Read below ⬇️ • You can’t use your stand mixer. A lot of people believe the stand mixer will over work your bread, but we’re talking about a recipe where one of the key elements to success is having worked it *enough.* I start my dough in the stand mixer with a dough hook and let it run for about 5 minutes before setting it aside for its first rest. The rest of my stretch and pulls are manual, but the initial gluten development has resulted in stronger loaves with better rise. • You can’t use a metal bowl—it’ll ruin your dough. Not true. Copper and steel bowls have a chance of changing the chemical balance of your dough, but aluminum, which most metal kitchen bowls are made from, is totally safe. This includes your stand mixer bowl. • Your starter will be ready in exactly X hours (and, if it isn’t, it failed). Your starter is a living breathing thing. It’s gonna have good days and mood swings. It changes with every temperature fluctuation and any difference of humidity. Give your starter and yourself a little grace. • It’s not done until it’s reached that deep golden brown. There’s done and then there’s crust preference. My loaves tend to be more blonde because I like a soft, chewy crust. Others prefer a more toasty, rigid crust (that maybe cuts the roof of your mouth and realigns your jaw with each bite?), but neither are wrong. • You can’t change the ratios of your recipe. It’s a perfect science. It is science, but it’s not a strict method. I started with a base recipe from a proven sourdough account, but my dough was always excessively sticky, even after all the stretch & fold rounds. I finally reduced my water by 25 grams and found the dough to be much more manageable. Your environment determines the “perfect” ratio for your bread. I’ve also been 10-15 grams shy on starter a few times and found the shortfall to go completely unnoticed in the final product. Don’t be afraid to experiment a little.