Join the "Inside the Jewish Bakery" cookbook challenge -- starting December 1st!

Submitted by Urchina on October 30, 2011 - 4:16pm

Join the "Inside the Jewish Bakery" cookbook challenge -- starting December 1st!

Hi, everyone!

(Note to Floyd: This is a cross-post from the Books forum, since not everyone who might be interested in a new challenge hangs out there. Please feel free to move this post if it is more appropriate elsewhere. Thanks!)

Those of us hopelessly smitten with Stan and Norm's wonderful new cookbook "Inside the Jewish Bakery" are going to begin a challenge on December 1st of this year. For those of you who have not participated in a challenge before, it's a group of people who bake recipes from a single book at the same time, and then share their results (both positive and negative). It's a tremendously fun way to explore new recipes in a supportive environment, and a great way to try things you might not otherwise have chosen.

I'll host the challenge here on the TFL, on a blog, and will set the calendar soon. The challenge will begin December 1st, and because there are so many recipes in "Inside the Jewish Bakery" we'll do it in parts (semesters, for my school-addled brain). The first semester will go through March 2012. December's baking will focus on the simpler (and festive, when possible) recipes, since it's a busy month for many of us.

If you'd like to join in, the first step is to acquire a copy of "Inside the Jewish Bakery" by Stanley Ginsberg and Norman Berg. The second step is to let me know here that you'd like to join in, and I'll let you know when I've posted the calendar.

Who's in?

Kendra

Filed under:

Submitted by eliabel on October 30, 2011 - 4:35pm.

Kendra, I have a question: do

Kendra, I have a question: do you mean that all the participants will bake the same recipe at the same time, or they can choose to bake one or several recipe of the book at their choice? And do you plan to bake all the recipes from the book?

Thank you in advance.

Submitted by Urchina on October 30, 2011 - 9:40pm.

Eliabel, To answer your

Eliabel,

To answer your questions:

1. Yes, everyone will bake the same recipe the same week. This makes it easy to compare/contrast/troubleshoot/brag about how things turned out for us. I'll post a calendar of items so that everyone will know what to bake when.

2. Yes, I plan on having this challenge encompass all/nearly all of the recipes in the book. It's gonna take awhile... which is why I'm breaking the challenge up into "semesters" of about 16 weeks each -- we'll bake 16 recipes or so, then take a month-long break, then do another 16, etc. I'll figure out the exact amount when I do the calendar.

So hope you can join us, for some or all!

Kendra

Submitted by eliabel on November 1, 2011 - 4:07am.

Kendra, thank you so much for

Kendra,

thank you so much for your very kind and quick answer. I bought the book and I am very impatient to get it: I live in Europe and it takes a long time to receive a parcel from the US. I am very much interested in the Jewish tradition, but I am also very much interested in Italian baking, so I don't think I can bake all the recipes following a strict timetable, because I would like to go on with my Italian experiments as well. I am going to follow your challegde very closely, with an intense interest and attention, and I am going to bake, at least, some of the recipes from the Inside the Jewish bakery. For me the fact that I will be able to compare my results with yours and those of your time, is invaluable.

Thank you so much again,

Eliabel

Submitted by jimrich17 on November 2, 2011 - 3:54pm.

Jewish Bakers Challenge

Please add me to the list. Just received a copy of the book and can't wait to get started baking.

Jim

Submitted by Bread Buddy on November 8, 2011 - 4:23am.

Challenge

Please include me.

Submitted by linder on October 30, 2011 - 5:20pm.

Just ordered my copy - let me know when

I am interested in joining this group to bake recipes from Inside the Jewish Bakery. Please add me to your list. Thanks! This should be lots of fun and I have plenty of friends who would love to eat the results (given that I hope my renditions are edible).

Submitted by flournwater on October 30, 2011 - 9:15pm.

Re-confirmation

I had indicated in another post on the subject that I'd be interested but, in case that entry doesn't qualify, here's a confirmation that I'm interested in participating.

Submitted by Urchina on October 30, 2011 - 9:41pm.

Oh, it does qualify -- I just

Oh, it does qualify -- I just cross-posted (I know: redundant) because I wasn't sure how many people would see it over in the Books forum...

