Baking Book Recommendations

[cwcdesign]

As you all know, Will has started to bake. On Sunday, he decided to pull the sourdough starter I created in late spring (right before I went back to work) from the back of the fridge and revive it. He's been following KABC instructions - his friend recommended KABC for baking info as well - and it's doing surprisingly well. Now, he wants to dive into sourdough and yeast as much from the science side as anything. I know several of you, especially Mike, have great libraries of baking books. I would love to have some recommendations for what I might get him for Christmas. The thing to keep in mind is that with his dyslexia, it can't be too dense in terms of text. He often finds he can understand videos more easily.

I can't wait to see your ideas! Thanks!!

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[Mike Nolan]

The King Arthur Baking Companion is easy to read and has good drawings. It also covers nearly every type of baking. Even my wife has taken to using it over The Joy of Cooking. (Although IMHO TJOC has gone downhill since the 50's, the editions we prefer were printed in the 40's.)

It isn't what I'd call a good first book, but Beard on Bread is a book every bread baker should read at some point, I'm one of many bakers who got excited about bread baking by that book. James Beard was one of the best food writers of all time, I have several of his books.

I find myself using Hamelman's book more than any of Peter Reinhart's books these days, though I wouldn't recommend either author as a first book on baking. The front matter of Hamelman messes with my mind every time I read it (which is a good thing.)

I haven't found a book I'd recommend as a starter (pun intended) on sourdough, most of them are better for bakers with some experience.

[BakerAunt]

Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads was recently reissued in a 30th Anniversary edition. It was my first real bread book, and he gives directions for mixing by hand, mixer, or food processor. The only issue is that the yeast in some of the recipes can be reduced a bit since yeast has become increasingly dependable.

I do not have a good sourdough bread baking book to recommend. I started out with Sunset Magazine's article and recipes on sourdough, then began playing around with King Arthur's recipe. I have ordered Daniel Leader's new and award winning bread book. I expect it will take a while to arrive, but I'll let you know what I think when it does. I had stopped buying cooking and baking books that I haven't seen, but 25% off at Barnes and Noble online was too good to pass up.

[aaronatthedoublef]

I haven't seen a book on sourdough but I also haven't looked. For science Mike pointed me towards an article by a woman who is a microbiologist that was amazing. It had pictures but the text was pretty dense so I am not sure how it would be for Will. I cannot remember her name but it was fascinating.

It seems like starters are like kids - figure out what you want to do and then find the expert to say it is "right". I think those of us with starters here all have different ones and we all produce results we like. I would play around more and try some other things but I've reached the limit of my wife's patience with the two jars on the kitchen counter!

I was reading about an Italian starter that is more solid, like dough. Mine is 100% hydrated and more like batter. I arrived at that by trial and error and figuring out what my family liked.

And I still cannot get my batards to hold their shape! 🙁 But they are eaten...

[Mike Nolan]

I'm guessing that would be article(s) by Deb Wink, though Emily Buehler's book "Bread Science" is pretty good, too, but neither are light reading material.

I have not seen the book "Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast" but I've seen some positive reviews about it.

Here's a list someone posted of the 5 best books on sourdough. I've got the Tartine book and the first edition of Hamelman (3rd edition is due out next year), neither are beginner books.

sourdough books list

[Mike Nolan]

As a lot of new bakers found out during Lockdown I, beginning sourdough is kind of like beginning motocross, expect a lot of crash and burn.

[cwcdesign]

I’m not actually looking for a book just on sourdough - more informational than just recipes. A baking bible type of book. I appreciate the advice. My first thought was to just get Hamelman’s book so I’m really glad I asked. I had a copy of Beard on Bread ages ago before I really started baking bread - I was too intimidated. BA, I’ll take a look at Bernard Clayton’s book.

I’m still crashing and burning with sourdough 🙄 I had my KAF starter that I took to Maryland, Ireland, South Carolina and then here where I managed to kill it. I tended to use more of the discard than for bread. Of course as soon as I started this new starter, they called us back from furlough. Will is more patient than I, so he will probably have more success.

[Mike Nolan]

I have a couple of Rose Levy Beranbaum books, I seldom look at them. I find her instructions too fussy, sort of like ATK recipes but without the 'you must do it THIS way' attitude, and I've had more out and out fails from her recipes than any other author.

Clayton's books could stand some updating, most of them were written in the 70's (he died in 2011), but he was pretty meticulous and his recipes tend to come out decently, though I think he assumes 5 (or more) ounces of flour per cup.

I generally don't buy multiple editions of a cookbook (The Joy of Cooking is an exception, I collect editions published before 1960), but I may have to buy the 3rd edition of Hamelman's book when it comes out.

