Students gathered in Jamrich on Feb. 17 to attend a Skill Builder, “The Wonders of Sourdough,” where they would learn the ins and outs of the history of sourdough, how to make your own starter and how to bake sourdough. 

Students learned the key components of sourdough starter, as well as the dehydration process. They also had the opportunity to take some dehydrated sourdough starter home with them so they can make their own sourdough. 

Senior success advisor Susan Robison said sourdough starter is simply a mix of flour and water that ferments over time, a key ingredient of sourdough bread.

“I was surprised by some of the facts surrounding sourdough, how easy it is to make a sourdough starter from scratch and that I do not need a lot of expensive equipment to make sourdough bread,” said Tianna Lewis, a resident director.

The goal of this event was to educate students about the sourdough making process, and how easy it can be to start the process from their dorm room.

“Sourdough and baking in general can be a very daunting activity for many, and this Skill Builder helped break down the process in a very real way that both acknowledged and eased my fears related to baking with sourdough,” Lewis said. 

As the host of this event, Robison was pleasantly surprised with the turnout.

“This was the first time I’ve hosted this Skill Builder. If there is enough interest in the future, I could make it an annual or every semester event,” Robison said. 

Students agreed that events such as these on campus are beneficial for them.

“I think events like this are really good for students here at NMU because they help us learn new skills that are just for fun,” said Katie Johnson, an NMU student. 

Robison put a lot of work into this event leading up to it, hoping to make it an enjoyable experience for students.

“For about a week beforehand I was feeding and growing my starter enough to make some dehydrated starter to bring to the event,” Robison said. “I also made a loaf of bread beforehand to sample at the event. Otherwise, I worked on the presentation and there was a little bit of research that went into it.”