Lievito Madre is a stiff Italian sourdough starter (~45-50% hydration) that provides a milder, sweeter flavor profile, improved digestibility, and superior, fluffier texture in baked goods compared to liquid starters. Due to its low-acid, yeast-heavy fermentation, it is ideal for any dough but especially for rich, high-fat, and sweet doughs like panettone, brioche, and premium pizza. Levito Madre can be used in it’s stiff state or you can make a levain from it. Key Benefits of Lievito Madre - Superior Texture & Volume: Produces incredibly light, fluffy, and soft dough structures, making it perfect for enriched breads. Also works wonderfully in lean doughs - Mild Flavor Profile: Unlike tangy, acidic liquid starters, Lievito Madre creates a delicate, mild, and often sweet aroma due to high lactic acid production. - Enhanced Digestibility: Long fermentation breaks down gluten and antinutrients, making the final bread easier to digest. - Its stiff, strong structure helps doughs rise in recipes with high fat and sugar, such as panettone or pizza, without losing, strength. - Longer Shelf Life: Natural acids from the slow fermentation act as a preservative, keeping baked goods fresh for longer without mold. - Nutritional Benefits: Increases the availability of vitamins and minerals like magnesium and iron. - Ideal for Pizza: Produces a very airy, crunchy crust with high digestibility. Lievito Madre vs. Liquid Sourdough - Hydration: Stiff/Firm (45–50% water) vs. Liquid (usually 100% water). - Flavor: Mild and sweet vs. Often sour/acidic. - Bacteria/Yeast: Promotes more lactic acid bacteria and yeast growth, less acetic acid. Usage Tips - Because it is firm, it is sometimes "bathed" (soaked in water) to reduce acidity before refreshing. - It is often used in recipes requiring long, natural rising. Pictured below are the stages of fermentation, from just mixed to peak Happy Baking!! @Tracy Havlik @Donna Angelo @Sandy Chong @Ann Snow @Patt Stanaway @Deborah Karaban @Judy Lyle @Mauvette Bailey @JoAnn Amato @Colleen Vergara

Just wanted to say todsy is mother's day And I was wishing all mama's a happy mothers day. :) hope ypur baking something yummy in your kitchens

I found a lame - a really nice one!! I think I bought it for my Father in Law and when he passed I got all of the bread baking tools I'd given him back. Somehow I missed it as it got reincorporated into my kitchen stuff... Such a productive weekend - feels like I got a present - don't you just love it when stuff like that happens? Okay so the gifs are getting out of control here...

Some old-fashioned rolled oats, some peanut butter, chopped walnut, semi sweet chocolate chips and instead of vanilla extract, I thought I would use banana extract. Banana goes well with peanut butter and my goodness was that ever a good idea. Now it’s in the refrigerator to make it a little easier to handle.

If you’ve taken the leap to create your very own Levito Madre you’ve also realized that you need a tall wide mouth container. Here’s a very inexpensive one I found at Dollar General. It’s food safe and BPA Free. The top locks airtight for the times that your LM is in the fridge so that no air will get to it and dry it out. The mouth is big & wide enough to get that ball of starter dough neatly inside without warping , smooshing or disfiguring that big beautiful X that you just cut into it so that it will receive air equally throughout and ferment evenly. The cost is $6 plus sales tax. I bought two so I’ll have one to use while the other one is getting cleaned and air dried. I named my LM, The Avenger! Why that name? Because I name all my starters after a person, place or thing in scripture and just as God avenges us my LM will and can avenge me of any flat, gummy and dense loaf! 🤣🤣🤣 Comment your LM name below and why you chose that name. Let’s see how creative we are