Submitted by gmabaking on October 30, 2011 - 9:19pm.

Cookbook Challenge

Have enjoyed reading the book so much. My husband is a retired History professor, described it as "A wonderful book"--and read it cover to cover pointing out which recipes he wants me to bake first. Please count me in for the challenge and thank you for setting it in motion!

Submitted by GinkgoGal on October 31, 2011 - 6:59am.

Count me in too

We'll see how much I can realistically participate with two boys under 4 trying to "help" but maybe the challenge is what I need to get motivated. I got my book yesterday and have read 1/3 of it already!

Submitted by loydb on October 31, 2011 - 7:49am.

I'm in

Sign me up.

Submitted by nashama on October 31, 2011 - 8:25am.

Just ordered my copy....

and couldn't be more excited for the mail.

Count me in!

Submitted by midogo1216 on October 31, 2011 - 9:27am.

Count me in as well

Sounds exciting. Please add me to the list!

Submitted by candis on October 31, 2011 - 9:29am.

the challenge

yes, please. I think it will be quite a challenge but I'll try to keep up.

Submitted by bridgebum on October 31, 2011 - 10:23am.

cookbook challenge

It sounds like fun! I've ordered two copies and may convince my brother to join also.

Submitted by HeidiH on October 31, 2011 - 7:20pm.

Me, too.

I'm in

Submitted by BarbV on November 1, 2011 - 7:17am.

Inside Jewish Bakry cookbook challenge

I'm in, too.

Submitted by paulm on November 1, 2011 - 11:57am.

Inside the Jewish Bakery Challenge

Kendra, count me in too. I've been primarily baking sourdough and other lean breads. This sounds like a great opportunity to give me the incentive to broaden my skills.

Submitted by farina22 on November 2, 2011 - 11:39am.

The Italian Baker

Eliabel,

Carol Field has just issued a revised version of The Italian Baker, which is one of my favorite baking books. She's an excellent writer and an incredible researcheer who spent years interviewing and working with bakers in Italy. She's starting to tour around the SF Bay Area bookstores.The book is published by Ten Speed Press. Cheers!

Submitted by flournwater on November 2, 2011 - 2:46pm.

Oh ...

Oh .... now I see how it fits

Submitted by eliabel on November 3, 2011 - 3:58pm.

Farina22, Thank you so

Farina22,

Thank you so much! That's very interesting. I do not know the book, but I will check our English language libraries for it. I read Italian and usually I use Italian sources directly. There are some wonderful blogs, like Profumo di lievito, Anice e Cannella, Mollica di pane, forum Gennarino.org. I also have books by Italian writers about Italian bread. That is a very interesting tradition.

Submitted by siuflower on November 2, 2011 - 1:28pm.

challenge

Count me in for the cookbook challenge.

siuflower

Submitted by HeidiH on November 3, 2011 - 8:31am.

Braiding challenge? LOL

I just did a six-strand braided loaf based on the book's instructions. Though a little uneven, it worked fine. I'd like to conquer making well-formed braided loaves.

Submitted by KMIAA on November 3, 2011 - 2:33pm.

I'm In

I would like to join. Don't know how well I would do though. Thought about it, decided not too since I'm not all that experienced, but hubby said to go for it. So, I'll try.

Submitted by loydb on November 8, 2011 - 5:41am.

experience

By the time the challenge is done, experience won't be an issue :)

Submitted by marslizard on November 3, 2011 - 3:25pm.

Yes, please!

This sounds like a great idea and should help me work my way through this incredible book. Thanks for proposing the challenge!

Submitted by carlene on November 3, 2011 - 9:26pm.

Want to join the challenge

I just received my copy of the book from Amazon today and it looks wonderful...I'd love to join the challenge!

Submitted by kefirchick on November 3, 2011 - 9:49pm.

Count me in!

I just ordered my copy on Amazon! It has been sitting in my wish list que, and this challenge is a perfect reason to get it!

Submitted by belfiore on November 4, 2011 - 9:16am.

I'm in

Count me in for your challenge!
Toni

Submitted by gmabaking on November 5, 2011 - 7:50am.

