Tell me about it. I pay about $10 a loaf for fresh made sourdough at the local farmer's market here. And I pay it because it's so good. Need to finish it in two days however or it's hard as a brick.
When I retire, I'm going to learn how to bake my own bread. I will never eat the processed white bread crap from the supermarkets.
Speaking of farmer's markets, I agree with the observations of the article. In the past, farmer's markets were the province of the birkenstock-wearing, granola-eating hippie crowd. Now we are seeing a lot more regular people coming through them. The prices haven't come down though. We learned that it's better to go to the actual farms as they usually have a self-service farm stand with much more reasonable prices.
Put your bread in the freezer. Just take a few slices out of the bag as you need it. Or just freeze half the loaf and leave out what you usually eat in a few days. I love Jewish rye bread and that’s what I do.
“”””I pay about $10 a loaf for fresh made sourdough at the local farmer’s market here. And I pay it because it’s so good. Need to finish it in two days however or it’s hard as a brick.””””
Toasted sourdough bread slices make the best hotdog bun.
I’d rather have a slice of good bread & butter than a dessert.
My faves: Polish rye with the corn flour bottom, real Italian, pumpernickel, hard rolls.
I stock up when I visit family in Jersey - there are still some great local bakeries there.
“I pay about $10 a loaf for fresh made sourdough at the local farmer’s market here. And I pay it because it’s so good. Need to finish it in two days however or it’s hard as a brick.”
I’d pay that much for an excellent loaf of salt rising bread, which is impossible to find any more. It was a luxury when we visited family in western NYS. Toasted, and slathered with real butter. The Amish-made bread was the best.
They sell salt rising bread now, but have had to change the original recipe. Government had an issue with how it was processed, an ingredient, or something similar. Now it’s blah.
“When I retire, I’m going to learn how to bake my own bread.”
Practice on this bread recipe. You will never be disappointed! You can probably add a sourdough starter to it - I’m sure there is a recipe out there, but this has really good flavor all on it’s own. You can also add fresh or dried herbs and/or shredded cheese.
https://anaffairfromtheheart.com/no-knead-crusty-dutch-oven-bread/
Even though we watch our carbs, I bake this all winter long to go with soups and strews.