u/Effective_Ad_6609

after 16 days of waiting, made my first loaf. she is ugly, gummy and a bit dense but to be honest i was expecting a hockey puck/pancake and this is at least better than that.

including photos of my starter, the finished product (😭🤣) and once i sliced into her.

i used the most basic of basic recipes (linked below).

https://amybakesbread.com/easy-sourdough-bread-recipe/#wprm-recipe-container-37209

my overnight rise was more of an east to west spreading than anything going up. second rise, she continued to grow out, not up.

i’m assuming the lack of rise was the biggest issue. had it in my oven with the light on overnight (oven off) to create a warmer space for 12 hours. i followed the recipe exactly.

since mixing the bread, my starter has slowed a little on the doubling. i haven’t yet put it in the fridge. i’m assuming the issue is with the starter but i am not a baker let alone a bread baker so any thoughts are welcome (but be gentle, helga is upset about how ugly she is).

additional info:
- i’m in NJ at sea level
- hasn’t been humid here, my apt is temperature controlled
- starter is whole wheat, used store brand bread flour in my bread mix
- i did score the bread but LOL
- i am just doing this for fun, i dont expect to perfect my skills overnight

day 14, do we look good to go? the bands on both indicate where we started when we fed this morning. my only thing is i feel like there aren’t a TON of bubbles on the top?

also ignore color, my under cabinet lighting sucks and gives my starter a pink hue.

me again. it’s day 3 and my starter already doubled in size and is rather bubbly. going to keep following the process but is this normal?? i feel like im going to have to swap containers… olive oil included for scale.