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44 reviews for:
The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
Peter Reinhart
4.41 AVERAGE
44 reviews for:
The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
Peter Reinhart
4.41 AVERAGE
Not for the faint of heart (or hand). Scientific instructions and descriptions of the bread baking process - so scientific the recipes are called "formulas." I've had mixed luck with turning out the loaves that are pictured so beautifully in the book, but where I've had success, man was it good. The book demands patience, precision and dedication. I can't imagine being a student in his class!
I love to cook, so I get a lot of cookbooks. Most are not very good. I dislike cookbooks that are just endless lists of dubious recipes, fraught with superstition, mislabeled measurements, or just written by bad cooks. If I want that, I can have the entire internet.
But sometimes one comes along that actually makes me a BETTER CHEF. This is one of them! The recipes are good, but more importantly, Peter takes you through the entire process of baking bread, and what occurs during each of the many phases of chemical change. He also does a great job of laying out how a step would be done in a professional bakery, how that translates to small-batch baking in a home environment, what aspects of professional baking are worth bringing into your home, and how those aspects affect the final product. One of my biggest pet peeves in cook books is when someone describes some shitty shortcut, and then says, "Tastes exactly like the restaurant, but in half the time, with no fancy ingredients!" which is always a LIE. There may be many good ways of doing something, but there is always an effect, positive or negative. Peter is simultaneously realistic about what can be accomplished with a home oven, but is also clear about what effects the changes will have, and what you can do at home that professional bakeries don't or can't do (such as cold fermentation).
He also teaches you bakers percentages (necessary for learning about how bread works), but without pretention, still gives each recipe in bakers %s, by weight, or by volume, so no matter where you are on the path to great baking, you can still participate. Education and support, without pretention or snottiness.
All of the recipes I've baked came out fantastic, and I feel like I truly understand bread better - I know understand why previous recipes failed, and when I read recipes in other books, I can understand how they will come out before I even start. Very worthwhile for someone who wants to take their baking to the next step.
But sometimes one comes along that actually makes me a BETTER CHEF. This is one of them! The recipes are good, but more importantly, Peter takes you through the entire process of baking bread, and what occurs during each of the many phases of chemical change. He also does a great job of laying out how a step would be done in a professional bakery, how that translates to small-batch baking in a home environment, what aspects of professional baking are worth bringing into your home, and how those aspects affect the final product. One of my biggest pet peeves in cook books is when someone describes some shitty shortcut, and then says, "Tastes exactly like the restaurant, but in half the time, with no fancy ingredients!" which is always a LIE. There may be many good ways of doing something, but there is always an effect, positive or negative. Peter is simultaneously realistic about what can be accomplished with a home oven, but is also clear about what effects the changes will have, and what you can do at home that professional bakeries don't or can't do (such as cold fermentation).
He also teaches you bakers percentages (necessary for learning about how bread works), but without pretention, still gives each recipe in bakers %s, by weight, or by volume, so no matter where you are on the path to great baking, you can still participate. Education and support, without pretention or snottiness.
All of the recipes I've baked came out fantastic, and I feel like I truly understand bread better - I know understand why previous recipes failed, and when I read recipes in other books, I can understand how they will come out before I even start. Very worthwhile for someone who wants to take their baking to the next step.
Found several good recipes upon glancing through, but we already have about 6 bread-baking books at our house so I've had to tell my husband NO MORE. :)
An essential book for anyone who wants to bake bread at home.
Reinhart explains the magic behind bread, the essential tools of the trade, and scales recipes down beautifully for a home kitchen. Nothing he does feels arbitrary and I have grown so much as a baker after reading this book.
Reinhart explains the magic behind bread, the essential tools of the trade, and scales recipes down beautifully for a home kitchen. Nothing he does feels arbitrary and I have grown so much as a baker after reading this book.