayo drizzle or hot sauce over the top, then the chillis and a grind or two of pepper.
Voila, and bon appetite.
Simple yet Delicious Sourdough Pizza Night
It’s become a tradition in our house to have pizza on a Friday night. Pizza is easily one of my favourite foods and for some reason, screams ‘start of the weekend’! However, since becoming a personal trainer, I have become way more conscious about processed foods and the amount of junk ingredients in the most common supermarket items, bread, in particular. This was a problem for me until we came across Crosta & Mollica Pizzas, where the only ingredients required to make the dough are the ones required to make dough! For an oven pizza, they are delicious. They also sell a range of other ‘clean’ products, from flatbread and wraps (our go-to family meal, maybe for another blog) to breadsticks (not so much a go-to meal).
I enjoy a spicy pizza, so it’s the Crosta ‘Stromboli’ for me every time, but the kicker is that they do just the bases too, so you can make your own, a firm favourite for the little boy!
Baked-out
There you have it, an entire 1300-word blog dedicated to bread. I didn’t know I had it in me, and I definitely didn’t at school. They should have had bread in the curriculum.
It’s great when you discover things like this that bring you together as a family.
Also, a special mention goes to Franco Manca pizza restaurant (all over, but there’s one in Cheltenham). The pizza is superb, and KIDS EAT FREE! Which blows my mind in this day and age. 👏
External Links
http://homefromhomecatering.co.uk/ - Mum’s new catering website is coming soon.