Hi Xena, I'm sorry it has taken so long to reply to your question, and hope by now that your starter is rising vigorously! I know how frustrating it can be to stare at a starter you've been cultivating diligently for so long, with very little progress to show for it. If your starter is still struggling, I would definitely try to find a warmer spot for it to dwell. This blog post offers some tips on finding a good place for your dough to rise, but these suggestions should work well for your starter as well. Aim for a temperature in the 70-80ºF range, and see if this doesn't boost your starter activity. Don't worry about using metal utensils, although I would avoid storing your starter in containers made of a reactive metal, such as aluminum or copper. If warming things up doesn't do the trick, then you could try switching to the alternative feeding routine I've suggested to many other bakers whose starters seem to have hit a persistent lull in rising. This remedy comes from microbiologist and sourdough baker, Debra Wink, who observed that increasing the acidity of a fledgling starter seems to pave the way for improved yeast activity. Here's the plan:

1. Feed only once a day. 

2. Feed with whole grain flour, if available. 

3. Feed with a ratio by weight of 2:1:1. If you don't have a scale, you can also follow this plan by measuring with cups, but be careful to measure your flour using this method. For each feeding save 1/2 cup (4 ounces, 113g) starter and feed 1/4 cup (2 ounces, 57g) water and 1/2 cup (2 ounces, 57g) whole grain flour. Once your starter is rising predictably with this method, then you can transition back to our regular sourdough recipe.

Expect a certain amount of delay each time you change your starter's feeding routine, as the organisms need time to adjust, but once your starter is rising well with our regular feeding regimen, then you should be good to start baking. 

I expect the difficulties you had with the Extra Tangy Sourdough recipe were mostly related to your sluggish starter, but temperature could have been playing a part there as well. I hope all it takes is a little more warmth to make your starter burst with activity! 

Barb

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