Hi Kathy, while 80 plus temperatures aren't going to kill your starter, it may make it difficult for you to keep up with feedings in a timely fashion once you have a mature starter. Ideally you want to replenish (feed) your starter when it's at its peak of rising, or just beginning to fall in order to keep the yeast activity vigorous. If you're just beginning a starter it will likely do fine at room temperature if you feed it with cooler water. If it gets too warm, you could place the container in a cool water bath to slow things down a bit. Once your starter begins to rise predictably you can adjust the ratio of ingredients to slow down fermentation by offering your starter a relatively larger meal. For example, if you normally feed with a ratio of 1 part starter : 1 part water :1 part flour (by weight), changing to a ratio of 1:2:2, or even 1:3:3 will slow down fermentation and hopefully allow you to replenish when your starter is closer to the peak. Once your starter is mature you'll also probably find it handy to refrigerate it when you're not baking. Feed your starter, let it sit out for a few hours until it starts bubbling, and then refrigerate. When you plan to bake it will be helpful to take your starter out of the refrigerator and feed it twice a day at room temperature for a day or two before you plan to bake. When feeding at room temperature, it won't hurt to pop your starter in the fridge for a few hours between feedings if it happens to peak early. I hope this helps! Let us know how it goes! 

Barb

• Reply