Secrets of a Jewish Baker: Authentic Jewish Rye and Other Breads [Paperback]

George Greenstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1993

For more than twenty years, George Greenstein owned and operated a Long Island bakery that produced all sorts of baked goods, from all sorts of ethnic traditions—focaccia and Irish soda bread, Bavarian pumpernickel and naan—including many from his own culture, such as Jewish corn bread, challah, and bagels. His bakery was one of those neighborhood treasures where every weekday evening commuters picked up brown paper bags filled with a dozen Vienna rolls straight from the oven, and every weekend morning lines extended out the door for hours.In this James Beard Award-winning cookbook, Greenstein reveals 125 recipes for the yeasted and quick breads that have been handed down through his family by three generations of bakers—the breads that made his bakery so well-loved for so many years. And now that most neighborhood bakeries like Greenstein's are long since closed, this classic collection serves not only to teach bakers everywhere how to make those delicious, classic breads, but it also preserves authentic versions of the included Jewish recipes for all to enjoy.With the same helpful features that made this a cherished cookbook upon its original publication—separate instructions for mixing each recipe by hand, food processor, and stand mixer; tips for baking a week's worth of bread in as few as two hours; invaluable baker's secrets; and a very approachable style throughout—this revised edition also includes twelve new recipes to satisfy both old fans and new. So bring the spirit of that great old bakery back to life right in your very own kitchen, filling every room of your house with the wonderful aroma of freshly baked bread. And rest assured you'll bake with ease and success every time, thanks to George and his long-learned, very happily shared SECRETS OF A JEWISH BAKER.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Greenstein, now retired, owned and ran a bakery on Long Island that produced all sorts of baked goods, from Italian Foccacia to Portuguese Corn Bread as well as Challah, Sour Rye, and other Jewish breads. He begins with a good introduction--including some invaluable Baker's Secrets--to the art of bread baking, followed by dozens of recipes for breads, rolls, and muffins; most of these include three sets of instructions, for making the recipe using a food processor, an electric mixer, or simply by hand. Although less comprehensive than Joe Ortiz's authoritative The Village Baker ( LJ 12/92), Greenstein's book is somewhat more approachable. Recommended for most collections.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

“An essential purchase for anyone serious about baking bread.” —Newsday“Packed with wisdom and useful tips.”—Baltimore Sun “There are many excellent bread books, but only a few for the serious home baker are truly must-have. This is one of them. George Greenstein's knowledge is in his bones, in his hands, and in his heart. It all comes through in this classic collection of indispensable recipes and master techniques.”—Peter Reinhart, author of The Bread Baker's Apprentice“You could scratch the adjective ‘Jewish' from the title of SECRETS OF A JEWISH BAKER . Although Mr. Greenstein, a professional baker, happens to be Jewish, he has written a fairly comprehensive general bread-baking book.”—Florence Fabricant, New York Times“While other bakers aim to educate readers about the nature of bread, Greenstein's purpose is purely gustatory. He wants us to bake, eat, and enjoy.”—Vegetarian Times


From the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: The Crossing Press (April 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 089594605X
• ISBN-13: 978-0895946058
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #354,114 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #70 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Diet > Kosher

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last - really, really crusty bread!, July 21, 2000

By 

five cherry pips - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secrets of a Jewish Baker: Authentic Jewish Rye and Other Breads (Paperback)

At first glance there isn't much to grab your attention in this book. No glossy colour pictures (in a cookbook, unbelievable) and the recipes look basic (a little yeast, a little water, a little flour...). But you REALLY have to read this book. The details, the tips, the tricks of the trade and the methods that Greenstein explains really do make a difference!

Greenstein has converted the recipes to be made by hand, food processor or mixer. We have a small mixer and simply halved the quantities. I cannot stress enough the surprise at how effective the results were. There was huge "WOW" factor getting the bread out of the oven.

This book has a good range of recipes for breads and things made with yeast. There is an assortment of ethnic recipes and all the favourites from bagels, foccacia, croissants, to scones and muffins. I particularly enjoyed his annecdotes and favourite toppings. Greenstein has also included 12 programmes for "a morning of baking" which set out how to fit together making a variety of breads in a short time.

On the downside, a separate ingredients index would have been useful. For example, after buying rice flour I then had to look through the whole book to find the relevant recipe. The fact that it is so short on pictures is not really a problem as the results speak for themselves.

Please God, when I die let me be Jewish!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best bread book ever, August 29, 2002

By 

Robert Schwartzberg (Tampa, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secrets of a Jewish Baker: Authentic Jewish Rye and Other Breads (Paperback)

I was a professinal baker for close to 15 years and started by apprenticing on a 19th century coal-fired oven in Newark, NJ. This book has all of the trade secrets and techniques that are usually passed down through families and guarded by professionals. Family bakeries are a dying business and this book will do well to carry on the recipes and make them available to anyone who wants them (and who doesn't have access to anything other than a megamart bakery). BUY THIS BOOK and study it well... It includes scaled down versions of actual commercial recipes and techniques. I used it as a reference in my shop as well!

Rob Schwartzberg

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good beyond belief, May 14, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Secrets of a Jewish Baker: Authentic Jewish Rye and Other Breads (Paperback)

It's hard to believe that a book like this exists, since it claims to give all the secrets of Jewish baking to anyone smart enough to read the book. If anything, this is an understatement -- this book will teach you how to make nearly all of the New York-area ethnic breads, cookies, and cakes that I've ever seen.

I've tried about 10 of the recipes -- unusual for me, since I often only get 2 or 3 good recipes from a cookbook -- and every one has been great. The bagels taste like real bagels (not the Bruegger's sort), the black-and-white cookies have the right cake-like texture and not the sugar cookie base most non-New Yorkers use, the challah is definitive, and so on.

The book is an absolute must for anyone stuck out in the middle of nowhere (like I was) without a proper bakery. Even in larger metro areas, local variants on "proper" pizza, rye breads, etc. will drive you to insanity if you don't have this book. If I were to fault the book, it would be on its treatment of sourdough breads -- the recipes rely on added yeast for reliable rising. Still, from croissants and pizza to Kaiser rolls and sour rye, these are fantastic recipes: authentic and able to be made by a relatively inexperienced baker.