Customer Reviews

The Breads of France: And How to Bake Them in Your Own Kitchen (Culinary Classics & Curios)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Bought this book in 1979 and have made almost every recipe in it. Bernard Clayton is meticulous with his instructions and, if you follow them exactly, you will have amazingly delicious results. Every recipe is a treasure -- I have so many favorites. It is fascinating to learn about the dramatic differences in taste and texture that result from slight variations in ingredients (starter made with white vs. whole wheat, for example, or a tablespoon of honey or a splash of buttermilk), and modest variations in technique.

A few years ago, my family and I made a pilgrimage to the rue Cherche Midi to sample the bread in Poilane's bakery. I was amazed to find that the baguette tasted almost exactly like the one I had been making at home in my own oven for more than 20 years!

I own many bread books, but this is the one I love best because these are the recipes that give me the greatest pleasure to make.

I found a ... paperback copy of the book and bought it primarily for the pictures of the many different shapes and types of bread in France. It is useful for that but has value for the many recipes included. I first tried the recipe for the Poilane boule. My effort was creditable, quite edible, and with a few hundred repetions may approach the original. There are many recipes for many breads from many regions of France. As a reference for the many possibilities it is excellent. While it is not the first book a novice to bread baking should acquire, it is an excellent one for someone whose interest in the subject has undergone at least the first fermentation.

The author wrote this book when most of us got our bread in the supermarket in white plastic bags with colored ballons on the label. The French are the best bread bakers in the world. Their love of great bread shows in the wild profusion of wonderful loaves that can be found throughout France. This book is a rather personal selection of recipes for breads that tickled the author's fancy during his explorations of French boulangeries. The author has taken the time to travel intimately through France, discovered many wonderful artisan breads, and gotten the recipes from the bakers. The recipes collected here are historically important. Not only are they wonderful things, but I would be willing to wager that many of these bakeries have gone extinct in the 3 decades since the author wrote this book. Most of the recipes are for famous, popular, or traditional breads that one would find in a French bakery, not those from French homes. There is no attempt to systematically treat all the major breads of France. If you have a basic understanding of making bread in your kitchen at home, this book will take you on a tour of all the wonderful, artisanal breads from France, home of the best bread in the universe. The variety of shapes, colors, and flavors from reasonably straight forward recipes was very satisfying.

The author has thoughtfully tested the artisan bread recipes he got, and come up with reasonably recipes that should more or less work in your kitchen. These recipes were written at the side of the oven, and not just on a computer like many other best-selling, current bread books I could name. The recipes themselves are rather problematic. If you are an experienced baker, you will find a wild profusion of artisan breads that you can do in your home kitchen. If you are a beginner and still trying to the hang of making bread, avoid this book as it is not an educational or learning tool. You need to be a good bread baker before you can make these recipes work correctly, and the author seems to assume that you have already mastered some of his other bread books. The recipe instructions can be downright terse. The author often does not clearly delineate when something is properly kneaded, sufficiently proofed, or correctly baked. He often does not include sufficient instructions on the proper method of mixing or kneading doughs. Each recipe step has a specific number of minutes, a very nice touch, but bread should be made by feel, not by the clock. Most recipes are kneaded by hand, not mixer.

There are no sourdough recipes, although some call for overnight proofing of the yeast. This is the first book, to my knowledge, to advocate pre-ferments, biga, poolish, pate fermentee, etc., even though he does not use these trendy terms. All recipes start with ordinary yeast you can get in the grocery store. Typical even of breads in France today, most recipes call for all purpose flour and not bread flour. In general, the recipes fall under the brioche, croissant, rye, or direct methods are not terribly difficult for the experience home bread baker. A few recipes require that you start the recipe a day or two before the day you want to bake, so that the yeast will develope depth of flavor.

All of the recipes are listed in the table of contents, a nice editorial touch I wish more authors and their editors would emulate. The original copyright on this book is 1978, but this reprint is dated 2002. Sadly, the information on available tools, sources of ingredients, etc., has not been updated. The recipes are organized according to region, not the classification of the bread. At the head of each region, the author includes a very nice travel log of the region and where he got the recipes from.

