My sourdough collapsed during a farmer's market demo in Austin

I was doing a live shaping demo at the Mueller market last Saturday. Big crowd, cameras out, the works. My starter was perfect that morning, 100% hydration, bubbly. But I had it sitting in a metal bowl on a cold folding table for 45 minutes while I chatted. When I flipped it for the first fold, it was a puddle. Just flowed everywhere. I panicked and tried to add flour mid-demo, made it worse. Ended up scooping the mess into a loaf pan, baking it anyway. Came out flat but edible. People still bought it, but I learned the hard way that temp control beats technique every time. Anyone else destroyed a good batch just because of a cold surface?

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1 Comment

jennifer_fisher8d ago

Did you try blaming the table's vibe?