Bread Illustrated: A Step-By-Step Guide to Achieving Bakery-Quality Results At Home

Oh my goodness this book changed my baking life into a pro.

Bread illustrated is put out by America's test kitchen, which means each recipe has been tested and retested. People have different feelings about the paragraphs explaining why the recipe works, I find it interesting and enjoy reading it.I have a lot of bread cookbooks, two bookshelves worth, and that is after I got rid of many. Everything from no knead bread to a Passion for bread (which intimidated me so much when I got it I told Jim I wasn't sure I'd ever be that passionate about bread.) Bread Illustrated is laid out from easiest to more involved, so you have early success, learn techniques, then go into more advanced bread baking.The measurements are both the standard cup, half cup, but it also has weights based on the American scale, for example 10 oz water, 16 1/4 oz flour. It does not give metric on the recipe page, but does conversions in the back, so yes, it does have weights, which I prefer for baking.Pictures- it has them, gorgeous pictures, both of the finished product, and pictures of techniques, skills, for pretzels it shows how to roll and shape the pretzels, for hoagie rolls how to shape the rolls. Some of the pictures are pretty basic, adding the yeast to the water, but you will have a course in bread making when done with this book.Most of the recipes also have a trouble shooting guide at the end of each recipe, for example, the fluffy dinner rolls might be tough and hard to handle, they say to make sure the rolls are covered with plastic wrap, then go on to explain if you cut the rolls slowly they can dry out and develop a skin, so cover the cut pieces of dough while working.The first 37 pages are wonderful reading, they talk about science of gluten, first rise in depth, yeast, equipment, cooling and storing, the pantry, kneading, it's excellent for beginner, interesting and a refresher for those of us who have been baking awhile. Bread machines are not covered, this is a hands on, or big mixer type of making bread.One of the most interesting techniques, mentioned briefly in the equipment and more in depth on page 37, is using lava rocks with boiling water poured over them to maintain a steamy oven. I had never heard of this before, but it's brilliant. Put the lava rocks in aluminum pie plates and pour the water over the lava rocks to create long lasting steam.The recipes are varied and interesting enough to make this a go to bread book for basic sandwich loafs, rolls, pretzels, pizza, and then onto breads like sage polenta and pita.Sweet dough and breads, those lovely lovely cinnamon buns, St Lucia buns, Chocolate babka, are not neglected.The pages is laid out by recipe title, yield (ex: makes 1 loaf), rising time, resting time, baking time, total time, key equipment. Then the why the recipe works section. On the same page is the list of ingredients, then the instructions, and pictures on following pages.The chapters, besides the 37 page introduction, are:Starting from scratch, 12 foolproof breads that teach the basicsSandwich breads, everyday loaves, modern and classicMastering size and shape- dinner rolls and moreThe perfect crust- pizzas and flatbreads from around the worldThe sweeter side- enriched breads and other treatsUpping your game with sponges- bakery style artisan loavesraising the bar- project recipes worth the time (here is where you'll find sourdoughs and sprouted breads, for example)Now, you noticed I said it gave american weights and not metric, which is yes and no. It gives American ozs and lbs in the recipe, but starting on page 414 you will find metric conversions.the index is alphabetical and well laid out, making recipes easy to find.Why, when I am so enthused about this book, when the quick cheese bread was delicious, the sandwich loaf was great, am I giving the book a 4 stars? Because the ingredients are typed in a light salmon orange on white paper, no doubt an aesthetic choice but one that makes it difficult to read and doesn't belong in such an otherwise wonderful instructional book. Because the ingredients are such a huge part of the recipe this was, to me, a fairly major flaw and worthy of a one star deduction.* a special note on kneading. if you don't read page 15 you might think the recipes are only for a heavy duty stand mixer. In the recipes they do not give instructions or time for hand kneading. It will say something like mix 2 min then turn on med high and mix 8 min, so you might think you can't knead by hand, or know how long to knead. On page 15 however, it gives instructions for hand kneading, saying most loaves will take 12-15 minutes. They also give reluctant instructions for the food processor. So yes, they do tell you how to hand knead and the time conversions for most 8 minutes in the mixer, but they don't include that information in the individual recipes.It's really a good idea to read the first 37 pages no matter how exciting it is to jump in and make some bread.Otherwise this is an excellent addition for almost anyone interested in bread and bread-like making and baking.

Step by step instructions with colour photo.

Clear, concise, lots of step-by-step instruction. Well done.

I have several different cookbooks and baking books in my library. They all have different things that I like about them, but I have to say that Bread Illustrated is definitely my favorite of them all. America's Test Kitchen has an amazing collection of recipes. While I don't know much about their magazines, TV show, and websites, their cookbooks and recipes are all absolutely amazing! I have had amazing success with all the recipes from this book I have tried so far. Many reviews mentioned the color of the lettering was difficult to read. I considered this fact before buying the book, but decided to buy the book anyway. I am so glad I did! It has caused me no problems whatsoever. I have found all of the lettering very easy to read. Furthermore, other reviewers have mentioned how this book is difficult to use. Because each recipe takes up several pages, some have said it is bothersome to flip back and forth between pages while baking. While I believe it would be easier if each recipe only took up a page, all of the extra content makes it well worth it. Each recipe includes a full sized photo of the finished product. Each recipe also includes an in-depth, very detailed section about what went into making the recipe, why it works, and what all of the steps and ingredients do for the recipe. Each step in the recipe also includes a picture. The pictures showing each step are really helpful, especially for beginners, in showing exactly what you are to do. This extra content is so helpful in showing what you are to be doing for each recipe. All of the instructions are clearly laid out. This book is an amazing one for beginners. It over lots of helpful hints and simple recipes to get you started. It is a great resource for intermediates and even experts as well. There are many higher level recipes included as well. The first chapter is a great place to start. There are many quick bread recipes, like corn bread, tortillas, and quick cheese bread. The first also has several easier level recipes or shortcuts to making things that are more complicated. Other chapters in the book include recipes for sandwich breads, pizza and flatbreads, sweet/enriched breads, sponge breads, and more. The last chapter in the book is great if you are looking for something harder. It includes details on how to make your own sourdough starter, bagels, baguettes, fougasse, and pain d'epi. There is really something for everyone in this book, and America's Test Kitchen really scales it down, making it simple and easy to understand. As I have mentioned, all the recipes I have made so far have turned out amazing. I have made pizza, pitas, soft pretzels, ciabatta, and so much more. I have made the homemade flour tortillas (only four ingredients!) several times so far. My family loves them and we have deemed them much better than the store. In fact, we have part of a batch in the fridge right now. I hope to make the yeasted doughnuts and pane francese soon as well. Pictured above are English muffins, challah, whole wheat quinoa bread, ciabatta, American sandwich bread, focaccia, Chicago style deep dish pizza, and bagels. Everything has turned out so good. The recipes in this book can really help guide you in proper bread baking techniques and taking your skill to the next level. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has even the slightest interest in baking!

Cant wait to start using this book