This book was introduced to me in my advanced baking class. We used this as the foundational guideline for digesting a deeper understanding regarding making bread with artisan pan breads and Dutch-oven loaves. My initial judgment of the content of this book is that it was well organized and user-friendly for students and home-makers. It simplified instructions that would normally seem complicated and intimidating. Reading this book was an informative joy that was annotated well and capitalized on detailed instruction broken down for the asspiring cullinarian. The writer Ken Forkish is a recipiant of the James Beard award for his book “Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast.”

I was impressed by the break down of instruction for the questions: What equipment is needed? What its used for? and the science behind the use of ingredients. This prepares you for the next step of instruction in method and technique helping you to have the breakdown of understanding of “how to” using beautiful photography placed in an easy-to-read narration.

Pictures of equipment needed for baking.

This book was an adventure that gently walked the intimidating experience of the complexities of advanced baking through your front door creating a welcoming environment. This eases any aspiring baker from one level to the next echelon of know how within the comfort of your own home. Ken Forkish accomplished the purpose of this book by using these key themes that brought in his personal passion for baking and his level of professional expertise, offeringing it as a gift to the common house cook.

What I found different about this book as it reads is that it had multiple places where it discribed in a detailed manner any complex method and told you why it was specificly used so you may understand why you are doing it, such as when it discribed adding extra salt and yeast to the surface of your proofing dough fallowing using the “pinching method” afterwards to incorperate without breaking the dough structure. This helped me to understand why the method worked so effectivly.

I have a strong appreciation for how he could have made a book just for other profesionals to comprehend and appreciate. Still, he went through the extra time and effort to bring the elite comprehention and technique to your common kitchen cullnarian. My only place of critisizm for this book is that if you are not interested in preparing food, you may find this book to be over whelmingly unappealing. but as far as I am concerend it is packed with culinary gold.

Book Review “The Evolutions in Bread”

Earthy Canvas