Keeping a starter through the summer

Half of the loaf went to the neighbours, as usual. The dough tells you more than the clock does, and it took me a long time to believe that.

I keep a notebook by the scale, because I never remember what I changed last time. A cast iron pot does most of what a professional oven does, for a fraction of the trouble.

I used to score too timidly; a quick, confident cut opens far better. Cold flour and a cold kitchen slow everything down, so in winter I start a day earlier. A wet dough is harder to shape, but it forgives a lot once it is in the oven.