Click on the link below to read some excerpts from Bread Science. They are in a PDF file, so you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer to see them.
Click here for excerpts!Click on the links below to see close ups of the book's covers.
Click on the link below to read the essay, "Enzymes, the Little Molecules That Could." This essay was written for Peter Reinhart's new book, Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor, along with other essays by different bakers around the country. Unfortunately, the publisher cut the essays from the final book, so I've posted mine here for reading. Peter will probably post information on where to find the other essays on his weblog, which you can read here. (I will add information about this to my "What's New" page as I learn more.)
Click here for the enzyme essay, "Enzymes, the Little Molecules That Could."Errata
We've found a few errors in Bread Science. These are listed below. We've corrected them in the second printing; look for the words "Second printing 2009" on the copyright page of your book to tell which version you have. I've also mentioned some topics below that needed further consideration; these have not been altered in the second printing.
On page 139 (first printing only). The two pictures are backwards, i.e., the under-kneaded dough is the one with holes in it, and the well-kneaded dough is the one that is smooth and not ripping. Thanks to Bruno Sorrentino for his vigilant reading!
There are also switched pictures on the very bottom of page 163 (first printing only). The hand using the friction of the table to tighten the dough is on the left, while the hands tightening the dough are on the right. Thanks to Dave Glaze for pointing this out.
On page 111 (first printing only), the temperature of 25 degrees Celsius is converted to 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature should actually be 40 degrees Fahrenheit or about 4.5 degrees Celsius--a cold temperature. (Thanks to alert reader Stan Matthews who pointed out that the cooler temperature is correct!)
On page 114, I state that a starter's flavor reaches a stable point after about 9 months. A reader pointed out that this occurs with a daily feeding schedule. If you are feeding your starter weekly (as most home bakers do), it may take longer--his took 18 to 24 months. (My apologies, I can't remember who told me this.)
Alert reader Spencer Leong pointed out to me that stronger and softer doughs require different treatments during shaping. I describe degassing dough during shaping by smacking it to get all the gas out. With a softer French dough, you would not want to flatten the dough totally-- you want some gas left in there, contributing to the final holey internal structure. The odd thing is, my original manual (written as a class manual), which turned into this whole book endeavor, actually had a page about this--how to treat a softer dough when shaping. I thought I had included it in the book, but somewhere along the way it must have disappeared! Thanks, Spencer!
Sourdough enthusiast Mike Avery sent me a lot of interesting information about sourdough starters. He told me about experiments with irradiated flour (in which all the microorganisms were killed) and starters made with boiling water (which would also kill off microorganisms in the flour). These mixtures had a lot of trouble becoming sourdough starters. This implies that it is the microorganisms in the flour, more than the air, that result in a sourdough culture. Mike suggested that starters may change flavor when a different flour is used for feeding, and that this might often happen when the starter changes location. (It's not the location change that causes the flavor change!) So if you want to have the same sour flavor as your favorite San Francisco bakery, you need to buy the same flour they use!
Mike also mentioned that he finds his starters revive faster if they are refrigerated soon after feeding, not left out for several hours. This is in line with research by Dr. Sugihara, who studied the survival rate of microorganisms in frozen starters. (I do suspect, though, that Mike takes excellent care of his starters. I was a bit of a slacker with mine, and always felt like I had to make sure they were alive (rising) before I refrigerated them.)
On page 204 (first printing only), there is a mysterious question mark at the end of the first paragraph (? cup). This should read "7/8 cup."
On page 212 (first printing only), there is a missing space in the recipe-- the amount of whole wheat flour is 1 2/3 cups (i.e., one and two-thirds cups), not 12/3 (twelve-thirds) cups.
I've become concerned about cracking pizza stones, casseroles, and even oven windows, and urge everyone to be careful when baking! Here are some things I've discovered:
Cold water dripping on a pre-heated oven window can crack it! Be careful when you place a dripping loaf of dough into the oven, or when your nervous hand reaches over the oven door to pour water (for steam) onto a hot frying pan. Some people quickly place a towel over the oven window and then whisk it away before closing the door.
Pizza stones can also crack. The instructions say to preheat it with the oven, not put it in cold. This is to avoid the extreme temperature changes that crack it. But putting cold dough on the hot stone can also crack it. I used mine regularly, with no problems, and then it cracked during a class when it had been in the oven all day. Perhaps it got hotter than usual? It was a thin pizza stone. (Mom got it from the Pampered Chef.) If you want to do heavy duty baking, I'd recommend seeking out a heavy duty stone. I don't know much about these yet.
Baking in a casserole is an alternative to baking in a cloche; but knowing that temperature changes can crack materials makes me fear for the casseroles of the world. Avoid using anything special; I'd look for cheap ones at the thrift store to experiment with. I've recently gotten an old Corningware casserole (which supposedly can take temperature changes), and will report back on how it does.
I have not yet found a Dutch oven to use; this is another oven-safe way to bake that I have to look into.
A word about convection ovens: I've long thought that convection ovens were bad for steam, because their fans dry out the air inside. Recently, however, I had the opportunity to bake in a house with a convection oven, and the bread had a lovely brown crust! The owner said he thought the fans recirculated the oven air without replacing it (sort of like the settings on car air-conditioners, I guess, for recirculated air vs. outside air). So I retract my harsh words about convection ovens, although I don't know enough about them to know if they have different fan settings or if they all recirculate air.