In a medium-sized bowl mix the flour and milk together to make a batter like that used for pancakes. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and leave it in a warm, draft-free place for 3 or 4 days. When the batter starts to bubble and give off a slightly sour aroma, it is ready for the first refreshment.
Mix the starter down with a wooden spoon. Add 1 cup of lukewarm water and mix it for several minutes until it becomes a very soupy batter. Gradually add 1/2 cup of flour, while mixing. Continue mixing for several minutes until it is entirely incorporated. Again, the starter will be a liquid batter like that used for pancakes. If it appears to be too thick, it may be thinned with a little water. Covered and stored as for the original batter, this first refreshment will take anywhere form 1 to 3 days to rise depending on the weather and the place of storage.
When the starter has nearly tripled in volume and started to fall, it is ready to be remixed for the second and final refreshment. it will appear bubbly, more liquid than when originally mixed, and will give off a slight alcoholic aroma. Refresh and let it rise in the same way as the first refresment, with 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour.
After 1 day it will at least double, and perhaps triple, in volume, and at this stage 1 or 2 cups can be removed and used in a bread or pancake recipe. Whether some is used or not, the starter can now be placed in a mason jar with an airtight lid and stored in the refrigerator.
The starter is best when used on a weekly basis. Each time you use 1 cup of starter, it must be replenished with 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour. Add the water first and stir it to a liquid consistency. Then slowly add the flour and stir until it is fully incorporated. Leave the starter out of drafts in a warm spot for 3 to 4 hours, then place it back in the refrigerator for storage.
If the starter is not used for 10 to 14 days, it will still be good. But it will have to be refrehed in order to give it new life. Any excess liquid that comes to the top of the starter should always be poured off. Then simply refresh it with 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of flour, as described above.
The starter can be kept indefinitely if it is used and refreshed frequently (every week or two). If it goes bad, you will know because the resulting bread will show any one of a combination of the faults of an excessively sour starter: the crust will not be a deep, rich color, the loaf will not achieve a good volume, the crumb will be tight grained, or the flavor will be too sour.
Instead of just using the milk sour straight from the jar, home bakers should mix a sponge or levain the night before. It may be mixed firm (like a bread dough) or wet (like a sponge); the firm starter will take longer to be ready than the wet sponge. This "refreshed" starter, allowed to rise for between 6 and 8 hours when firm and 3 or 4 hours when soup, helps to give a light texture and a fuller color to homemade sourdough breads.
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