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Top Cookbooks .com video cook book review
transcript:
This is a review of Artisan
Breads, written by Eric w. Kastel and Cathy Charles from the Culinary
Institute of America. This book was published by John Wiley and Sons in
2010. The beautiful photography was done by Ben Fink.
The book begins with an overview
of bread making, including reasons why we love making and eating breads so
much, as well as a brief history of bread making dating back as far as 4000
bc. It’s important to note that the author intends the reader to settle
down with this book and read through it, absorbing the various tips and
tricks contained therein, before attempting to use the recipes.
Chapter 2, ingredients and
equipment, tells us not only what utensils and ingredients we need to
have on hand for bread making, but also the differences between many types
of flour and yeasts ,how to tell which flours contain more starch, even
differences between types of salts and which water to use and why. The
author doesn’t just tell us what to have on hand, but also WHY we need to
have it, how much we need, and why it makes any difference in our baking at
all.
Chapter 3, The Basics of Bread
making, tells us how and why to use a scale instead of a measuring cup,
what types of things we need to keep in mind while mixing the dough, when to
use a mixer versus hand mixing, as well as how to shape and knead bread,
how to make a great egg wash, and much much more. There are also some great
tips like how to effectively use steam when baking in a regular home oven.
On to the other chapters;
Chapter 4 is titled Basic Lean
Dough: Breads and Rolls and Chapter 5 is Basic enriched dough: Breads and
rolls, which includes recipes and tips for making everything from white and
wheat breads and cheddar rolls to wonderful things like sticky buns, and
cinnamon rolls.
Chapter 6 is titled Advanced
Artisan Bread Making. In this chapter, the author effectively takes the
scare out of the term “advanced bread making” and empowers us to try making
great breads in our own kitchen. This chapter alone is worth purchasing the
book.
Chapter 7 , Basic Flatbreads, is
a fun culinary journey around the world. From Grissini from Italy to middle
eastern lavash, to Pitas and PERFECT pizza dough, everyone and their brother
will find this chapter entertaining and extremely useful.
Chapter 8, Advanced breads with
Preferments, is a chapter dedicated to teaching us how to make specialty
breads normally only enjoyed while eating out. Included in this section are
artisan breads such as focaccia, Hearty German style rye, various
sourdoughs, and even bagels. The recipes in this chapter all call for
yeast, and not homemade sour, however, which works for most of us.
Finally, Chapter 9, Advanced
Enriched dough: Breads and Rolls, is a chapter we will all love perusing.
These are highly indulgent special occasion breads that everyone oohs and
awwws over. Here, we have classic holiday bread recipes such as Hot Cross
Buns, Babka bread, stolen, and many more.
There is even a sauces and dips
section in the back of the book, before the index with recipes for
guacamole, hummus, pesto, and more.
From The Publisher:
An illustrated
guide for anyone who wants to master
the art of baking delicious artisan
breads at home
This
addition to The Culinary Institute
of America's "At Home" series is
perfect for home bakers who want to
go beyond the basics to create
delicious artisan breads. Backed by
the CIA's expertise, Eric Kastel
leads readers through simple and
challenging recipes from Baguettes,
Peasant Bread, and Ciabatta to
Cheddar Onion Rye Rolls, Coffee,
Cake, and even Sourdough.
In
addition, Artisan Breads at Home
provides thorough explanations of
ingredients-including flour
breakdowns and chemical
reactions-easy-to-understand
terminology and definitions, and a
detailed equipment guide.
-
Includes tips, troubleshooting
answers, and nearly170
full-color photos of techniques
and finished breads
- Covers
the basics of bread making as
well as advanced techniques-from
lean dough breads and rolls to
flat breads and enriched doughs
- Author
Eric Kastel, CMB, CHE is now
Senior Manager of Bakery
Projects at Panera Bread and a
former associate professor of
baking and pastry arts at The
CIA. He has also been the head
baker for Whole Foods and Bread
Alone.
Artisan
Breads at Home is the ideal
resource for home bakers who want to
take their baking to the next level
of complexity and taste.
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