Customer Reviews

Bread

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I loved this book. The pictures are enticing, and the detailed instructions will enable even the most inept baker to produce beautiful and tasty loaves of bread, fromt he very plain to the very festive. It gave me the courage to try making Sourdough from scratch, including the starter. I've been making sourdough every 2-3 days ever since! I would like to caution novice bread bakers that the cooking temps for most of the breads are 425 to 475 degrees, and I was not able to do that in my over or the loaves would burn on the bottom. I baked mine at the traditonal 350 degrees for a longer cooking time and they came out great!

"Page 144 the "Pain D' Epice" French Honey Spice Bread, 1 loaf. Calls for 1 1/2 cups honey, 1 1/3 cups milk, 2 eggs, spices AND 1/2 cup of flour."

Actually, page 144 calls for 3/4 cup plus two table spoons of whole-wheat flour AND 3/4 cup plus two tablespoons of rye flour.
I have baked this twice and it always comes out perfect.

After getting this book from the library and trying out several recipes before taking the book back, I decided I have to buy this book. It is the most informative book on bread and bread making I have seen. The pictures are great. It is very informative and easy to follow. Even for a beginner, they make it look so easy. I can't wait to get my copy.

This is an amazing book. It is so complete and detailed.
My previous experiences in bread baking were with betty crocker. I liked the recipes but I wanted to go a step further. With so many books about baking bread, it was a hard choice but I decided on this one because I saw that it was filled with pictures. I'm so glad that I chose this 'cause it is indeed a great book. The recipes are incredible and the techniques also.
The book starts with a "gallery of breads", beautiful pictures of french, english, italian, european and middle eastern breads.
Then it shows different types of flours (with more pictures), then the techniques step by step on how to prepare the yeast, how to make a starter, mixing, kneading, shaping and baking. Photos of different kinds of glazing and toppings follow this chapter. Then the recipes. I think I've tried every recipe that is in this book. Not one of them turned out bad. They were espectacular. Outside and inside.
I cannot recommend this book enough.

I bought this book because it contained a recipe for raisin bread. There were errors in the recipe;there were two references to adding flour but no flour left to add. The directions caused the bread to be severely overbaked and unedible. No, there is nothing wrong with my oven and I am an experienced bread baker. This error in the one recipe makes me suspicious about the entire book.

I made 24 loaves the first two weeks I owned this book. The recipeis such as the almond fig bread varition on the raisin rosmary bread is the best bread ive ever had, and thats lot to say about a bread you made yourself The less exotic breads are refined and tasty and any fresh bread is one hundred fold better of a snack food or lunch then a "bigmac" and takes remarkably little attention from the baker.

Most of these recipes are based on the same amount of flour (3.5 cups). So unlike most bread books, it is easy to compare two different breads, and understand how a different product results from variations in the other ingredients or the method.

For example descriptions of soft, firm, sticky, doughs are hard to follow, but if the recipe lists more water than another for the same amount of flour, it is clear the aim is a softer dough. This is especially useful here at 7000 ft in the American SW where our flours and air are dry, and every recipe must be adjusted by increasing the water. With this book I have an idea where to go. The results are excellent, I used some of the recipes for display cooking for the final of a Commercial Baking Class. The crowd loved them.

i too have numerous bread and bread machine books on my shelf. i have begun to loathe the shape and mealy texture that my bread machine gives bread and have started the art of handmaking my own bread. this book is clearly written with wonderful photographs of each bread and stages. it has taken me a number of frustrations to find the "good dough" with other books. and while i am still the novice baker, i have created the perfect dough each and every time with this book. simple and easy. although, i have found that i have had to decrease the suggested baking temp by 25-50 degrees because of variances in ovens.

I have several bread books on my shelf, but this book is the first one I pull out every time. It has become my ultimate reference on bread making techniques. The pictures are clear and lavish, and easy to follow, especially when it comes to shaping the bread. Almost every recipe has a picture of the finished product; clear, concise directions; and on the right hand margins, headings for proofing time, yield, oven temp., etc.

While bread making is simple and rewarding, it takes a lot of time. However, with this book, you'll be feeling like a professional bread baker in no time. Must-try recipes include brioche, challah, the bread and butter pudding (made from bread you made yourself!), and the Hungarian potato bread.

Ever at a loss for something to make for dinner? Just pick up this delight of a book and thumb through a few pages, by the time you've gone very far, you'll not only know what to make for dinner, but for breakfast and lunch for many days to come.

Filled with beautiful photos of each bread, the instructions are the clearest, easiest I've ever encountered in a cookbook. My copy is worn and stained and holds a place of prominence in my kitchen bookshelf, just thinking about it writing this, I'm just gonna have to go make a filled focaccia today! A two crusted pizza type of bread, it is so easy to make and you'll get rave reviews from all who get to share it.

The other thing I like about this book is their selection of hearty peasant type of farm breads. No haute cuisine here, just great good bread, buy it with the confidence you'll produce things that look just like the luscious photos!