Cookbook Challenge

Special flours are not available locally (note to self: remember to order flour from Stan while shipping is half price this week). For the challenge recipes calling for unusual ingredients, it would be great to have advance notice. Looking forward to starting the challenge. Yesterday baked the rich version of Challah, recipe was easy to follow, taste is very nice, and the high four braiding even a little crooked, looks better than any I'd made before. Am really enjoying the book, have two more ready to mail to my Texas dwelling sisters.

Submitted by pstowe on November 5, 2011 - 9:28am.

calling

Please add me to the challenge. Thanks muchly, Pam

Submitted by Aric on November 6, 2011 - 6:58pm.

Love to

Great idea. I'm in. Thanks very much. Aric

Submitted by Jessica Weissman on November 7, 2011 - 4:45pm.

Count me in.

Me, too. I was a tester for the book, and would welcome the chance to do more of the recipes.

Submitted by Elagins on November 8, 2011 - 8:52am.

be sure to check Errata

hey guys,

before you start on the recipes, please be sure to check the Errata tab at www.insidethejewishbakery.com. also, your feedback on mistakes and confusing ingredients/instructions would be greatly appreciated!

thanks,

Stan

Submitted by century on November 8, 2011 - 10:50am.

In

Sure, Im game.

Im out of town until the 3rd, but I can catch up !

Submitted by FoodHacker on November 8, 2011 - 11:07am.

Sign me up please!!

I thought I had already signed up for this challenge but I guess I hadn't.

Submitted by GermanFoodie on November 8, 2011 - 5:12pm.

I'm in!

Please keep me posted!

Submitted by Urchina on November 8, 2011 - 11:15pm.

Oh, we're going to have a

Oh, we're going to have a great challenge -- so many people are signing up!

I'm going to work out the calendar and post it (hopefully this weekend) so that everyone can plan ahead. And I'll take the recommendation of a couple of folks and give a heads-up for any specialty ingredients so people can order them in advance if need be. Myself, can't get dark, coarse pumpernickel rye flour to save my life down here.

Kendra

Submitted by GermanFoodie on November 9, 2011 - 5:56am.

It's a pity

we can't get some buying coops going, at least regionally, for some of this stuff. That way you can get your hands on hard-to-get ingredients and/or buy in bulk. If anyone participating here is in NE Ohio, I'd be willing to at least discuss it - I have access to a wholesale account by somebody else, but you're looking at things like 50# bags of, say, pumpernickel flour. I'm going to have to get my dark rye that way, b/c it's just not sold anywhere.

Where are you at?

Submitted by thomaschacon on November 9, 2011 - 7:07am.

This new website could be an option.

http://www.coffeeandpower.com/

It's based around wills and wants:

I will make you a loaf of olive bread for $7.
I want you to make me a loaf of whole wheat sandwich bread for $6.

I was excited at first, but then I thought about how litigious society has become. What would happen if I make someone a loaf of olive bread and accidentally forget an olive pit? They break a tooth. I get sued.

Submitted by Cakestand on November 9, 2011 - 7:25am.

Cookbook challenge

I'd love to join. Thanks.

Submitted by njbetsy on November 9, 2011 - 8:47pm.

Count me in

I'm ready to meet the challenge!!

Betsy

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 10, 2011 - 6:42am.

request

Hi!

I'm a newbie on the forum and would like to ask your advice.

I'm interested in finding traditional jewish recipes from the region Poland - Lithuania - Latvia - Russia - Ukraine - Belarus. In order to make things more clear I can give an example of interest: I know about two recipes from the book “A Blessing of Bread" by Maggie Glezer - Russian Challah and Babka.

Would you please advice books or persons on the forum that can help. Or even recipes of the kind.

Thanks in advance!

Submitted by eliabel on November 10, 2011 - 8:27am.

pryshyvalka, I believe I can

pryshyvalka,

I believe I can send you (but I need to translate it) a Russian domestic recipe of Babka. A friend of mine, living now in Israel, published some time ago in Russian (because she is, as I am, born in Russia) her grand-mother recipe of Babka. I baked it, and it was very good. You can also see the photo of the Babka, published by the author of the publication, which is usually useful if you want to achieve the traditional form.

