First cool morning

59°F at sunrise. I had to put on a sweater to walk to the chicken coop.

The kitchen is going to be different now. The dough is going to be different now. The starter that was peaking at 4:30pm in August is going to take seven hours instead of four, and that's fine.

What changes:

• Bulk ferment goes from 4 hours back to 5–6
• Starter feeds shift to morning instead of evening (room temp is friendlier earlier in the day)
• Cold retard is no longer urgent — the counter is cool enough that overnight on the counter is sometimes the right move
• Crusts come back. The sugars in the dough don't get burned off as fast.

Fall is the best baking season. The dough is calm, the oven feels good to stand near, and the bread cools on the counter without sweating into the linen.

— Sarah