I baked a second round of no-rise bread
The recipe and the starter I have been using for years are failing me. The last two bakings have produced bread that did not rise at all, in the fridge or in the oven.
It could be the starter, I suppose. I let it sit in the fridge too long without feeding it and it developed an interesting layer of gray stuff on top. I scraped that off and used the rest of the starter, which looked OK.
It could be the weather. It is extremely hot and humid here, as it was the last failed bake.
It could be that four stretch and folds at twenty minutes apart are just too many and too far apart. Perhaps the sourdough gave its little all and I degassed it each time it got going.
Next time, I'm going to use newer starter (I started it fresh, from my pancake starter, which does seem to be healthy), do three stretch and folds ten minutes apart. I may also add some commercial yeast as insurance.
I need to figure out what to with the failed loaves. Will bread pudding work if the loaves are dense dense dense? I am already too well stocked with breadcrumbs.