If you read Russian, you can find tens of grandmothers' recipe of different Azkenazi treats, from Rugelach to Floydens, that people now write in Russian culinary forums and blogs. Not only sweets, also knishi, fish disches, salads, picled watermelons and so on. If not, I can help you with few recipes.

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 10, 2011 - 1:22pm.

Thanks a lot! In fact I'm

Thanks a lot!

In fact I'm from Belarus and I do read Russian :). My area of interest is recipes connected to Belarus or region mentioned above in some way (e.g. from the book "A Blessing of Bread" by Magie Glazer -- "Russian Challah" which originally came from "White Russia"). So these are a kind of "local recipes".

Submitted by gmabaking on November 10, 2011 - 3:00pm.

Belarus

In the index (page 281) of Inside the Jewish Bakery there is a Source note from a reference on page 6 : Shimen Yosifun, "Old Novogrudok" at Novogrudok, Belarus. Belarus, jewishgen.org/yiskor/Novogrudok/novo52.html#page 61, originally in Pinkes Navaredok [Novorudok Memorial Book], Eliezer Yerushalmi, ed., Tel Aviv, 1963, p. 61. Who would have thought that the index of a cookbook would provide so much interesting information! It really is an amazing book, thanks again Stan and Norm.

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 10, 2011 - 11:41pm.

Thanks a lot! It is really

Thanks a lot! It is really good site to start from: it contains also info about other Belarusian jewish centres.

Submitted by Elagins on November 11, 2011 - 9:51am.

My grandfather came from Belarus

a shtetl called Divin in Kobrin guberniya ...

Stan

Submitted by eliabel on November 11, 2011 - 10:45am.

My grandfather was from

My grandfather was from Belarus as well. He was born in Borisov, but then his family moved to Minsk, when they were killed after the beginning of the war by Nazies. My grandfather married a non Jewish woman, so in our family we have not conserved Jewish baking tradition.

By the way, Stan, I would like to thank you for your book, which is incredible interesting. I would like to give another translation to one of the quotation you made. On the p.24 there is a quotation by Dov Warshavsky about his youth in Belarus. He said that every Friday "the air in town was filled with the aroma of freshly baked bread, challah [pierogies], roast and fish, which was cooked and baked..."

I think more that he meant challah, when he spoke of "bread". Pierogi are yeast pies or breads filled by fish, meat, cabbage, rice with boiled eggs, etc. Today in Russia, Ukraine or Belarus people usually prepare an enriched dough for the pierogi, but in the past the dough was leaner. I baked some pirogi from a classical book of recipes of the 19th century written by Molokkovets, and was surprised how they were similir to filled bread. This kind of "Russian sandwitch" was typical feast food in the Russian empire. It still is.

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 11, 2011 - 1:23pm.

How small the world is! I was

How small the world is! I was born in Minsk.

Dear Eliabel, would you please give some more details (if they are available) concernig those "Fridays"?

Submitted by eliabel on November 11, 2011 - 2:16pm.

pryshyvalka Unfortunately,

pryshyvalka

Unfortunately, I cannot. My grandfather never spoke to us about his childhood. Actually he never mentioned again Minsk or his family or something from his native land after the murder of his parents, sisters and nephews by the Nazies. I believe it was too traumatic for him to remember.

The quotation I've made is from the book "Inside the Jewish Bakery". There is a description of typical Friday's smells in small Belarus towns.

Submitted by Elagins on November 11, 2011 - 7:35pm.

my grandmother used to make pierogies,

only she called them 'kreplach.' the inclusion of [pierogies] was in the original quote. i would gladly have taken it out, but wanted to preserve the whole thing, errors and all.

I also have fond memories of a little luncheonette on the Lower East Side .... Avenue B between 8th and 9th St called simply "Home Cooking." In the 60s, that neighborhood was heavily Ukrainian, and that little luncheonette would serve you a huge plate of potato or cabbage or liver pierogies for $1.00. how times have changed!

Stan

PS to eliabel ... there are several Russian/Ukrainian/Belarussian/Polish recipe websites, i don't recall them offhand, but a Google search should give you some good results.

Submitted by eliabel on November 12, 2011 - 3:30am.

