beginning bread baking

Have you ever watched one of those baking shows (perhaps a British one in a tent) where you see a bunch of people making bread and wanted to try it for yourself? I mean, not the part where you have to bake in a tent out in a field, but getting your hands into some bread dough, kneading it until it’s smooth, and baking it until it’s crusty and delicious? Then Easy Homemade Bread is for you.

It has more than 150 recipes and lots of tips throughout to bake the perfect loaf of bread at home. It starts with some tips about your ingredients—what flour you’ll want to buy and which oil to use. Then there are instructions for kneading, along with photos, to make sure you understand how to get this important step just right. Then it’s on to the recipes.

Starting with Classic Breads, there is the Crusty White Bread, Basic Sandwich Bread, Old-Fashioned White Bread, Greek Country Bread, Whole Wheat Bread, Light Wheat Sandwich Bread, Oatmeal Sandwich Bread, and Farmer’s Bread, among others. These breads are perfect for sandwiches. Some are a little sweeter, for the best peanut butter and jelly, and others are crusty, for the grilled cheese sandwich you want to dunk in your soup. But if all that sees a little intimidating, head to the next chapter.

There are also recipes for No-Knead Breads, so you can start off with something easier but still delicious, like the Basic No-Knead White Bread, Basic No-Knead Wheat Bread, No-Knead Rye Bread, No-Knead Cranberry Walnut Bread, No-Knead Cardamom-Cherry Bread, No-Knead Oat Raisin Bread, No-Knead Pumpkin Bread, No-Knead Baguette, and a 48-Hour No-Knead Ciabatta. These breads tend to use few ingredients, but they take a long time to rise, so you’ll need to plan for that.

Then it’s on to Sourdoughs, with its tangy flavor and high protein content. It’s made with a sourdough starter, which you can either get from another baker, buy, or make yourself with some time and determination. There are some basic directions for working with starter, for feeding it and keeping it alive. But once you have the starter, you can make your own 72-Hour No-Knead Sourdough Bread, Sourdough Sandwich Bread, Sourdough Biscuits, Sourdough Hamburger Buns, Sourdough Blueberry Muffins, or Sourdough Hot Cross Buns.

But this cookbook has more recipes than just breads. There is a chapter for Buns and Rolls, which includes Whole Grain Hamburger Buns, Hot Cross Buns, Crescent Rolls, Whole Wheat Honey Rolls, Quick Buttermilk Rolls, Pecan Caramel Rolls, Yorkshire Pudding, and Popovers. Then it’s all about the Quick Breads, where you can learn to bake Glazed Orange-Pecan Bread, Apple Quick Bread, Pumpkin Bread, Banana Nut Bread, Chocolate Zucchini Bread, and Herb and Cheese Bread.

There are also chapters on Flatbreads and Crackers, Muffins and Scones, Biscuits and Cornbread, Boiled Breads (Bagels, Pretzels, and Dumplings), Doughnuts and Other Fried Breads, and for those baking for family or friends with Celiac Disease, Gluten-Free Breads.

Easy Homemade Breads is a little over 200 pages, but it includes 150 recipes. Not every recipe comes with a photo, but many do, and the sheer number of recipes gives you a lot of bang for your buck with this one. Beginning bakers will find that this book can take them deep into intermediate baker territory, learning so much about bread doughs and techniques. I do wish that there were more photos, but I am impressed by the (pardon the pun) breadth and variety of recipes that are included here. This is a strong cookbook for breads and baked treats, from no-knead loaves to sourdoughs to basic sandwich breads to crackers, muffins, biscuits, scones, pretzels, doughnuts, and bagels.

Egalleys for Easy Homemade Bread were provided by Voyageur Press through Edelweiss, with many thanks.