Miss Betsey’s Yeast
Ingredients
Directions
Stir the flour into the warm water.
Add the salt and mix well.
Set the mixture by the fire to rise, stirring it often.
When it is very light, it is ready for use.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Flour
- Provides the starch and proteins that feed the yeast and form the body of the starter.
- Warm water
- Hydrates the flour and creates the moist environment where the yeast can become active.
The step that matters
Set the mixture by the fire to rise, stirring it often. Yeast works best in a warm, steady environment. Too much heat can kill the yeast, while cool conditions slow fermentation, so the starter may not become light and ready for use.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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