Elagins, thank you very much

Elagins,

thank you very much for the explanation (pierogies). I've imagined an old person writing her memories of childhood and trying to remember long–forgotten words of very different and far way life.

And thanks for mention of Russian recipe websites.

Olga

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 11, 2011 - 1:29pm.

How small the world is! Dear

How small the world is!

Dear Stan, would you please advice where to search for pecipes that had "came from Belarus"?

Submitted by eliabel on November 10, 2011 - 3:13pm.

pryshyvalka I meant this

pryshyvalka

I meant this recipe of Babka: http://www.cook-talk.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=13301&st=0

But I do not know if the recipe has the Belarus origin. I think that I had seen more old family recipes of Babka (yeast carrot dough), knishi, etc., but normally there is no much information about exact location of these recipes. Sorry.

gmabaking

I've got the book only yesterday, because I live in Europe and it takes a while to get books from United States. I've just began to read it and I fully agree with you: "Inside the Jewish Bakery" is a very interesting book, and a very useful for any artisan baker.

Submitted by pryshyvalka on November 10, 2011 - 11:45pm.

Eliabel, thaks a lot for the

Eliabel,

thaks a lot for the recipe! And also for your willingness to help!

Submitted by flournwater on November 12, 2011 - 10:07am.

Kichlis?

Eliabel, my grandmother emigrated from Bessarabia at the end of the 19th century. When I was a small boy, she made a sweet treat she call "Kichlis" (sp), twisted pieces of dough that were sugar coated. I've search for years trying to find a recipe for those. Any chance you (or somone else in the forum) might have a source?

Submitted by dmsnyder on November 12, 2011 - 10:56am.

Kichlis=Kichlach @ flournwater

The recipe is in IJB. There is also a wonderful photo of Kichlach from the oven of ... ahem ... dmsnyder.

Happy baking!

Submitted by flournwater on November 12, 2011 - 9:17pm.

I'm Overjoyed - thanks

OMG... It's been in my hands all the while (at least for a week or two) but I hadn't realized it. I haven't had the book very long, just long enough to thumb through it and enjoy some of it's wonderful images. Hadn't seen yours until today David. Excellent job, that.

I am overjoyed. Thanks ever so much ....

And thanks to Stan and Norm for including it in the book. When we worked on the test recipes for the book I had no idea that this one would find its way into the pages of the final publication.

Submitted by Elagins on November 12, 2011 - 1:38pm.

alternative pronunciation

they've also been Yinglishized into "kichels" which is what your grandmother might have called them

Submitted by eliabel on November 12, 2011 - 3:21pm.

Elagins Thank you, Stan. My

Elagins

Thank you, Stan. My grandfather always spoke Russian to me. He was a medical doctor, and read and spoke Russian perfectly, but I guess that his mother tongue was yiddish.

I want to write about "Inside of Jewish bakery" in Russian, posting in my blog and, if I can, in a Russian bread-community site. I told of the books to my friends, but I would like than more people could know about it. Nowadays many people in Russia can read in English.

Submitted by Elagins on November 12, 2011 - 3:23pm.

I would love that

we've already had one order from Moscow!

Submitted by eliabel on November 12, 2011 - 3:27pm.

flournwater I am glad you've

flournwater

I am glad you've already found the recipe with the aid of a person who baked the kichlis. If you want something that is not in the book, I might try to ask a friend who comes from a Jewish family from Bessarabia.

Submitted by patricia hains on November 11, 2011 - 6:26am.

Count me in!

Submitted by cgmeyer2 on November 13, 2011 - 4:05pm.

inside jewish bakery challenge

please include me

thanks, claudia

Submitted by Salilah on November 14, 2011 - 1:23am.

will do some

Very interested in watching the discussions on this - and I will do some, but probably not all! (PS away until after 10Dec)
Thanks lots for setting this up
cheers
Salilah (UK)

Submitted by KMIAA on November 14, 2011 - 4:51am.

First Receiptes For The Challenge?

When the challenge starts on December 1st will the list of the recipes to do be posted here, or will a new thread be started. Also, when will we get the list of the recipes since a lot of ingredients will have to be ordered by some people?

Submitted by Urchina on November 16, 2011 - 11:24pm.

