the bread bible beth hensperger s ’ oo favorite recipes 3 ILLUSTRATIONSBYHARRYBATES CHRONICLE BOOKS(cid:13) San Francisco acknowledgments Many thanks to my editor, Bill LeBlond, who put this book together and oversaw all aspects of the project with great patience and a discerning eye; assistant editor, Sarah Putman, who took care of the little details; Susan Derecskey, who organized and copyedited the mountain of material; Lisa Howard, our ever-diligent word processor; Roberta “Bobbe” Torgerson, who generously retested recipes with great efficiency; my friends Lynn Alley, Carole Cesario, Jesse Cool, Mary Anne McCready, Johanna Miller, and Suzanne Rosenblum for their thoughtful opinions and for boosting my spirits; and Martha Casselman, my loyal agent, to whom I owe heartfelt thanks and appreciation for her literary acumen, professional insights, and never-wavering moral support. (cid:0) for steve contents the art and science of good baking 13 Wild Rice–Molasses Bread the baking process: Seven-Grain Honey Bread 17 essential methods and techniques traditional roots: 116 country hearth breads the elements of a loaf: ingredients 34 Farmstead Sourdough Bread back to basics: white breads 42 Italian Olive Oil Bread White Mountain Bread Semolina Sesame Seed Twist French Bread Vienna Bread Tuscan Peasant Bread Pain de Campagne Homestyle White Bread with Poppy Seeds Pain de Campagnard Buttermilk Honey Bread Pain de Seigle Farm-Style White Bread with Cardamom Sour Poppy Seed Rye Honey and Seed Bread nature’s bounty: vegetable, herb, 136 the baker’s apex: cheese, and nut breads 62 egg breads and brioche Seeded Dill Rye Jewish Egg Braid Buttermilk Potato Bread Sweet Vanilla Challah Whole-Wheat Basil Bread Lemon Whole-Wheat Egg Bread with Cheddar Cheese Bread with Toasted Sesame Seeds (cid:0)Nasturtium Butter Gruyère Pullman Loaf Olive Bread Brioche French Nut Bread Marzipan Brioche with Apricot Brandy Glaze California Walnut Bread Cornmeal Brioche Pain Hawaiian Brie in Brioche Roasted Chestnut Bread abundant grain: whole-grain breads 79 Celeste’s Sunflower-Oatmeal Bread Sesame Whole-Wheat Bread the roll basket: dinner rolls, 157 Old-fashioned 100 Percent Whole-Wheat Bread sandwich buns, bread sticks, and bagels Italian Walnut-Raisin Whole-Wheat Bread Cracked Wheat Bread My Favorite Buttermilk Dinner Rolls Graham Bread French-Style Mexican Hard Rolls Bran-Molasses-Sunflower Bread Squash Cloverleafs Oatmeal-Potato Bread Petits Pains au Lait Oatmeal-Bulgur Bread Black Bread Rolls Rain and Sun Water Rolls Swedish Rye Bread Sesame Burger Buns Black Russian Rye Bread Sesame Whole-Wheat Long Rolls Potato and Rye Vienna Twist California Olive Rolls Squaw Bread Italian Bread Sticks Anadama Bread with Tillamook Cheddar Cheese Wild Rice Bread Sticks Brown Rice Bread with Dutch Crunch Topping Egg Bagels the golden crust: biscuits, a flash in the pan: pancakes, 181 236 shortcakes, scones, and soda breads waffles, crêpes, and popovers Classic Buttermilk Biscuits Old-fashioned Buttermilk Pancakes Sweet Potato Biscuits Buttermilk Waffles Cornmeal-Orange Biscuits Sourdough Pancakes and Waffles Old-fashioned Shortcake Biscuits Blue Cornmeal Pancakes Lemon Cream Scones Whole-Wheat Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes Fig-Walnut Scones Buckwheat Pancakes Graham Scones with Pine Nuts and Raisins Beer Waffles Irish Soda Bread with Caraway and Drambuie Vanilla Belgian Waffles Whole-Wheat