Review by Booklist Review
Building upon the no-knead technique popularized by Jim Lahey in My Bread (2009), Bittman (How to Eat, 2020; the How to Cook Everything series) and Conan present a similarly simple approach to baking using whole-grain flour in place of white, and a starter instead of commercial yeast. Recipes (which use weight measures) for bread and sweet and savory yeasted things follow chapters on how to make a starter and a first loaf, the science of whole-grain baking, and how to feed the starter. As this structure suggests, Bittman and Conan's approach requires commitment. These aren't the kinds of recipes you'll get right the first time. As Bittman writes in his introduction, your first bread "won't be as good as your tenth, and that one won't be as good as your fiftieth." It's worth the work, the authors argue, because whole grains are healthier than white and make for richer flavor profiles than can be found in the bread aisle at the grocery store, or even at many bakeries. After reading through the straightforward instructions and salivating at the recipes for crusty breads, pizzas, desserts, and more, readers will be excited to get started.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"Unless you live near a bakery owned by people who really care, you are not going to find a way to get better bread into your life," writes James Beard Award winner Bittman (Animal, Vegetable, Junk) in this splendid guide to creating what he deems the perfect whole-grain loaf. While he gives his predecessors, such as Jim Lahey--whose famed no-knead, Dutch oven method yielded "the best white bread"--their due, he argues that the naturally fermented whole-grain bread he devoted six years to developing is much healthier than white loaves, and just as easy to make. Chapters progress from the production of a versatile "indestructible" starter to the "jumpstarter" (a combination of starter, flour, and water) to finished loaves with numerous flavor variations. The starter is used to make baguettes, weeknight deep-dish pizza, and scallion pancakes, and even works for "doughnutty things," such as drop beignets and cinnamon rolls--which call for less sugar than their white-flour counterparts due to whole wheat's natural sweetness. Interspersed throughout is an entertaining dialogue between Bittman and his wing-baker, Conan, that addresses common baking questions--including how to ascertain which water-to-flour ratios work best. This hits the spot. Agent: Danielle Svetcov, Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary. (Nov.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Bittman (How To Cook Everything; Animal, Vegetable, Junk) helped catapult the previously established no-knead white bread method to popularity, and then sought to create something else: a 100-percent whole grain, naturally leavened loaf. In this new cookbook, he shares what he learned on his quest. Renowned for his ability to explain complicated things to home cooks, Bittman has written another logically arranged book that offers a gradual understanding of the breadmaking process, with recipes for a slew of no-knead whole grain sandwich breads, baguettes, flatbreads, rolls, and enriched doughs. For new bakers, the book discusses grains, flours, and equipment and has instructions for beginning a sourdough starter. Striving for accessibility, the text avoids technical jargon (and includes a glossary). Fantastic photographs depicting the textures of flours, doughs, and baked loaves offset a few awkward pages of headshots and call-out boxes that are meant to read like conversations. VERDICT Another cookbook in which Bittman thoroughly learns a kitchen task, then deftly explains it to readers. Recommended for anyone interested in whole grains or easy, no-knead, naturally fermented bread.--Bonnie Poquette, Milwaukee
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