Challenge update

Hi, everyone! Sorry I've been off the radar for a few days. Here's the update:

I will post the first "semester" -- which will be 15 weeks or so of baking -- this weekend, so that everyone can take a look and plan their schedules. The calendar for baking and posting will be set at this time as well.

Then I'll start a new thread in the forums and will post that link here, so we can all easily post our experiences.

It looks like this challenge will be broken up into 6 semesters of 15 weeks (and recipes) or so each. That covers nearly everything in the book.

Talk to you all this weekend....

Kendra

Submitted by HeidiH on November 17, 2011 - 9:43am.

Thanks to Kendra "Urchina"

Thanks for being our organizer. This will be fun!

Submitted by joyfulbaker on November 17, 2011 - 1:14pm.

Family Origins and challenge

Don't know whether my paternal grandparents originated in Belarus, but possibly. They came from Kovno Gubernia to Brooklyn around the turn of the century with their first child (ultimately had four). Here's some more info on the geography:

http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/lithuania/LithuaniaRegions.htm#kovno

If it's possible to bake selectively and if it's not too late, I'd like to join in the challenge. I love this book, but I'm not much for the sweet and rich (in baked goods, that is!).

Joyful

Submitted by Elagins on November 17, 2011 - 2:48pm.

Four corrected IJB formulas - IMPORTANT

Thanks to the sharp eyes and accurate calculator of a TFLer, we've been made aware of several fairly egregious mistakes, specifically in the formulas for Rich Sourdough Barches (pp. 28-29), Rustic Pumpernickel (pp. 67-68), New York Egg Bagels (p. 103), and Sweet Egg Dough (p. 109).

The corrected formulas are posted on the Errata tab of the IJB website: http://bit.ly/vnPEbf

We apologize for the errors.

Stan

Submitted by Chavi on November 17, 2011 - 3:18pm.

Metric Weights

Hi Stan,

I just updated all of the changes in the book but are you sure all of the gram measurements are correct? Some of them don't seem to correspond to their typical volumetric and weight counterparts, i.e. some measurements for water, etc.

Thanks and good job on the book! The sweet egg dough (pre-changes) and egg/sugar kichel were spot on!

Chavi- a baker formerly from Brooklyn

Submitted by Elagins on November 18, 2011 - 6:31am.

rounding

hi Chavi,

we noted in the front-of-the-book material that we rounded ounce measurements to the nearest 0.1 oz. and gram measurements to the nearest 5g (2 grams if under 28g) in order to accommodate most digital kitchen scales. were there any conversions that didn't seem to match up? if so, please let us know so we can post them in the Errata.

also, volume conversions can be very imprecise, esp for dry ingredients because so many other factors, e.g., humidity and compaction come into play. we used the USDA Nutritional Values database for our weight/volume conversions, which we also posted on the Unpublished Chapters section at www.insidethejewishbakery.com.

Thanks, Stan

Submitted by KMIAA on November 18, 2011 - 1:35pm.

Sugar Amounts In Recipes

Question: Can I lower the amount of sugar in the Apple Cake Recipe without changing anything else in the recipe? I don't want to use 2 cups of sugar and would like to lower it to either 1 cup or 1 1/2 cups. Would this change throw off the outcome of the recipe? We don't use much sugar in our household since my husband is diabetic.

Submitted by Elagins on November 18, 2011 - 3:41pm.

sugar reduction

if you do decide to reduce the sugar, increase the liquid slightly, since sugar acts as a liquid in recipes.

Stan

Submitted by KMIAA on November 18, 2011 - 3:56pm.

Sugar Reduction

Thanks. Will have to consider how much to reduce then take it from there.

Submitted by gmagmabaking2 on November 18, 2011 - 6:03pm.

Count me in!

I am looking forward to figuring out how to do this challenge!... I am up for it!

Submitted by gmagmabaking2 on November 18, 2011 - 6:04pm.

Texas baking

I will be taking this challenge in Granbury, Texas!

Submitted by gmabaking2 on November 19, 2011 - 8:03am.

Count me in

Although I am new to bread baking I look forward to joining this challenge from Ft Worth, TX

Submitted by flournwater on November 19, 2011 - 12:02pm.

