HOMEMADE SOUR DOUGH BREAD (From Another Time) Phil Norton, 1995

**HAVING:

 An abundance of flour from the golden wheat grown along the north bank of the Cimarron and ground by journeyman miller Aremus (Wing of the Hark) Clendennon in the Tonkawa Tribal grist mill powered by the flowing waters from another time,  Sugar made from a blend of the robust beet grown along the Snake River in Walla Walla County, Washington, and the graceful cane, nurtured by the sea breezes and tropical sun, from San Cristobol Plantation, St. Johns, U.S. Virgin Islands,  Yeast, patiently aged in the Gregorian Caves by the Andalusian Monks of the Saint Cyr Monastery, made from the aggregated cells of the unicellular ascomycetous fungi constituting the genus Saccharomyces, and related genera,  Salt, hand-mined from the Great Salt Plains of Alfalfa County Oklahoma, and dried by the autumn prairie wind,  Fresh, not yet chilled, golden butter from Grandma's churn made from the morning milk of the fertile Hereford, and  Clear, crisp, flowing water, carrying with it the ancient tales of clouds, storms, streams, rivers, lakes, and life. Water from another time.***

BREAD: 2 Heaping cups bread flour STARTER 1 1/2 cups starter 2 cups all purpose flour 1 pkg. dry yeast 1 Tbsp. sugar 1/2 cup hot water 1 Tbsp. dry yeast 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. salt 2 Tbsp. sugar 2 cups warm water 2 Tbsp. butter, cut up

FOR STARTER: Mix all ingredients and stir with wooden spoon until well combined and pasty. Cover with a towel & set aside in warm spot. Stir several times a day for three days. On the 3rd day it should smell pleasantly sour and there should be many bubbles. You may need 4 days to reach this point. If after 4 days you are not successful, or if the mix smells rancid, start over. Check the expiration date on the yeast. Store starter in an airtight earthenware crock and refrigerate.

HOMEMADE SOUR DOUGH BREAD (From Another Time) Phil Norton, 1995

When ready to use the starter, stir and bring to room temperature. Use amount specificed in the recipe. Reserve what is left over and replenish with equal parts of flour and water. Let the replentished starter rise for three hours, then close the airtight earthenware crock and refrigerate.

TO MAKE BREAD: Mix all ingredients in a large warm bowl until smooth and sticky. Cover with a towel and place in a warm area to rise for one hour. Flop out on a floured breadboard and begin kneading with firm, but gentle, strokes using the heel of your hands and your fingers. This is good exercise for musicians who play fretted instruments. You may want to add caraway seeds, poppy seeds, or onion flakes at this point. Knead until firm and silky. Cover, and let rise again for about 40 minutes. Hit the dough hard with a closed fist, form into two loaves, and place into loaf pans or on a bread sheet(s). Let rise in the loaf plan or bread sheet for another 20 minutes then place in a pre-heated 325o oven for 30 to 45 minutes

Now sit in a comfortable chair, listen to good music, and breath in the earthly aroma of the yeast spirits dancing in colorful the harmony created by the harvests of wheat and sugar carried by the mysterious steam of the water from another time.

** NOTE: If you cannot find the specific ingredients, then you may use stuff from your favorite grocery store with only minor, perhaps unnoticeable, affect to the overall recipe.

***REFERENCE: "Water From Another Time", written by John McCutchen, contemporary folk singer/songwriter, and repeated, in part, as follows:

"Primed with wisdom from another time........." "You don't take much, but you gotta have some, The old ways help, the new ways come, Leave a little extra for the next in line, Gonna need a little water from another time."

"Though Grandpa's hands have gone to dust, and Grandma's pump reduced to rust, Their stories quench my soul and mind, Like water from another time."