Why Temperature Is Part of the Recipe (Even If It’s Not Written Like One)
This week, someone sent me a photo of an underfermented loaf and said, “I followed the recipe exactly.”
That phrase comes up a lot in bread baking, especially with sourdough and it’s usually where the disconnect is.
Here’s the important thing to understand:
In bread baking, temperature is an ingredient.
It just doesn’t show up in grams.
Sourdough is alive. Fermentation speed changes based on temperature, just like it does with yogurt, kombucha, or anything else driven by microbes. Two people can follow the same recipe, with the same ingredients, and get completely different results if their dough temperatures are different.
That’s why you’ll see DDT (Desired Dough Temperature) written into my recipes. It’s not extra or optional; it’s a target that tells you whether your dough is fermenting in the right zone.
Here’s how temperature affects your dough:
- Too cold → fermentation slows down, dough looks dense, tight crumb, underfermented
- Too warm → fermentation speeds up, dough can overproof quickly, weak structure
This is also why bakers make seasonal adjustments. In the summer, doughs ferment faster. In the winter, they move more slowly. The recipe doesn’t change; your environment does.
And the good news? You don’t need fancy equipment to adjust.
If your dough feels cold and sluggish, put it somewhere warmer.
If it’s moving too fast, move it somewhere cooler.
If your dough is consistently too warm, you can slow things down by reducing the levain percentage or adjusting the fermentation time.
None of this means you did anything “wrong.” It just means you didn’t yet have all the information.
One of the biggest shifts in becoming a confident baker is moving from “I followed the recipe” to “I understand how to adjust the recipe.” Temperature is usually the missing piece.
Once you start paying attention to it, a lot of bread problems suddenly make sense and become much easier to fix.
An Invitation to Bake and Travel Through France 🇫🇷🥐🍷
I want to share something really special that I’ve been quietly working on for a while.
In June 2026, I’ll be co-hosting an intimate culinary journey through Paris and the Loire Valley called The Art of Dough: From Croissants to Cabernet. It’s a one-week experience built around baking, wine, travel, and connection — and it’s unlike anything I’ve ever done before.
This isn’t a tour where you’re rushing from place to place or watching from the sidelines. It’s hands-on, slow, and deeply immersive. We start in Paris, then move into the Loire Valley, staying in beautiful spaces, eating incredibly well, and spending real time with the people behind the food.
At the heart of the trip is a two-day baking masterclass with Alexandre Laumain, MOF World Champion 2023, hosted at an artisanal flour mill right at the source. We’ll be rolling, folding, and shaping dough together in a way that most bakers only ever dream about — learning directly from a true master, with flour still warm from the mill.
The rest of the week is woven together with:
- unforgettable meals that feel Michelin-worthy without being stuffy
- private wine tastings in the Loire Valley
- behind-the-scenes visits with artisans
- and time to actually enjoy where you are, not just check boxes
What matters most to me is that this trip is intimate by design. There are only 20 spots, and I’ll be there the entire time, baking, eating, drinking wine, answering questions, and sharing the experience alongside you. It’s not a stage. It’s a table.
If you’ve ever wanted to take your love of baking further, to connect it to place, culture, and people this is that opportunity. A rare week where learning, travel, and joy all come together.
If it feels like something you’d love to be part of, I’d be honoured to have you join us.
Back-to-School Breakfast Win: Sourdough Discard Waffles 🧇
Now that the girls are back in school, I’ve been leaning hard on breakfasts that are already done before the morning chaos starts. These sourdough discard waffles have been a lifesaver.
They’ve been a staple in our house for years. I started making them when I only had one kid, and now they’re just part of the rhythm. Make a big batch, freeze them, and suddenly weekday mornings are a lot calmer. Pop a waffle in the toaster, add a pile of fruit and some maple syrup, and breakfast is handled.
What I love about this recipe is that it uses 100% pre-fermented flour, so all the flour has already gone through fermentation before cooking. They’re crisp on the outside, fluffy inside, deeply flavoured, and a great way to use up extra sourdough discard.
I made this batch with einkorn flour, sourced from Stone Bridge Flour, but this recipe is very forgiving. I’ve also made it with Red Fife, emmer, whole wheat, and blends of fresh-milled flour. All-purpose works too if that’s what you have; the method stays the same.
If you’re trying to make mornings easier without giving up real food, this is a good one to keep in your freezer.
Sourdough English Muffins (Book + Blog) 🍳
Someone sent me a photo this week of a batch of sourdough English muffins they baked, and it made me smile. These are one of those recipes that quietly become part of your routine before you even realize it.
I actually have two versions of these English muffins. One lives in my book Bread Etc., and one lives on the blog. They are very similar but intentionally a little different. The book version is part of a bigger system and structure, while the blog version is a super approachable, same-day bake that is easy to jump into.
Both give you soft, airy muffins with that golden griddled exterior and a gentle sourdough tang. And yes, Bread Etc. is now a national bestseller, which still feels pretty wild to say.
The person who sent the photo also mentioned they would make great English muffin pizzas, which is something we do all the time for our girls. Tomato sauce, cheese, a quick bake or broil, and suddenly you have an easy after school snack or school lunch option they actually get excited about.
If you want the same-day version, you can find the full recipe on the blog. And if you want the more refined version along with sourdough, yeasted doughs, pizza, and everyday baking recipes, that one lives in the book.
This Week in the Baking Studio - Testing a 100 Percent Einkorn Pan Loaf 🌾
Some of you might remember me mentioning a 100 percent einkorn pan loaf a little while back. I wanted to share an update because this one has evolved quite a bit since then.
I’ve been working on a fully whole-grain einkorn loaf made with locally sourced grain, and when it lands, it’s honestly incredible. Soft, aromatic, gently sweet, and deeply satisfying in a way that only einkorn seems to be. That said, einkorn behaves very differently from modern wheat, and it took a few rounds to really understand what the dough was asking for.
This version uses a scalding method, where a portion of the flour is mixed with boiling water to pre-gelatinize the starches. That improves moisture retention, adds natural sweetness, and helps compensate for einkorn’s weaker gluten structure. The surprising part is how fast it moves. Once mixed and panned, the loaf is fully proofed and ready to bake in about 50 minutes, which is wild for a 100 percent whole grain bread.
I’m not publishing this on the site yet because I want to keep refining it before calling it finished. Einkorn varies a lot from mill to mill, and I want this recipe to work reliably in real kitchens, not just mine.
If you regularly bake with einkorn and enjoy testing recipes, I’d love your help with this one. I’m looking for a small group of bakers who are comfortable working with whole grain einkorn and paying attention to fermentation and dough feel. If that sounds like you, just reply to this email and let me know. I’ll share the current working version along with what I’m watching for and where feedback would be most helpful.
More to come on this one soon.
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Happy Baking,
MJD
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Want to learn more from me? Check out my online video resources 👇
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