This month we continue a series of sourdough recipes originally published in the Capital Press in the late 1960s.
Alaska’s oldtimers and pioneers are called “Sourdoughs.”
They earned this nickname from their habit of carrying with them a little crock of yeast starter so they would always have the makings for pancakes or bread, no matter how far they were from civilization.
Many modern Alaskans have carried on the Sourdough tradition of hospitality and heart, homemade breads.
These recipes are from the Alaskan tradition. This bubbly white liquid must be tended carefully, and fed regularly to remain viable.
To replenish the amounts used in baking, the night before, add a cup of warm water and 2 cups of flour to the starter and leave it in a warm place.
The best way to start a sourdough pot is to find someone who will share his “starter” with you. But if no such sourdough baker can be found, you can start one in you own kitchen from things you already have on hand.
Mix together in a crock or jar:
1/2 teaspoon dry yeast dissolved in
Then simply allow the flour-yeast mixture to sit in the covered crock in a warm place for two or three days, stirring once or twice a day.
You now have your own sourdough starter, a bubbly white liquid (whether thick or thin depends on the cook’s inclination), which you must “feed” and protect like a living thing (which, in a sense, it is).
You will use a certain amount of this starter in baking so before you bake, usually the night before, add a cup of warm water and a couple cups of flour and leave it in a warm place.
In the morning you will have enough starter in the sourdough pot so you can remove the amount you need for baking and still have some left to refrigerate for future use.
You can store your starter in the refrigerator for two weeks with no harm. If you are going to be too busy to bake for a month or longer, stick a cup of starter in a small container and freeze it.
Excess heat could kill the starter, so make sure the crock doesn’t come in contact with a lighted burner.
Don’t worry if the starter separates into a more fluid layer on top or even if it begins to turn different colors, except orange. Sourdoughs say your starter can be used safely if it’s any color other than orange. If it should turn orange, it’s time to prepare another starter.
If your starter seems a little flat, this can be remedied by occasionally adding a little more dry yeast along with water.
2 tablespoons sugar (according to taste)
1/2 cup melted shortening or margarine
1 teaspoon soda dissolved in a small amount of water, added just before frying the cakes with as little stirring as possible.
Mix these ingredients together and let them sit in a warm place until the mixture smells yeasty, and a little like sour milk. This will take two or three hours.
One at a time, add 2 eggs, beaten after each addition. Then stir in 3 squares (ounces) melted unsweetened chocolate. Add this creamed mixture to the sourdough with an electric beater.
Pour into 2 layer pans or an angelfood pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, being careful to make sure he cake is done before removing it from oven.
This makes a very moist chocolate cake.
1 cup canned or homemade applesauce
Let above ingredients stir together in a covered bowl in a warm spot while you cream the next mixture.
Then add one egg, beat will, and add the following spices:
One-half cup chopped nuts or a combination of chopped nuts and raisins make the cake especially delicious. Now combine the creamed mixture with the above sourdough mixture and beat by hand for about 100 strokes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-50 minutes (depending on whether you are baking it in a square 8-by-8 or 9-inch pan or in a loaf pan). Be sure to test for doneness, and allow the cake to cool in the pan.
Mix the above ingredients together, gradually working in flour until the dough is of a consistency you can handle. Divide the dough in half and roll out on a floured board until it is about a quarter of an inch thick.
Dot with butter, and sprinkle with 1/4 to 1/2 cup brown sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Roll the dough into a foot-long cylinder. Cut off one-inch slices and place in a pan in which you have placed the following:
Do the same with the other half of the original dough, let rise one hour and bake 20 to 30 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Serve upside-down so he sticky mixture is on top.
Mix the ingredients together in the order given, working in the flour. Let the dough rise in a greased bowl until it has doubled in bulk, knead again and form into a long French loaf.
Cut cross-hatches on the top of the loaf and let rise again. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes. Brush with butter.
To the above ingredients add just enough sourdough starter to make the mixture moist (approximately 1/2 cup). Stir only to blend. Bake in a greased muffin tin at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes.
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