...you know, assuming you had an oven and lots of ingredients on the island.
What would it be?
I own a grand total of one bread book, and it's a crappy one. Really, really crappy.
So many folks on this site have seemingly encyclopedic knowledge not only about bread, but about the books about bread.
I'm not interested in filling a shelf with books, and I don't want to spend my leisure time reading bread porn, but I sure am keen to get a bread bible in the house.
The king of thing that would go next to the Oxford Companion to Wine as *the* bread book in my kitchen.
Would love your recommendations.
Thanks, all, for any and alll advice.
My vote: Maggie Glezer's Artisan Baking, or, if you treasure a scientific approach on your island, Jeffrey Hamelman's Bread. Although the new Daniel Leader book is on my wish-list, it sounds really promising.
I go back to TL's country french and Essentials Columbia more than any other recipes.
Trish
Thanks, Floyd. I've noticed a lot of folks on the site refer to Reinhart. I'm not a sourdough guy, yet, though I haven't ruled it out for the future.
Clayton sounds like perhaps the right companion to my Oxford Companion, but I wonder if having hundreds of recipes is really what I want.
It's definitely bread for thought, though. Thanks.
Prandium longa. Vita brevis.
BBA by Reinhart or maybe one on raft building with bread author unknown
steve
At the moment my choice would be The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book because I like whole grains. But Peter Reinhart's new book on the topic is likely to supplant it in my estimation - I'll have to spend more time with the new one.
There are so many great bread books. Each author has a different slant. There's a lot of variation in sourdough advice: you can stick with one or learn a variety of approaches and how to adapt from one to the next. Some authors are big on technique, and others on variety (like Bernard Clayton - I have to agree with Floyd's comments there).
I'll guess, grranimal, that The Bread Baker's Apprentice, by Peter Reinhart, would be your best bet for a starter bread book.
Rosalie
Overnight, I ordered both Reinhart and Clayton. Plus, Mini's advice is spot on, and I'm gonna become a bread blog slut.
Thanks for all the guidance.
Prandium longa. Vita brevis.