September 17, 2006 - 3:01pm
3 Bread Books
Over the summer I got my hands on the following three bread books:
Good Bread Is Back
Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book - A classic. Lots of good recipes in here, and the intro chapter that other folks have posted about is excellent.
Home Baking: The Artful Mix of Flour and Traditions from Around the World - A little bit of everything. Beautiful photos too.
I've been so busy that I really haven't had a chance to try out many of the recipes or read any of them in depth yet, so... more to come later.
Other folks thoughts on any of them?
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I haven't seen that first one (good bread...) but I have the other two. I love the Alford/Duguid books. Home baking has an awesome banana bread that I make a lot (it has coconut in it--yum). I also love their flatbread book, which is great just to read and the savory recipes to go with the flatbreads are very good too.
Hey--the Kaplan book isn't released yet--where'd ya get it? :) It looks like a great read I'll have to reserve it at the library!
The publisher sent me an advance copy. Because, you know, I hold so much sway in the baking community. ;)
Seriously though, I'm in the middle of a fascinating book about the alphabet (well, not quite the middle... I'm up to H). As soon as I am done I intend to tackle the Kaplan book. It looks dense, but quite interesting.
Floydm,Could you please supply the names of the publishers of the above, thanks. i have an OCD when the possibility of acquiring more new baking books comes my way.
Good Bread Is Back is by Duke University Press, Laurel's Kitchen is by Random House, and Home Baking by Artisan Press.
Breadnerd, Could you give us some more info. re thee other Alford/Duguid Books which you liked?
I have two: Home Baking and Flatbreads and Flavors.
The books are primarily cool because of the context. The authors are a husband and wife who met while travelling through Tibet. They share a love of food and travelling and their books are part recipe book part travelogue. You can't help but be envious of their lifestyle!!
Flatbreads is arranged regionally and has lots of ethnic foods to dip your flatbreads in. There are recipes for dips, stews, snacks etc. mixed in with stories of little villages and adventures. The recipes are also aimed at being "recreated back at home" so have suggestions for substitutions and are not always meant to be authentic, just tasty.
Home Baking also has lovely color photos and regional stories about home bakers around the world. To me it's more of a picture book but the recipes I've made from it (like the banana bread) have turned out great!
I've also checked out there new one (Curry Leaves??) from the library. It focuses on their favorite part of the world (the subcontinent) and looks like some tasty recipes as well. I'll probably pick it up eventually.
I've been doing A LOT of baking out of this one, and it's a keeper. In fact, sometime in the next couple of weeks, I've been planning to write a full review.
Bottom line: Lots of helpful tips on baking with whole grains. Tons of good recipes. A weak understanding of sourdough. Not much emphasis on the use of pre-ferments.
It's become one of my favorites. I'll have a review up soon.