Herman Lives!

Back in the 1980’s there was a little thing between homemakers in our small town. We fed it. And as it grew we divided the mass and gave pieces away to friends, family and soon, anyone who would take a sourdough starter. We named our bubbly friend “Herman”.

There were numerous recipes for adding sourdough to our baking routine… biscuits, bread loaves, pancakes and waffles, even doughnuts… but the favorite was always – hands down – Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls.

For years the memory of those cinnamon rolls haunted me. A hunger that I pushed away, that no shopping mall food court could fulfill. Herman had to live in my kitchen again.

But I knew I could do it, even without the friendly gift of a starter. I could make Herman live again, and I didn’t even have to go to the store to begin our adventure together.

Then, I ran into this article on Kitchn. Easy peasy! Of course, in my binder of handwritten family recipes there were other starter recipes, but this one caught my eye and works just fine.

So, one week later, I have a new reason to play in the kitchen, wondering what to make next – and my husband reminding me that he’s never tried one of those legendary cinnamon rolls.