Irish Herb Bread Crêpes Whole-Wheat Bran Bread with Dates Cottage Cheese Blintzes savory special occasions: Cornmeal Blini 194 picnic breads Savory Wild Rice Pancakes Old-fashioned Potato Pancakes Sausage Bread Zucchini Pancakes Shallot and Poppy Seed Braid Baked Pancake with Cucumber Salsa Crescia al Formaggio Baked Apple and Pear Oven Pancake Pancetta-Onion Gruyère Ring Mile-High Popovers Garlic and Mozzarella Stromboli The Best Yorkshire Pudding Italian-Style Herb Bread Torta d’Erbe sweet things: morning breads, 259 Eggplant, Pepper, and Artichoke Pie sweet rolls, and croissants Onion Tart Old-fashioned Raisin Bread with Molasses Glaze artistic palate: Honey-Prune Bread 212 pizza, calzone, and focaccia Fresh Apple-Walnut Loaf Basic Pizza Dough Cashew-Date Bread Deep Dish Pizza with Sausage and Mozzarella Traditional English Muffins Pizza Pie with Cheese Cinnamon Rolls with Irish Cream Glaze Spinach Calzone Mexican Morning Buns Olive Focaccia Yeasted Sopaipillas Herbed Focaccia Danish Pastries first loaves: Whole-Wheat Croissants 227 tortillas, flatbreads, and fry breads Pumpkin Brioche the cake of bread: coffee cakes Corn Tortillas 287 Blue Corn Tortillas Spiced Brown Sugar–Pecan Coffee Cake Indian Fry Bread Fresh Fruit Cobbler Flour Tortillas Pear Spice Coffee Cake Country-Style Whole-Wheat Pita red, white, and blue: corn breads Blueberry Buttermilk Coffee Cake 340 Vanilla Sour Cream Coffee Cake Buttermilk Corn Bread Sweet Yeast Dough Yogurt Corn Bread Fresh Apple Coffee Cake Savory Corn Bread Stuffing Raspberry Braid Blue Corn Bread Maple-Blueberry Whole-Wheat Braid Green and Red Pepper Corn Bread Orange Cinnamon Swirl Maple Whole-Wheat Johnnycake with Blueberries Golden Italian Coffee Cake sugar and spice: gingerbread 349 Babka Gingerbread with Lemon and Raspberry Sauces Cinnamon-Walnut Sweet Bread Peach Upside-Down Ginger Cake Plum Crumb Cake Blueberry Gingerbread spur-of-the-moment baker: 309 Fresh Apricot Gingerbread quick breads a slice of divinity: 356 Lemon–Poppy Seed Bread celebration and dessert breads Dried Apricot–Pecan Bread Pernod Panettone Whole-Wheat Prune Bread Stollen with Dried Cherries and Pineapple Orange–Date Tea Bread Saffron Bread with Scented Banana Bread (cid:0)Geranium Powdered Sugar Mango Bread Bohemian Sweet Rolls Cranberry-Orange Bread Portuguese Sweet Bread with Honey Carrot and Tangerine Bread Italian Anise Easter Bread Cream Sherry–Pumpkin Bread Hungarian Nut Rolls Glazed Zucchini Bread Alpine Easter Bread Steamed Pecan Corn Bread Byzantine Easter Bread Steamed Brown Bread with Dried Blueberries Kulich with Almonds and Ginger pure americana: muffins 326 American Chocolate Bread Fresh Lemon Muffins Hot Cross Buns with Dried Fruit and Two Glazes Fresh Berry Muffins Golden Rum Babas Sour Cream Apple Muffins Orange Savarin with Berries Old-fashioned Prune Muffins Hungarian Sweet Cheese Bread Banana-Pecan Muffins Bread with Three Chocolates Spiced Applesauce Muffins fast and beautiful: 394 Everyday Maple Bran Muffins food processor breads Raspberry Cornmeal Muffins Sesame White Bread Zucchini Madeleines Buttermilk Whole-Wheat Bread Bacon–Blue Corn Sticks French Bread Made in the Food Processor Santa Fe Blue Corn Muffins Pain de Campagne Made in the Food Processor Quinoa Whole-Wheat Muffins Italian Whole-Wheat Bread Cornmeal-Millet Bread Sour Rye Bread Squaw Bread Made in the Bread Machine Four-Seed Whole-Wheat Bread Italian Olive Oil Bread Made