One of my favorite reads of 2015, was Samuel Fromartz's In Search of the Perfect Loaf. This book walks you through all kinds of bread, the history of bread and baking, the science of the perfect loaf, and the cultural impact of bread. Fromartz seeks not only to share his knowledge about bread, but he tries to bake each kind of loaf he discusses. His writing is clear and descriptive leaving you with a hankering for carbs. This book is part memoir and part love story to an essential human food.
If you read this book, you are going to want to make bread. Fromartz's text shows that bread is a labor of love... but it doesn't always have to be. If you want to make bread from scratch, you can turn to this trusty no-knead version. Yes, it does take some time to allow the dough to rise, but it is otherwise hassle free. If you like flavors, you can use this base dough and add mix-ins of your choosing - rosemary, olives, basil and sun-dried tomatoes, whatever you want! Or, you can stick with the basic loaf and top a slice with your choice of butter, jam, or other spread.
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