So glad I found this site!

Hello! I'm Deborah and have been a "casual" bread baker for 10+ years or so and just recently decided to get more serious with the purchase of Hamelman's "Bread" book. Holy cow it's like taking a master class in bread baking. My plan is to start working my way through his book (I'm not going to do every recipe, as some have done, however). So far I've made the pain rustique (even though I messed up a bit it turned out better than any of the other bread I've ever made in my more "casual" days), and last night I made the Country Bread. Same thing, screwed up a bit but still turned out pretty good.

I'm currently furiously feeding my mature sourdough starter (I've had the King Arthur starter for at least 3 years or so, but it's mostly been neglected, often sitting in the fridge for a month or more between feedings - I know, SHAME!) using some of Hamelman's suggestions in the book, to hopefully make a sourdough loaf this weekend.

At any rate, so glad to have found you!

I am also dealing with a current challenge with a stiff pre-ferment - I put the post in Challenges and would appreciate any help and advice: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/51357/help-stiff-60-preferment-didnt-budge-12-hours