“When a small child hides something in the sand it becomes a treasure: something to keep. When flour and water are mixed and kept in a natural environment to ferment it becomes a little leaven: something to treasure."

I have had an escalating interest in the study of natural leaven since 1989. It was at this time that my husband began a study of grain and its use in bread. My irreverent thoughts unshared were, “Its so much easier just to pull it off the shelf David.” I kept a gentle and quiet spirit toward his newly gained interest, offering smiles as he shared his finds with me. His enthusiasm was contagious so we have studied together over the years.

Making and managing natural leaven has become part of our family’s education. All have gained some experience grinding grain into fresh flour, beginning a culture, observing fermentation, mixing bread dough, working bread recipes, and checking for gluten sheet, slashing, and baking with steam. Freshly baked loaves are a common staple in the household pantry.

Personal discovery of making and managing natural leaven is best. Books created by others have proven most helpful in our quest to learn about milling, grain, flour, leaven, dough and bread. The health and strength of our leavens come by proper feeding and use. There is joy in working quietly with our own hands something that is good: leaven into food that is fresh, well- like, soft crumbed and thick- crusted. The growing of this food would lie flat in form and flavor without a well-nurtured leaven. The exception is our flat breads and pizza crust. We have yet to perfect those rod-like forms that are entirely crust; namely baguettes. But, I sure wouldn’t mind trying a naturally- leavened one someday.

Why I encourage getting hands on leaven: To discriminate a loaf as bread, the home baker needs to find wealth in personally discovering making and managing natural leaven. Handcrafted loaves of Natural Leaven; begins as a seed. Rye helps establish the seed at first, but afterward this leaven is fed fresh ground flours from whole- grain: rye, wheat, spelt or otherwise. When not in use the leaven is called a storage leaven. This portion is set at room temperature to be rhythmically converted to a leaven sponge to its final: active leaven. A measured clump is always reserved for successive bakes (one baking session that follows another).
Discovering the artistry of producing fresh, soft- crumbed thick-crusted rounds of baked dough is reserved for the home/farm baker alone. Commercially produced Natural Leaven Bread will never rise to the standards of what is available at home. I can help to make clear that getting your hands on leaven will dissemble any notion that you have to go to the market shelf to get your bread- with the exception of small local bakeries that are producing these same loaves back home Beware, you might become a small local baker whose bread becomes highly desirable. That’s okay, this is a good thing : feeding the hungry.