Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Cookbook Wednesday: Bread

I found this cookbook on my shelf while digging for the recipe for what Mark calls "The Traditional Horse Race Day Coffee Cake."  Yes, I always make a yeast-raised coffee cake for the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes.  I did it once, and have been suckered into it every race since.  So, this pretty little cookbook was tucked neatly in beside the cookbook that contains Mark's favorite coffee cake.

 It really does have information and recipes for bread from around the world, from America to India.
 The book starts out with a history of bread, much of it surmised from the archaeological record.  It's great reading, but the real problem is that the typeface is much too small.  The book is maybe 8" or so high, and as you can see by the comparison to my thumb, the print is smaller than that in the newspaper.  I can't really read it well without a magnifying glass.
 A discussion of wheat and other ingredients follows,
 along with a listing of the most commonly used bread making tools.
 What really puzzles me is that the second section is a discussion of what kinds of breads are commonly made and eaten in various nations and regions.
 No recipes, just what they are.
 This book finally gets to the recipes in the third section, but I think it would have been much more useful had the discussion about the breads and the recipes been side by side.
 Again, this is a cookbook with beautiful pictures which I can never hope to replicate.  Oh, well, it's fun to gaze upon them and dream of the day when I have hours to spend making pretty bread.


 The pages are heavy, glossy stock, and that makes it all the more fun to read.  Heck, you could (theoretically) even use it without too much fear of permanently grubbing up the pages, because they could (again, theoretically) be wiped off!
 This is Cookbook Wednesday, hosted by the gracious Louise!  Pop over to see what she and others are offering today!
Happy Wednesday, everyone!

8 comments:

~~louise~~ said...

Surprise, surprise, Mark has a favorite coffee cake recipe that just happens to include yeast and horse racing, lol...Well, I'll be!!! I'm sure it's worthy of a blue ribbon!

It sounds like this bread book would be much too detailed for me and forget about the typeface. I would need my glasses and two magnifying glasses, lol...

I do appreciate when one subject cookbooks do go into a bit of detail about the history of the food they are showcasing. However, I don't think it should be divided into sections or that the recipes should be saved for last. Why not incorporate the history, the place of origin and the recipe all together???

Beautiful pictures are always a good thing as are nice glossy pages that are easily cleaned, especially for a messy cook like me. You should have seen what I looked like after making those chocolate covered graham crackers, lol...

Thanks for sharing this book with Cookbook Wednesday Marjie. Some day I will learn how to bake bread with yeast!!!

Mae Travels said...

The history of bread is really amazing, I think. How early people realized you could ferment dough with wild yeast and then bake it is really impressive, and the codependence of early bread making with brewing beer is intriguing. Sounds as if your cookbook illustrations would really bring this history to life... too bad about the tiny type, that's a deal breaker for me too.

best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

Two French Bulldogs said...

Wow that's a job! Homemade bread and butter! Yummy
Lily & Edward

Lapdog Creations said...

You had me at bread....

Sue said...

I have a couple great bread cookbooks, one with pretty pictures and one without. That one looks wonderful. Pictures always inspire me even though my finished product never looks like the pretty picture.

Diane said...

We get fantastic bread in the shops here but the problem with French bread is you have to eat it all the day you buy it. It does not keep. For that reason I often make bread as mine will do for a couple of days! I have to admit that I also love German bread and with the opening of a new shop here I do buy their bread when we go there.
Hot home-made bread though takes a lot of beating:-) Hope you are all well Diane

Pam said...

Mmmmmm. Freshly baked bread is the best!!! The cookbook looks pretty with all those glossy pictures and I love that you could probably wipe off the pages.

grace said...

i sometimes think that pretty bread is just for looking at--they often don't taste as good as ugly loaves! :)