Despite the time the author spent in France doing research on bread, he seems not to have learned a key principle that flour should be measured by weight and not by volume. Not only do all recipes use cups of flour as the measure, he never specifies how he measures flour into the cup. Only in an obscure table on the last page do we learn that a cup of the author's flour weighs 4 3/4 oz, suggesting that he uses the dip and sweep method of flour measure. Most, but not all, of the recipes have pictures. It is a shame that these are not in color, as color is the best tool for judging when something is properly baked. As they say, a picture (in this case, a color one) is worth a thousand words.

This book is great! If you are really into the art of break baking, this book is a winner. If you need immediate gratification, stick to the bakery! The recipes are easy to follow but some of them are time consuming. I have made three recipes so far and the reviews have been extremely positive!

This book is one of many that I've purchased as I began making my own artisan breads. I like Bernard Clayton's writing style; he's friendly and informative, in addition to providing good recipes. I've found his measurements - in the 2002 edition - to be accurate and the directions easy to follow. The Pane Ordinaire on page 163 is the best French bread I've made so far. Okay, I incorporated techniques from Peter Reinhart and Rose Beranbaum, but the recipe and the majority of the techniques were Clayton's. I'd recommend this book as a must-have if you are building a bread-baking library.

This book is a treasure trove. I'm not sure which recipes a previous reviewer said were inaccurate. We've not found any ourselves. This reminds us of our many times in Burgundy and the wonderful sandwiches we had for lunch each day. We did invest in several kitchen items after we bought the book, all Matfer Bourgeat: a round lined wicker basket, 2 - 2 baguette French Bread Pans, 2 - 1 lb. bread willow bannetons and a lame bread slashing tool. All were available at Amazon.com and were cheaper here than elsewhere on the internet.

Take your time with this book and do not rush through the recipes or take short cuts. Conditions in your kitchen: humidity and dryness, the freshness of your bread flour and yeast, the oven used will determine your success. Some adjustment may be necessary, but attempt the recipes as they are written the first time. Make sure your lame is clean when you make your cuts, wipe often.

Your reward will be wonderful artisian breads and baguettes. Enjoy!!

When I picked up this book to browse, I couldn't put it back down so I had to get it. This is not just excellent recipes, but a bit of culture and tradition which will engross you and make you appreciate what you're baking that much more!

The recipes are clearly written and easy to follow. The writer puts you at ease with each page. Besides, who wouldn't want to make the Poilne renouned to be "... the best bread in the world"?

This was the first and only bread-baking book I will ever buy. This was clearly a work of love as are the creations that are documented. It could serve as a model for how to write a how-to on any subject. I wish I could say that about other books I have bought on a variety of interests. I went from never having baked anything to producing the best breads I have ever eaten. His instructions are specific, detailed, and generous. They are simple. Most, however, involve long waiting periods in which the dough rises and develops flavor. You must therefore plan ahead and be ready for the next step. That step might be as simple as pounding the ball down and letting it rise again. How many of us know on Monday that we will be free and willing on Wednesday for a long night of baking? However, if you follow the instructions, they are foolproof. They are Americanized. Yet each French baker agreed that Clayton's version made in his kitchen on wheels was representative of the source recipe. Without any first-hand experience, you will agree.

If this is the correct book, page 180-182 contain a recipe for "Pain Ordinaire Careme - A Daily Loaf." This is the recipe I used to learn how to bake "French" French Bread. The information surrounding the recipe was invaluable in interpreting the recipe. But, I had a background in French Bread. I first tasted it in French West Africa in the early '70s. My true appreciation of that wonderful baguette developed in Bamako, Mali when I would shop the Saturday Market. I was single. I would buy two baguettes. If lucky, one would make it back home. The artisans at the Boulangerie were wonderful. They always had a crowd waiting for the bread to come out of the oven. This particular recipe is the most closely matched to that wonderful experience.

I borrowed the book from the Library in North Bend, WA. I'd love to come across it again.

An excellent book of french bread recipes. I have so far tried 6 of them, and all have worked perfectly. The author gives good explanations for the variances in techniques, and the reasoning behind them. He also gives solutions to common problems, their causes and how to avoid them. I made the Stollen as gifts, and have had rave reviews on the results.