Blueberry Dark Chocolate Torte with Sourdough Crust

Example of unmolested berries, bush to freezer.

As promised in the "Blueberry Eyes and Pies" post, I am offering the recipe for this torte. I must give fair warning that the term "recipe" has a somewhat loose meaning in my kitchen because I simply don't follow them. If your standard method is conventional recipes, and you like it that way, you best look the other way! My kitchen activities are always creative and experimental, which is exactly what keeps it fun for me. This means that I like to guess at things along the way, and make adaptive corrections based on how things look, feel, smell, and taste. It's the kind of intuitive cooking that I encourage everyone to try. So if you try creating your version of a Berry Dark Chocolate Torte, I hope that you feel free to make it your own unique creation by varying ingredients and amounts of things. You really won't have a choice, because my "recipe" is an approximation of ideas for you to build from. As you read the recipe, I suggest that you read it with your imagination turned on...try to visualize it, smell it, taste it...and ALWAYS use the most unmolested ingredients you can get your hands on.

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Dry Bowl: Combine 2 cups of flour, a teaspoon of baking soda, a teaspoon of salt in a bowl, a teaspoon of sugar if you like
3. Wet Bowl Filling: In another bowl, mix 4 cups of berries, a cup of dark chocolate chips, a tablespoon of brown sugar, a tablespoon of vanilla extract, and a half a cup of freshly fed sourdough starter
4. Cut a stick or two of very cold butter into small squares and then cut them into the dry bowl until the dry ingredients look kind of lumpy and crumbly
5. Add a cup of sourdough starter to the dry bowl and use hands to roll it into a kind of dry but together looking ball, where most of the flour is part of the ball, then put it on a flour dusted surface
6. Use a flour-dusted rolling pin to roll the dough into a thin crust, constantly using the extra flour to keep it unsticky
7. Kind of roll it up loosely to transfer it to a glass baking dish or pie dish...feel free to mash and shape it to the dish however you want...stay flexible and calm because bits may fall apart in the transfer, but it's ok.. shape that baby like play dough
8. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes or until it looks solidified and the edges of your crust look crispy
9. Remove and let sit for about 15 minutes
10. Enjoy and share...with something creamy on top (like whole plain Greek yogurt or coconut milk whipped cream) and something sharp/warm to drink like loose leaf green tea or strong coffee

Note: I am a stickler for my own sourdough culture as my only source of grain product, otherwise I experience the pains of gluten and other intolerances. If you bake often, or if you would like to bake often using a method that actually benefits your body, I strongly suggest acquiring or birthing your own sourdough starter. It's like a pet! You feed it daily and treat if lovingly for big culinary returns.

More to come on sourdough starters and baking bread...