I made this lovely rye bread from the Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum this weekend. 

If you like a deli-style rye, this is the bread to try.  It has a fantastic balance of rye flavor and a beautiful crumb that stays fresh-tasting for days.  The crust is just beautiful (never mind my scoring).  And the oven spring on this bread, in my 10 1/2" clay baker

Is truly spectacular!

This bread weighed just shy of 2 lbs (14.9 oz to be exact)--more than I thought my clay baker could even handle. 

But there's a secret.  My "variation" was actually a mistake--a mix up between caraway seeds and anise seeds.  And delicious--I don't like caraway at all, but it was truly yummy with anise.  A good mistake.

I've blogged about it here if anyone is interested. 

Recipe is here.

My blogpost about it is here.   

Hi,

Just picked up "The Bread Bible"  (or should I say the OTHER "Bread Bible") by Rose Levy Beranbaum.

I haven't been through thoroughly, but recently took it out of the library with an eye toward evaluating it for purchase.  It seems to cover an exceedingly broad spectrum of "breads" and the one hearth loaf I made from the book was very satisfying - fairly wet dough and pleasing flavor.  

I know I won't have the chance to evaluate it thoroughly, so am looking for your experiences.  Does anyone else use this book?  What are your thoughts on it?

Thanks!

MommaT

Rose Levy Beranbaum has put together a step-by-step guide to making bread, plus essential equipment and ingredients and 8 classic recipes for Epicurious. The primer looks good. Except for one part. I would revise the list of "essential equipment" for bread baking by including only the following:

Absolutely Essential:

• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Large Wooden Spoon
• Bench Scraper
• Large Mixing Bowl with lid (doubles as a Dough-Rising Container)
• Cooling Rack
• Cookie Sheet
• Parchment Paper

Optional but Nice:

• Scales (Spring and/or Digital)
• Proofing Boxes (oven with only the light turned on works well)
• Banneton (any old basket or colander lined with a tea towel works)
• Baking Stone
• Loaf Pans (including a Cast-Iron Pan)
• Long Bladed Serrated Knife
• Baking Peel
• Broiling Pan
• Pump Spray Bottle (for water)
• Thermometer
• Timer

Completely Unnecessary:

• Stand Mixer, Bread Machine, or Food Processor

Hand mixing is very easy to do, especially if you have a nice large wooden spoon or paddle. Hand kneading is equally easy, especially with the help of a bench scraper. And now, of course, there are many "no-knead" bread recipes that completely eliminate the need (no pun intended) for putting dough onto the board at all.

Other gadgets (scales, bread stones, thermometers, etc. etc.) are nice to have but are definitely not necessary. I gather that electric mixers are very nice as well. But I can't really say as I don't have one; nor do I have any desire for one. (No counter space.) All bread bakers, even novices, can produce wonderful bread in their kitchens with just these few items.

One More Absolutely Essential Item:
Oh yes, and one more thing that is absolutely required for baking bread:

• a heat source....

An oven or barbecue will do the trick. :-)

-Elizabeth

This is a partial mirror of a post on my blog that covers all aspects of food. Read the full post here:

• blog from OUR kitchen: Essential Equipment for Bread Baking

And here is the link to Beranbaum's Bread Primer:

• epicurious: Bread Basics

The last time I made caraway rye bread, I used the recipe in The Joy of Cooking. We really like it. But as I was leafing through The Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum, I noticed her recipe for rye bread. A recipe that looked too good.

Whenever my father had an excuse to return to the Bronx, he'd never come back without a freshly baked loaf from his favourite bakery. I liked the rye bread, studded with constellations of caraway seeds, best. My grandmother, who lived with us, would serve it to me spread thickly with unsalted btutter, the top paved with rounds of sliced red radishes. - Rose Levy Beranbaum, The Bread Bible, page 324

How could I not try this bread?

As it turns out, this is the best rye bread we've had. Thank you, Rose Levy Beranbaum!!

• caraway rye bread recipe based on the recipe for "Levy's" Real Jewish Rye Bread on p.324-328 in Rose Levy Beranbaum's BREAD BIBLE

I would love to have tried the bread with butter and sliced radishes. But we didn't have any radishes.... Initially, I had thought we would be making Reuben sandwiches with it. But my husband was so thrilled with how light it was that we decided to serve it with goulash and steamed broccoli. It was brilliant!

-Elizabeth

Hi,

Today I prepared English muffins for the first time in my life. Oh, My. God.  So good. Why do people say that English food is bland? These little breads are out of this world!

Is anyone out there familiar with Rose Levy Beranbaum's bread bible process sufficient to make suggested improvements? Specifically, I have four loaves of her Basic Soft White Sandwich Loaf(p.244) in the oven as I write.  They have turned out truly wonderfully, but I have a major problem with the process.  According to the recipe, I need to: