The Village Baker: Classic Regional Breads from Europe and America (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The long and short of it is you could pick up a copy of The Village Baker by Joe Ortiz, start at the beginning, bake your way to the last page, and open your own village bakery. A California regional baker since 1978 (Joe Ortiz bakes breads, and his wife bakes pastries at Gayle's Bakery in Capitola, California), Ortiz brings his years of personal experience and his endless travels through Europe to the one subject he holds so dear: good bread. And by good bread, he means the best of what France, Germany, and Italy have to offer, as well as notable contributions from great American bakers working in the traditional, village-baker style: dense, crusty, flavorful loaves of bread that support life in and of themselves. Ortiz holds out the promise that this can actually be accomplished in the home kitchen--with the highest standards.

Ortiz's book starts in the style of a primer with sections on the basic ingredients, kinds of leavenings, and basic techniques and procedures. He wants the newcomer to bake the very basic French loaf (think baguette) several times to get one decent loaf under the belt buckle. Then it's open season on regional breads, rye breads, and specialty breads. In a final section, Ortiz gives the true enthusiast professional style recipes and ideas. --Schuyler Ingle --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

With this inspired book, Ortiz, a Capitola, Calif.-based "village baker," generously and accurately shares the art of producing "crusty, flavorful bread--with a chewy, voluptuous texture, the aroma of nuts, and a caramelized crust." The product of the serious study of French, German and Italian bakers and his own experimentation back at home, the book brings together of methods and recipes, including such mouth-watering selections as country-style French bread, raisin nut rye rolls, onion wheat bread and polenta bread. What makes the volume special--in addition to Ortiz's admirable dedication to thoroughness and accuracy--are the homemade starters that are used instead of commercially produced yeasts to give breads character. While recipes for professional bakers are included, the home baker--even the novice--should be able to follow the Ortiz method and come up with some great stuff.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (September 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898159164
• ISBN-13: 978-0898159165
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #75,106 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a GREAT Book, July 5, 2000

By	Ed Haynes (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

Joe Ortiz's book changed my life. I had been baking straight yeasted breads for several years. These were good, decent breads, but plain. I longed for a more complex loaf - one with the irregular holes in the crumb, one that had a chewier texture, and longer shelf life. Joe Ortiz's book showed me how to achieve all those goals. His book also explains why certain methods produce different results. Another of the helpful features of his book is that he distinguishes his recipes by fermentation method(i.e. sourdough, sponge, old dough, or straight yeast), which makes it a book a beginning baker can use, and grow with as the baker's skill develops (the straight yeasted doughs are the easist). I think this is a must-have book for any serious, or semi-serious homebaker. This is THE book for the homebaker who wants to take their baking up to the next level.

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the best artisan bread book I have ever used, August 12, 1999

By A Customer

As a nearly 30 year home bread baker, I was not expecting to find this fresh new look at breadmaking by the traditional artisans of France, Germany and Italy. But Joe Ortiz's "The Village Baker" is both a joy and a revelation. Here are many easy to follow recipes based on starters and sponges ("poolish" in French). Here you can see, and almost smell, the fresh-baked peasant breads of Europe as they come out of the traditional brick oven. It's all here -- whether you're looking for french pain de campagne, or Italian pane integrale, you need look no further. The Italian ciabatta recipe, which appears thoroughly unlikely to succeed, produces an exceptional flat bread honeycombed with airy holes to soak up sauces, or extra virgin olive oil. Above all, the book conveys a sense of timelessness , and the enduring value of good bread made according to its own timetable. The recipes are clear and easy to follow. I have spent several months happily working my way through this exceptional book -- some surprises but no failures. At least five stars...

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book!, April 22, 1998

By	Tina Powers ([e-mail]) (Omaha, Nebraska) - See all my reviews

As an Artisan Bread Baking Instructor, I found Joe Ortiz' book, The Village Baker to be the best book on the market for helping the novice bread baker to understand in plain language the magic of true bread. I have had 35 students use this book so far, and they have all exclaimed it to be the best. The depth of knowledge shows through, without being pretensious, and the breads themselves were crisp, sensual, and tasty, without exception. If you were allowed only one book on the art of true bread this is the one to have.