Rosemary Raisin Bread (cid:0)in the Bread Machine Multi-Grain Wild Rice Bread Tuscan Peasant Bread Made Pepper Cheese Bread (cid:0)in the Bread Machine Sour Cream Braid Buttermilk Potato Bread Made Alsatian Kugelhopf (cid:0)in the Bread Machine robotic kneads: the bread machine Wild Rice–Molasses Bread Made 415 (cid:0)in the Bread Machine Cuban Bread Sourdough Farm Bread Cottage Cheese–Dill Bread Pain de Campagne Made in the Bread Machine Sweet Swirled Breads Basic Pizza Dough Made in the Bread Machine Egg Bread Cinnamon-Raisin-Currant Bread Challah Made in the Bread Machine Maple Pecan Bread Buttermilk Honey Bread Made in the Bread Machine Pernod Panettone Made in the Bread Machine Brioche with Cheese and Walnuts Mexican Chocolate Bread Honey Whole-Wheat Bread Saffron Bread Made in the Bread Machine 100 Percent Whole-Wheat Bread Made Grand Baba (cid:0)in the Bread Machine baking equipment Sesame Semolina Bread 467 Cracked Wheat Bread Made in the Bread Machine high-altitude baking guide 470 Bran-Molasses-Sunflower Bread Made mail-order sources (cid:0)in the Bread Machine 471 Graham Granola Bread index 474 Old-fashioned Oatmeal Bread table of equivalents 496 Country Bread Narsai’s Light Rye Bread Black Russian Rye Bread Made (cid:0)in the Bread Machine the art and science of Good Baking Bread baking has somehow taken on a mysterious quality, making it seem an intimi- dating act for many people. The secret to making good bread is that there is no secret. Let your imagination help you break any rules you imagine exist to daunt you. jacqueline deval, Reckless Appetites (Ecco Press, 1993) The simple pleasure of savoring homemade fresh bread reminds us of how wonderful the basic integrity of premium-quality ingredients is. Of all the cooking processes, baking bread is regarded with greatest love by its practitioners as well as with the greatest anxiety by the uninitiated. Successful baking combines the ele- ments of a balanced recipe, proper equipment, and good ingredients with skilled hands and a dash of imagination. After decades of teaching baking bread, I have noticed how seriously home bakers take their skills. They are eager to give their breads a personal touch and expand their skills, yet need to be innovative and playful at the same time. I wanted to create a sourcebook for serious home bakers that would, in addi- tion, be a good place for occasional holiday bakers who are in the process of slowly building their technical expertise to find a recipe as well. I wanted to present a text that is readable, yet infused with my own passion for baking. In a way, I have returned to my roots here. These are truly my best recipes culled from my earliest to my most recent bread books: from good old-fashioned white breads, the mainstay of the American diet, to time-saving food processor doughs; information on sour starters; popular pizza and flat- breads, the easiest breads to make; the best homemade croissants; and a guide for adapting recipes to the bread machine for the connoisseur who doesn’t want to get flour on his counter. Also in this book the baker will find extravagant celebration breads; lots of flavorful, healthful daily loaves; savory main-dish breads; and break- fast rolls. There are lots of American-style breads, baked in the familiar rectangular- loaf shape and tending to be a bit sweeter and richer than their free-form, crusty the art and science of good baking 13