Yogurt Sourdough Starter
STARTER:
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons plain nonfat yogurt
1 cup bread flour
Place the milk in a 2 cup glass measure and heat it in the microwave to 100ºF, about 45 seconds at 100% power or on the stove top in a small pan until warm. Stir in the yogurt, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and place it in the warmest place in your kitchen, ideally about 80ºF. Let the mixture stand until it forms a curd and doesn’t readily pour, about 24 hours, then stir in the flour.
Whip it with a fork to both combine and aerate the mixture, then re-cover and let it stand until the mixture is full of bubbles and has a good sour smell, from 2-5 days. If a clear liquid separates out, stir it back in; if the liquid is pink, throw the starter out and start again. The pink color means you have captured undesirable airborne bacilli, airborne pathogens that have spoiled your starter.
If you don’t use a starter within 3-4 days, feed it with 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup milk so that the yeast and molds will have a new supply of food to keep them alive. Cover and leave out in the warm kitchen overnight or until the starter is bubbly and light. Once the starter is made and bubbly, store it in the refrigerator.
Eckhardt and Butts “Rustic European Breads
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