What’s old is new….again!

Post by Judy Howell

Perhaps you have noticed there is a huge revival of the art and science of sourdough baking. It has caught my attention as a potter and got me thinking about some of the pots I used to make and their potential usefulness as sourdough bread baking vessels. 

I generally do not do much baking (this being reserved for getting my pots from the wheel to the final glaze firing). However, I recently started experimenting with sourdough, beginning with the creation of my own starter, who I have named “Jolene.”  Coincidentally, I have had a renewed interest in using some of my old pieces that i designed for baking and are finished with a natural clay slip called “terra sigillata” meaning “stamped earth” or “sealed earth.” After baking several rounds of sourdough bread in my baking vessels I know that sourdough bakes well in my terra sigillata bakers, keeping in mind my results are the fruit of the efforts of someone who has yet to work out the formula for those perfect loaves. 

I have discovered that there are two types of covered vessels that seem to be the “go to” for baking sourdough…..Dutch ovens and cloches. My goal is to have some of each of these to offer sourdough bakers. Still in the development stage, stay tuned for updates and photos on my Montana Earth Pottery Facebook page!