Parent Kim Grunwell shows the class how to prepare a bread starter. Students included Emily Grunwell, from left, Emily Clemens, Ryann Dennis, Jessa Donaldson, Rano Rakhimova and Sam Forman.
Third-grade gifted students from Bowling Green’s three elementaries got to take home starters for sourdough bread – after mixing the yeast in class.
On Dec. 5, Kim Grunwell visited Conneaut Elementary and led students through the steps in making sourdough bread, from feeding the starter to storing it in a jar in the refrigerator
Grunwell is a parent of one of the students in the class and breadmaking is one of her favorite past times, said Laura Weaver, who leads the PACE program for gifted students in the district.
The starter Grunwell brought to the class was first made more than six years ago using an organic wheat flour that comes from the Amish in Millersburg.
Students were each given a small amount of starter in jars they took home.
You can feed it, and each time it makes more, Grunwell said. You can take off about one-half cup discard to throw away or set aside to use for pizza dough.
The amount of time needed for the dough to rise depends on how “awake” the starter is, Grunwell said, and told the class she keeps hers in the fridge.
Grunwell showed students how to knead the dough, tear it, and fold it into the pan to make their own bread.
“If they feed it during the day, they’re going to get to watch it bubble and rise,” Weaver said.
Several of the students took Grunwell’s suggestion and named their starter, including Stanford, Sarah and Alex.
Weaver said students have been “feeding” their starter at home and watching it grow. Some have said their moms want to bake the bread over the holidays.
