I've been playing with some sour dough starter.
The recipe is simple - just mix a cup of flour and a cup of water in a glass container and leave it on the counter until it starts to bubble (a few days or so). It should have a beery/yeasty smell and if it turns a weird color or starts to stink you should throw it out because you've got some kind of funky bacteria rather than yeast growing. Once the yeast takes off it will keep out any other critters that might want to colonize your flour/water/glass jar house.
After the wild yeast starts to grow you can put it in the refrigerator and use it for pancakes, bread, pizza or whatever you like to make with sour dough.
I'm still in the experimental stages and haven't got any dough that is airy, like you would with a commercial yeast (tried pancakes and a loaf of bread).
I need to keep experimenting and read a little bit more about how to use the starter. I think the key to the pancakes is that the batter is primarily the sour dough starter (not something you add to the batter).
I've read that some people use the sour dough as a flavoring agent and use commercial yeast to get the airy texture.
I've also read that you shouldn't let the starter contact anything metallic, and I was stirring mine with a fork or spoon - so I might have to start over.
I'll keep playing around with it and hope to have some tasty pancakes, cakes or bread in the not too distant future.
