Sourdough September: Celebrate Real Bread This Autumn

September marks the return of Sourdough September, a nationwide celebration of real bread led by the Real Bread Campaign. 

It’s the perfect excuse to slow down, enjoy food made with care, and maybe even roll up your sleeves and have a go at baking your own loaf.

Why sourdough deserves a spotlight

Unlike supermarket bread with long ingredient lists, true sourdough is made with just three essentials: flour, water, and salt. Instead of commercial yeast, it relies on a living “starter”—a simple mix of flour and water that naturally ferments with wild yeast and bacteria.

This patient, natural process creates bread that’s:

Rich in flavour – tangy, nutty, and deeply satisfying.

Better for digestion – the long fermentation can make it easier on the gut.

Free from unnecessary additives – no preservatives or artificial improvers.

Supportive of small businesses – many independent bakeries craft sourdough by hand.

How to join in with Sourdough September

There’s no wrong way to celebrate, but here are some ideas to inspire you:

Buy local: Pop into an independent bakery and try their signature sourdough loaf. Each bakery’s starter gives their bread a unique flavour.

Bake at home: Start your own sourdough journey—nurturing a starter is easier than it sounds, and baking bread is one of the most rewarding kitchen projects.

Share and inspire: Post your bakes, meals, or bakery finds on social media using #SourdoughSeptember.

Sourdough on the table: serving ideas

Sourdough is more than just bread for sandwiches—it’s a kitchen hero. Here are a few delicious ways to enjoy it this September:

With autumn soups – a thick slice of sourdough toasted and rubbed with garlic pairs beautifully with pumpkin, butternut squash, or leek and potato soup.

Cheese and charcuterie boards – sourdough’s chewy tang is the perfect partner for creamy brie, sharp cheddar, or smoky cured meats.

Brunch favourite – top with smashed avocado, poached eggs, or grilled mushrooms for a warming weekend treat.

Rustic desserts – use day-old sourdough in bread-and-butter pudding with autumn berries for a twist on a classic.

A reason to celebrate

Sourdough September isn’t just about bread—it’s about valuing quality food, connecting with your local community, and rediscovering simple pleasures. Whether you support your neighbourhood bakery or bake your first loaf at home, you’ll be part of a movement celebrating food made with care and tradition.

Matthews Cotswold Flour asked brand ambassador Elaine Boddy from Foodbod Sourdough for her comments on sourdough. Elaine told That's Food a Drink: "Lets' address the faff about sourdough breads.

"Many people have over complicated the process of making sourdough, adding unnecessary steps, fear, stress and 'faff' to what in reality is a simple and enjoyable process. As a result people approach making sourdough with fear and low expectations, but it doesn't have to be that way.

"Which is where I come in - I take all of that faff and completely disregard it. You can take a huge percentage of what you've read about making sourdough and ignore it. You don't need a science degree, you don't need to pay a babysitter to look after your starter, you don't need to give up all of your free time, you don't need to get up in the middle of the night, you can easily and simply make sourdough in any kitchen, in any part of the world, with equipment you've probably already got, and without it invading your home life. 

"You have full control of the whole process and can produce this bread to fit the requirements of your tastes and home. Tap water, a clean jar with a fitted lid, and some good flour, and you're ready to go.

"So does Sourdough really deserve a whole month of celebration? My answer is, absolutely, yes! In fact why just a single month? For me personally, I feel that sourdough should be celebrated every week and every day. Give sourdough a go - if you haven't already - and use this month as a great excuse to get making or buying more! 

"So if you fancy making some of this fabulously tasty, healthy bread, in the simplest possible way, check out all of my information online, you can find me at foodbodsourdough.com, and even more information at Cotswoldflour.com, and full videos on both of our YouTube channels."

Website: https://foodbodsourdough.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elaine_foodbod 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/foodbodSourdough 

Website: https://cotswoldflour.com 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cotswoldflour?igsh=YTgyMmx0a2dqdHht 

YouTube: https://m.youtube.com/@cotswoldflour 

So this September, tear into a crusty loaf, dunk it into a steaming bowl of soup, and join in the joy of real bread.

Use your loaf! Let's Talk About Food: The New Foodbod Pod

Self-taught sourdough expert and guru, Elaine Boddy has just launched her new podcast which she has called The 'Foodbod Pod'. 

What is it? It's the total celebration of food by food lovers, with inspiration and practical tips for every home cook. Each episode is available from Foodbodpod.com and is also available to watch on the The Foodbod Pod Youtube channel.

In the podcast, Elaine, and her co-presenter David Treadway, talk to home-cooks and bakers, food producers, food writers, recipe developers, food bloggers, professional cooks, and others associated with the food world. 

As they chat with guests, each will be asked for their top three tips in the kitchen, as well as their favourite ways of using leftover foods. 

Elaine explains: “If I read a food magazine or watch a food show, it's always about the tips. Because that's what I find most interesting. I read recipes to learn about the whole dish, but I'm also looking for those tips, the little things people do in their kitchens that they don't even realise they're doing.”

She went on to say: “My other great love is leftovers. To me they are the bomb, they have so much flavour because they've had time for the flavours to develop. There's so much you can create out of leftovers. So tips and leftovers are massive things for us.”

Elaine and David also discuss relevant and current food issues, including such things as the cost of living crisis and how to tweak your cooking accordingly. 

Elaine explains: “Our aim is to talk to chefs and cooks at various levels, ensuring the subject matter we cover is relevant, real and attainable for our listeners who are home-cooks from around the world. 

"We also collect recipes to post on our website, Foodbodpod.com and each episode is also available to watch on the The Foodbod Pod Youtube channel so listeners can actually see the recipes being made.”

Elaine, who already has a massive following online, started her food blog, on a whim, in 2013 to chart her progress when she decided to teach herself how to cook her favourite foods. 

A friend challenged her to try making sourdough. She learned about the process and its many nuances through trial and error and eventually landed on her own simplistic way of making sourdough, removing unnecessary steps, mess or waste.

This simple way of making sourdough appealed to a lot of people and Elaine has become famous for her sourdough skills. She is now keen to share more practical skills across a whole range of recipes through her Foodbod pod.

Matthews Cotswold Flour is the main sponsor of the Foodbod pod. Managing Director, Bertie Matthews explains: “One of our key company objectives is to inspire and educate the nation's artisan and home bakers and this new podcast is designed to do this. 

"Elaine is a great friend of Matthews Cotswold Flour and we love her approach to making cooking so accessible for everyone. We were delighted to be able to support the Foodbod Pod and help Elaine share her love of food with an even wider audience.” 

Elaine “Foodbod” Boddy is a recognised food blogger, author and sourdough guru with an international social media following and her own dedicated channels on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Facebook.

David Treadway is a broadcast and business professional who was a successful radio producer and member of BBC Radio's senior management team and currently chairs the international satellite distribution and broadcast services company, iKO Media Group.

David is the producer and co-host.

How to Listen:

You can listen to all the episodes of Foodbod pod at Foodbod Pod - let's talk about food! And on all major podcast platforms including Spotify and Amazon

 For more information on Matthews Cotswold Flour visit www.cotswoldflour.com or follow @CotswoldFlour on Instagram or Facebook.