Some of you may be asking yourselves questions somewhere along the lines of "So what the heck is sourdough anyway? Is it actually sour dough? Yuck! Why would someone want their dough to be sour!?" This book is here to inform you on exactly what sourdough is and is not.

Sourdough is in fact a type of bread or "bread product" that's been around for thousands of years! As a matter of fact, sourdough has actually been around for much longer than most of the various types of breads that you see in your local supermarket or bakery. While both sourdough and other types of breads have the same basic ingredients (which are flour and dough, ) the big difference is the source of the yeast that you use.

Before we get into the differences of yeasts that are used in various types of bread baking, you should probably have a basic understanding of what yeast is exactly. Although there are over 1,500 species of the fungal microorganisms known as yeast - only a few of these species are typically used in consumables. The species that is most commonly used in bread is called "Saccharomyces cerevisiae" which converts carbohydrates to carbon dioxide and alcohol leading to gasses being released after fermentation. In other words - the yeast is what makes the bread "inflate" or rise.

You see, most of the bread that is made today, is baked with a yeast fungus that's been frozen in suspended animation and actually comes in a package. The yeast manufacturer's do this by drying and preserving the organisms, then forming them into a powder. Once you add the other ingredients and pour some water into the mix, the yeast re-activates or is "woken up" and starts eating the sugar and starch, which is converted into carbon-dioxide which in turn makes the bread rise.

Sourdough on the other hand deals with yeast in a completely different fashion. The yeast fungi that's used in a sourdough mix is kept alive (and never suspended) through a liquid medium called a starter culture (commonly called the "starter"). The starter culture is a symbiotic culture (or a place where two or more organisms co-exist) of yeast and lactic acid bacteria that grows in a mixture of water and flour. It's this lactic acid that creates the sour-tangy taste in the bread.

This Book Covers:

• Basic To Get Started
• Starter Sourdough
• Basic Starter Sourdough Recipe
• Rustic and Artisan Loaves
• Pan Loaves and Sandwich Breads
• Enriched Flours and Specialty Breads
• Measurement and Conversion Table

Some people do indeed say that the sour taste is an acquired one, but that isn't to say that tons of others love the taste the second that they try it. If you are one of those people who are a little turned off by the thought of your bread being sourdough, maybe you should go ahead and look at all the health benefits that sourdough has to offer and this book includes all of them.