It’s all about the Yeast!

About 7 years ago I got my Mom sourdough starter from King Arthur’s Bread Company for her birthday.  Now, up until this point I had never thought of making my own bread, but that gift changed everything.  A few weeks after receiving the gift, my Mom offered me some of the starter.  I never thought that the magic of those incredible sourdough loaves I grew up eating in my Mom’s minivan could be created right in my own kitchen.  I took her up on the offer and I have been off to the races ever since.  My first experiences with the sourdough starter were not too great,  I even ended up killing the starter due to a lack of knowledge about what the little magic jar contained and how the starter was a living organism.  With that early casualty out of the way, I figured if I wanted to use a starter again I needed to educate myself and that opened me up to the world of “Wild Yeast” starters.  

A wild yeast starter is basically a starter begun by fermenting water and flour outside.  The water and flour collect the bacteria from the air and begin to ferment forming a living and breathing organism.  Through the continual feeding of fresh flour and water to the starter you can grow these bacteria to a healthy and active culture that can then be used to create bread.  Once I discovered the power of a wild yeast starter, I said goodbye to commercial dehydrated yeast forever.  In 2016 I began my wild yeast starter here in my backyard in Clovis, CA. It took fifteen days and has been going strong ever since.  

The benefits of a wild yeast starter, or sourdough starter (the terms are interchangeable), are numerous.  I will name some here but if you would like to read a great description of everything you need to know about sourdough starters pick up a copy of Bread Head by Greg Wade.  He goes into great detail illustrating the benefits of wild yeast starter, regenerative farming in growing wheat, and many of the different varieties of flour one can buy. For now, here is an abbreviated version on the benefits of using a wild yeast starter by Mouni Abdelli in his book titled Wild Yeast.  This is also a phenomenal book about wild yeast and its benefits.  

“The process of breadmaking using a natural wild yeast starter, which is a result of the action of lactic acid bacteria that break down sugars and thus produce lactic and acetic acids, lowers the pH of the dough and thus makes it more acidic. This acidification has a number of benefits. Grains contain phytic acid, which is present in large quantities in whole grains because it is mostly concentrated in the husk of the grain. But this phytic acid interferes with the proper assimilation of the minerals that are present in the grain. The acidification of the dough activates an enzyme called phytase, which allows the phytic acid to be broken down. This is why the slower preparation time is important: the more slowly the dough ferments, the more time the enzyme has to act and, therefore, to allow for the release and assimilation of all of this mineral potential. In addition, this acidification makes it possible for the bread to keep longer, unlike breads and other baked goods that are made quickly using baker's yeast, which tend to dry out as quickly as they are made.

Several writers have shown the advantage of eating bread made from wild yeast because of its lower glycemic index value and its greater digestive tolerability. It is assumed that the fermentation of the starter leads to a certain “predigestion” of the food because enzymatic processes, such as the action of protease (an enzyme that degrades gluten), act directly on the gluten and make it possible for it to be transformed. Thus, wild yeast may be well suited for people who suffer from intestinal discomfort connected with eating foods that contain gluten. The author Michael Pollan, who has become adept at making bread from wild yeast starter, explains in his culinary series Cooked (broadcast on Netflix, adapted from his best-selling book by the same name, Penguin Publishing Group, 2008) how the way we have been making “modern” bread for decades now has totally damaged our health. According to Pollan, methods of rapid breadmaking, without any real fermentation and often based solely on white flours, have contributed to the development of food intolerances (especially of gluten) and metabolic disorders (such as diabetes) in more and more people. He is convinced that, for most of them, if they could just start eating bread that has been fermented slowly, they would soon forget the discomforts they had that were associated with the overconsumption of modern bread” (Abdelli, M., 2018).  

Through my research into wild yeast starters, ancient grains, and sourcing ingredients from organic farms that are dedicated to regenerative farming practices, Bella Vita Bread Co brings you the healthiest, most sustainable loaf of bread you will find.  You can be 100% guaranteed that not only will you be enjoying a complex, wonderfully tasting loaf of bread, but you will be nourishing your family and friends with great food.  From our table to yours, we hope you enjoy our bread and allow it to be a centerpiece around creating your bella vita. Mangia!