I may stop buying Peter Reinhart's books, though, his last pizza book was a major disappointment, too few recipes and too many pictures. I suspect his editors are leading him astray, though.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks Mike. It is, indeed, Deb Wink. I love her site.

I know what you mean about Rose Levy Beranbaum. The white velvet cake recipe my family loves calls for 4.5 large egg whites. That's annoying (and the extra half doesn't hurt). At the same time her buttercream recipe leaves out some important timing. I had two batches break on me before I called my cake boss in a panic as I was making it for a friend's wedding cake. She told me to wait longer before adding the butter and that the color would change... And it's worked ever since even though I rarely make real buttercream. So she is fussy where it is not helpful and omits an extra sentence where it could desperately be used.

I am not going to buy myself any books any more. I just started reading "Sourdough: or Lois and Her Adventures in the Underground Market" and it turns out my wife bought me a copy as a present not knowing I had it...

[BakerAunt]

I have several of RLB's baking books. I baked a cake recipe, with disastrous consequences, and assumed it was, perhaps my fault, and it might have been. Once I found Susan Purdy's cake book, I never went back. A friend, who has a friend who does cakes for special events, told me that friend always goes to Purdy for "crucial" cakes. The cake I baked for our weeding reception came from Purdy's book.

I have Beard's bread book, but I don't think that I ever baked any of the yeast breads. I have a hazy memory of baking a quick bread, but I do not recall it, so it must not have been memorable.

I have Hamelman's book but have been too intimidated to bake from it. I have several of Peter Reinhart's books, but I've not baked any bread from them. I tried a graham cracker recipe, but it wasn't what I was seeking in terms of taste and texture. That may have been because I needed a non-butter recipe, so perhaps any would not have been what I sought. I tried a cracker recipe as well--searching for some alternatives--but I found it only ok.

I'm surprised at how many of my bread recipes came from those little Pillsbury cook booklet that used to be sold next to the checkout stands thirty years ago. Those, and some of the magazines, had more approachable bread recipes.

I should make a New Years Resolution to bake more new recipes from my bread baking library.

[Mike Nolan]

There was a blog site about a group of home bakers who were trying to bake their way through every recipe in The Bread Baker's Apprentice. I've probably made about a dozen recipes from that book, and close to that from his Artisan book.

There are about a half dozen Reinhart recipes I use regularly and these days several Hamelman recipes, too. Hamelman has written on the BBGA forum about a rye recipe that will be in his 3rd edition, it sounds enticing enough to make me interested in the book.

I haven't made many cakes from Purdy's cake book, but the ones I have made were successful. I really like her hot water crust for meat pies, but for a dessert pie I always use the butter crust recipe I learned at pastry school, I assume it is in Michael Suas's Advanced Baking book.

There are probably about a half dozen recipes from the King Arthur Baking Companion that are also part of our standard repertoire, and a few from the King Arthur Whole Grains book, notably Scottish shortbread and hot cross buns.

So far none of the Ginsberg rye breads have become regulars, but I didn't really expect many of them to.

There was a pumpernickel recipe posted in the BBGA forum that is on my list of things to try after my cataract surgeries, it features a LONG bake, 24 hours in a water bath at just barely above 212, enough to make it more of a steaming than a baking process. The original recipe uses a double-wall pan from Germany that I can't find anywhere, perhaps nobody makes it any more. I'm planning to try it in a covered Pullman pan set on a rack in a larger covered roasting pan partially filled with water. That means lots of time for the Maillard process to turn the interior of the loaf into a dark brown bread.

[Mike Nolan]

Back in March, at the start of the Covid shutdown, I was planning to go to Dallas for a BBGA course Deb and another person were running on sourdoughs, but it got cancelled. I only hope some day they can resume in-person instruction and reschedule it. (So many of the BBGA courses are on the east or west coast, I was glad to see one in the central US.) Deb lives in Columbia MO, so a central US course may be easier on her travel schedule.

BBGA is doing a bunch of online courses, but I'm really more of a hands-on learner.

[Joan Simpson]

Cwcdesign there are lots of information and videos of sourdough making and baking on KAF site.

[cwcdesign]

I’m learning so much about baking books from this discussion. When we sold our house and downsized, I gave away many of my books. I always thought I could replace then but then I realized I had the recipes out of those books that I wanted.

Joan, Fortunately p, Will’s friend told him that KABC was a good resource. He already knew that I’m a big fan, but you know kids, they’re more likely to take advice from there friends. Today he made a sourdough chocolate cake from there to use up some frosting leftover from some cookies he made - it has a nice flavor

[Mike Nolan]

Cookbooks are an interesting part of the book industry. Many people think they can write one, not that many ever complete one. But there are still hundreds of cookbooks published every year, most of which wind up on the remainders table quickly.

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