Flicker Farm

Easy, mostly-hands-off sourdough.

The original recipe I started with was Bake With Jack’s Sourdough Beginner Loaf. People will send me their recipes to try and they have 247 steps and I’m not going to do that. Bread is not complicated unless you make it that way.

I do not measure to feed my starter. I add a couple spoonfuls of flour and enough water to make a thick, pancake batter-like consistency. I do not care about hydration levels and all that, but I love that for you if you do. I use my intuition. ✨

Ingredients {this makes 2 loaves}:
•620g lukewarm water
•18g salt
•250-300g active starter
•900g flour {I use organic AP flour with no fortification}

In the evening, mix all ingredients to form a shaggy dough. Rest for 30-60 minutes.

Stretch and fold about 12 times to incorporate into a cohesive dough. Cover with a towel and rest overnight.

In the morning, turn dough out onto floured surface and divide into equal halves. Form the dough into balls and pull towards you, catching the underside to build tension in the dough and forming a taut ball. Cover and rest for an hour.

Final shaping of the dough. I gently stretch into an ‘A’ shape and fold into a ball, pinching the seams together. Place on parchment for baking. I’m baking 1 at a time in a dutch oven.

Just before baking, score the dough.

Bake at 450°F with the lid on for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for 6 more minutes.

Remove to a wire cooling rack and let cool before cutting {if you can!}.

*Alternatively, after final shaping you can place in a banneton or towel lined bowl and store in the fridge until you’re ready to bake {up to about 24 hours}.

My daughter says I’ve ruined her forever with this sourdough because it’s so good. ♥️🥖I’m not after perfect, I’m fine with rustic yet delicious + easy to digest sourdough.

Big news! I’m now offering private virtual herbal + holistic consultations! My booking is currently open through January.

If you’re wondering about my credentials and education, let me share:

I earned my Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology {study of body movement + health} + Physiology {study of biologic functions + mechanisms of the human body}.

For some years I held a National Academy of Sports Medicine certification {since expired and not renewed}.

I had a decade+ of professional work experience in sports medicine, orthopedics, regenerative medicine + biologics working with surgeons in the operating room. Including assisting some scientific published studies + awards.

When I decided to stay home to take care of my family, we embarked on a 9 year homesteading/farming journey that included lots of raising + breeding livestock. My prior experience helped so much in caring for and treating my own animals most of the time during illness, labor, routine treatments and even artificially inseminating my pigs! Animal biology isn’t terribly different from humans {overall}.

During our farming journey I also started my Herbalist training. First self taught, then formal training. I earned a Family Herbalist and Bach Flower Remedies Certification from taking classes from a local naturopath in 2018.

In 2022 I earned my Herbal Compendium Diploma {general Herbalism} from Centre of Excellence.

In 2023 I earned my Master Herbalist Diploma from Centre of Excellence and became a Registered Herbal Practitioner via International Association of Natural Health Practitioners.

In the USA there isn’t a governing body that requires registration for herbalists, but they do require proof of education to become registered.

If you’d like to consult and get guidance for using herbs or what herbs may be appropriate for you, book via the link in my bio or on my website. I look forward to working with you. 🌱

*I am not a doctor so I cannot diagnose or treat illness. But I can support you with herbal and naturopathic education

Need a gift for a loved one? Swipe to see some ideas I can help you with. Sometimes a practical and useful gift makes the best gift! ♥️

Excerpt from my recent Patreon post: Let’s cover what star anise is NOT first. You may have seen claims that it’s nature’s Tamiflu. Tamiflu also known as oseltamivir, is an oral antiviral drug given/taken for Flu A and Flu B. Star anise has the precursor component called shikimic acid, this is the Tamiflu connection. Shikimic acid is processed into oseltamivir, synthesized through a 10-step process of complex chemical reactions resulting in the synthesis of Tamiflu. Some of the steps use potentially explosive azide chemistry therefore handling must be carried out with care. This 10 step complex process is, not the same as a cup of herbal tea, sorry to say. And it’s not something any one is doing in their kitchen. However, that’s not a bad thing.

The pharmaceutical companies use an estimated 90% of the worlds star anise crop. In 2005 there was a major shortage when there was a global bird flu “scare” and restaurants that specialize in pho and curry could not get the spice to flavor their foods in the traditional way and neither could practitioners of Traditional Chinese Medicine who used star anise for other ailments, because the pharma companies had it all. The pharma companies started trying to find more stable and economical ways to produce Shikimic acid to process into oseltamivir and one that they have started to use is through fermenting the bacterium Escherichia coli. That is so weird to me and this part may seem boring, but important to know the backstory and the truth. So star anise as we buy it from the store or an herb supplier, does not contain oseltamivir which is the active ingredient of Tamiflu. It only contains the precursor, which we have no way of converting.

It still has plenty of great medicinal uses, and can support illness, read the full article on Patreon for the uses and recipes. I wanted to share the truth as that often gets lost in viral videos. 🤎