For more years than I care to remember, Ive had an urge to make bread using natural leavening, ever since I picked up a lttle booklet on "Sourdough Bread," which included a packet of "sour dough starter;" at the San Franciso Airport while on a business trip long before my retirement in 1987. Mostly my efforts have been a disaster; because, I now believe, I've concentrated on the "sour dough" concept, trying to capture and propegate "natural yeasts," I must have a brown thumb when it comes to raising wild yeasts!!!!! Recently I abandoned my fixation on "sour dough" for I'm really not that into the unique taste; and now believe that what I really yearn for is the ability to make a good loaf of bread with leavening that I have nurtured from an initial package of store bought yeast, without any further use of such. It just seems so unnatural to have to buy and use a package of store bought yeast every time I make a loaf of bread. If I have to buy the yeast I might just as well buy a loaf of bread!!!! Today I produced my first loaf of edible bread using only 1 cup of flour, and two cups of, what amounts to a third generation, sponge.

I did this using a bread machine, because I'm also not that into hand kneading, and all that sticky dough.  

So here's my recipe

Starter: First Day - Two cups warm water, 1 tbsp suger, two cups all purpose flour. 1 pkg yeast.

           Second Day - Two cups warm water, 1 tbsp sugar, two cups all purpose flour

           Third Day - Remove two cups sponge, place in bread machine bucket. Allow to breed for several hours. Add 1 cup flour, and process on basic bread cycle. Then add two cups of water, 1 tbsp sugar, 2 cups flour to remainder of sponge.

Repeat third day routine for each subsequent loaf.

So all you "Artisen Bread" bakers out there - sent me your comments - favorable, or not!!!!!!