Ep 33: Maurizio Leo (Software Developer & Sourdough Blogger/Writer at The Perfect Loaf

Maurizio Leo is a software engineer-turned-baker from
Albuquerque, Mexico whose blog, The Perfect Loaf, remains one of
the most authoritative sources when it comes to all things
sourdough! 





To date, The Perfect Loaf is a two-time Saveur Magazine Blog
Award winner. In 2016 The Perfect Loaf won both Editors' and
Readers' Choice Awards in The Food Obsessive category and the
2018 Readers' Choice Award for Best Special Interest Blog. In
addition, The Perfect Loaf was a 2019 Webby Award nominee.





Maurizio is a regular contributor to the King Arthur Baking blog
and is the Resident Bread Baker at Food52. Maurizio has written
articles on bread baking for Edible Magazine, the Bread Baker's
Guild of America, and Bread Magazine.





But how did it all begin?





3:21: Growing up with Italian cooking

6:27: Latching onto things obsessively

8:07: Entering the world of computers & softwares

11:41: Founding Terminal Eleven & creating the stargazing
app, Skyview

17:02: Seeing Skyview go viral (it’s achieved over 10 million
downloads!)

18:21: How Maurizio first got into the sourdough making world
through the book, the Tartine Bread by Chad Robinson

20:37: Meticulously planning for his first sourdough bake
(and how it turned out)

23:25: Using the same starter from 10 years ago

25:14: How The Perfect Loaf blog started 

29:06: The biggest challenges Maurizio faced from a baking
& business perspective 

34:46: How Maurizio experiments to create the perfect
sourdough recipes

36:01: Impact of baking at high altitude in Albuquerque 

37:27: Why Maurizio mills his own flour

39:14: Learning from Jeffrey Handelman 

40:19: Being known in the sourdough community 

46:04: Best places to find & get plugged into sourdough
communities 

50:04: Maurizio’s favourite baking techniques 

51:17: Whether he uses high hydration to achieve open crumb

52:08: A recipe that Maurizio makes over and over again

53:40: Impact of COVID-19 on sourdough making

55:23: Why Maurizio uses so much rye flour in his baking

59:10: The best investment Maurizio made in his baking
journey






Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/33