Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day: Book Review

I like bread more than I like chocolate. My stepmother Betty (no bakeries in Heath!), Carina, and I have all been conducting various no knead bread experiments to try to replicate the kind of bread we love at home.
This Reinhart is some kind of bread guru and has a significant following. His recipes are written in paragraphs which makes it a challenge to decipher how many different rises and actions you are to take on each loaf. I got confused and gave up after a few proddings and restings. I baked the 50% Whole Wheat rustic loaf and it came out mishapen but had more complex flavor, chewiness, and big irregular air bubbles than any bread I’ve ever baked. I plan to repaginate the recipes in outline form to make them easier to follow.
Reinhart admits that part of why artisan bread makers have been slow to take advantage of the flavor and texture possible with refrigerated dough is a love of the process. They believe that for great bread you must suffer. Only reluctantly is this guy jumping on the slow rise bandwagon. Happily, he is devoted to flavor and texture above tradition and shares the best methods, well tested, with us.