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Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads

New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor [A Baking Book]

Author Peter Reinhart

Photographs by Ron Manville

$6.99 US

Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | Ten Speed Press

On sale May 18, 2011 | 978-1-60774-130-5

Sales rights: World

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Nonfiction > Cookbooks > Baking & Desserts
Nonfiction > Cookbooks > Cooking Methods

In this follow-up to his award-winning book The Bread Baker’s Apprentice, Peter Reinhart offers groundbreaking methods for baking whole grain breads that taste better than any you’ve ever had.

We know whole grain breads are better for us, but will we actually eat them, much less take time to bake them?

Yes, says beloved baking instructor Peter Reinhart, but only if they are very, very good. So Reinhart, with his decades of experience crafting amazing artisanal breads, has made it his mission to create whole grain breads that are nothing short of incredible.

And because his approach is also simpler and less labor intensive than conventional techniques, you’ll choose to make and eat these breads. His fifty-five recipes for whole grain sandwich, hearth, and specialty breads, plus bagels, crackers, and more, incorporate widely available whole wheat flour as well as other flours and grains such as rye, barley, steel-cut oats, cornmeal, and quinoa. Each is so rich with flavor and satisfying texture that white-flour counterparts pale in comparison.

Written in Reinhart’s famously clear style and accompanied by inspiring photographs, these recipes were perfected with the help of nearly 350 testers. Introductory chapters provide a tutorial, with step-by-step photographs, of the delayed fermentation method that is at the heart of these recipes, as well as a crash course in baking science, discussions of grains other than wheat, and more. Advanced bakers will relish Reinhart’s innovative techniques and exacting scientific explanations, and beginning bakers will rejoice in the ease of baking wholesome breads with such extraordinary flavor.

WINNER | 2008
James Beard Award
FINALIST | 2008
IACP Cookbook Award

Acknowledgments - viii

Introduction - 1

I. FOLLOWING THE FLAVOR: A BREAD BAKER’S JOURNEY BACK TO WHOLE GRAINS - 5

II. FROM WHEAT TO EAT: A TUTORIAL - 25
The Life and Times of Wheat - 26
The Anatomy of a Wheat Kernel - 28
The Twelve Stages of Bread Revisited - 34
Enzymes - 39
The Secret Life of Dough - 46

III. THE THEORY AND PROCESS OF DELAYED FERMENTATION - 57
Making the Pre-doughs - 59
Making the Final Dough - 76
Master Formula - 78
Techniques for Forming Traditional Bread Shapes - 87

IV. THE BREADS - 93

Enriched Breads
100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread - 95
Transitional Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread - 99
Multigrain Struan - 102
Transitional Multigrain Sandwich Bread - 106
Oat Bran Broom Bread - 109
Rye Sandwich Meteil - 112
Rye Sandwich Seigle - 116
Transitional Rye Sandwich Bread - 119
Potato Onion Rye Meteil - 122
Potato Rosemary Bread - 125
Anadama Bread - 129
Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread - 132
Whole Wheat Cinnamon Buns - 136
Transitional Cinnamon Raisin Bread (and Buns) - 140
Whole Wheat Challah - 144
Transitional Challah - 149

Hearth Breads
Whole Wheat Hearth Bread - 153
Transitional Country Hearth Bread - 156
Multigrain Hearth Bread - 158
Transitional Multigrain Hearth Bread - 161
High-Extraction Flour Miche - 164
Three Rye Hearth Bread Variations - 169
Transitional Rye Hearth Meteil - 178
Transitional Rye Hearth Seigle - 181

Specialty Breads
Power Bread - 185
Whole Wheat and Sprouted Grain Bread - 189
100% Sprouted Grain Bread - 192
Whole Wheat Mash Bread - 195
Multigrain Mash Bread - 201
Steamed Boston Brown Bread - 202
Spent-Grain Bread - 205

International Breads
Transitional German-Style Many Seed Bread - 210
Whole Wheat Brioche - 214
Vollkornbrot - 219
Bavarian Pumpernickel - 224
Hutzelbrot with Dried Fruit - 228
Swedish Limpa Rye Bread - 233
Santa Lucia Buns - 236
Hapanleipä and Vorterkaker - 240
Julekage, Panettone, and Stollen - 245

Bagels and Flatbreads
Whole Wheat, Multigrain, and Pumpernickel Bagels - 252
Whole Wheat Focaccia - 260
Transitional Rustic Bread and Focaccia - 264
Whole Wheat and Multigrain Pizza Dough - 267
Whole Wheat Pita Bread - 273
Whole Wheat Naan - 278
Chapatis, Parathas, and Roti - 281
Injera - 283

Crackers
Whole Wheat Matzo - 285
Lavash - 289
Thin Wheat Crackers - 291
Seeded Crackers - 293
Graham Crackers - 296

Glossary - 299

Resources - 304

Index - 306

“We’ve always known how good whole grain breads are for us, but we’ve also known how they’re usually heavy, dense, and sort of boring. Now here comes Peter Reinhart, a passionate bread scientist who has figured out fifty-five different ways to make whole grain breads light and delicious. His work is nothing short of revolutionary.”

–Sara Moulton, Food Network host and author of Sara’s Secrets for Weeknight Meals

“No one is better qualified–either as a teacher or as a baker–than Peter Reinhart to tackle the complex subject of whole grain breads. His techniques and recipes are easy to follow and yield excellent results every time. Peter and his breads are the real thing.”

–Nick Malgieri, author of How to Bake and A Baker’s Tour

“Whole Grain Breads is a beautiful and important work, which is no big surprise coming, as it does, from Peter Reinhart. Everything here is a gift: the breads themselves (both described and pictured), the poetic voice, the story, the technique, and the generous spirit. Read this from cover to cover, and you will find yourself looking at all food differently, from a new height and a deeper appreciation.”

–Mollie Katzen, author of The Moosewood Cookbook

“I’ve spent years following directions from more than a dozen bread baking books. I’ve babied bowls of dough in various stages of fermentation, and I’ve only ended up with bread that tastes like an inner tube. Peter has unraveled the mystery of baking, and I now approach this intimidating subject with confidence.”

–James Peterson, author of Cooking

“Peter Reinhart is a gifted teacher who explains the science of bread dough in easy-to-understand language. Using Peter’s innovative techniques for enhancing both enzyme and yeast activity and following with his gentle, clear-cut guidance, even a beginner can master sourdough starters, pre-ferments, soakers, and mashes to make incredibly flavorful whole grain breads.”

–Shirley Corriher, author of Cookwise