Errata Confusion

In the errata data at http://bit.ly/vnPEbl I found that the corrected ingredients for "Rustic Pumpernickel (Sitnice) - Corrected" lists:

Volume Ingredient

3 1/2 tbs Rye sour

1/2 cup Dark rye flour

1/2 cup less

1 1/2 tsp Water

Does anyone know what "1 1/2 cup less" means?

Submitted by Elagins on November 19, 2011 - 6:02pm.

a blessing on MS word

Actually, you found an erratum in the errata. It should read 1/2 cup less 1 Tbs (correction posted) of water = 4 oz. less 1/2 oz (= 1 Tbs) equals the 3 1/2 oz of water called for in the recipe.

Stan

Submitted by flournwater on November 19, 2011 - 9:24pm.

Latin was a Long Time Ago

Thanks, Stan. I haven't spent this much time with latin since I was in high school. ;>}

Submitted by gary.turner on November 20, 2011 - 3:41am.

Errata vs corrigenda

I think you mean corrigenda, Stan. An erratum usually refers to a publishher's error, while a corrigendum is the author's error. I seldom see corrigenda, so will presume the publisher is always at fault, or at least bears the blame. :-D

cheers,

gary

Submitted by Elagins on November 20, 2011 - 11:12pm.

Works for me, Gary

thanks for taking us off the hook LOL.

Submitted by Yerffej on November 21, 2011 - 7:20am.

I am wondering about the date

I am wondering about the date of printing the second corrected edition!!! In the meantime Stan, have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Jeff

Submitted by Elagins on November 21, 2011 - 8:03am.

as soon as we sell out the first

so buy lots of copies for gifts and print out the errata sheet for your recipients!

Stan

Submitted by ehanner on November 21, 2011 - 8:45am.

The Errata sheet

Stan,

It would be nice if you could provide a PDF file that would print out in scale so it would fit nicely inside the book, since there seem to be quite a few.

Eric

Submitted by HeidiH on November 21, 2011 - 2:48pm.

Cookbooks and errata

The history of cookbook publishing is rife with tales of errata. You'd be hard pressed to find a cookbook without errors. One major publisher (Penguin) felt compelled to recall a cookbook printing after a recipe was found to require "freshly ground black people." In my years of academic library work, I saw many an errata slip glued in. The scholarly journal indexing project I'm working on has a specific set of rules for indexing the errata and corrections squibs.

Submitted by thomaschacon on November 21, 2011 - 9:15am.

Who would knowingly do that?

...buy lots of copies of a book with errors in it, print out an errata sheet, then give it as a gift?

That seems like a very strange recommendation to me.

Did you mean this in jest?

Submitted by Yerffej on November 21, 2011 - 10:13am.

"Who would knowingly do

"Who would knowingly do that?"

I would, and if it seems very strange, well then, life is still on track. Happy Thanksgiving.

Jeff

Submitted by OldWoodenSpoon on November 21, 2011 - 10:31am.

I "would knowingly do that" too

because I value first editions, and because I did not trust that a second printing would be run in time for Christmas. I have extra gift copies on hand already.

I also agree with Jeff: if this just seems too strange to believe, then the world remains on an even keel.

OldWoodenSpoon

Submitted by thomaschacon on November 21, 2011 - 5:26pm.

You value first editions...

...because they are first editions? That's doubly strange.

Or do you just want to memorialize your Vienna Bread trials and tribulations?

Or perhaps it's a gag gift: You want people to suffer as you have with the Vienna Bread. ;D

Speaking of which, when is the the next installment?

Submitted by gary.turner on November 21, 2011 - 2:13pm.

Non-perfect gifts

Hmm. I would. In fact I just did buy copies as a gift to a local temple for their library. Errata are a fact of life for non-fiction works. I am not aware of any technical books that I own that do not have errors; even after multiple editions (the revised elements can have errors too). The key is whether the publishers or authors make corrections available in a timely manner. In this case, Stan did. No harm, no foul.

cheers,

gary

Submitted by PMcCool on November 21, 2011 - 2:23pm.

According to the inimitable Mr. Murphy,

"No major system is ever completely debugged; attempts to debug a system inevitably introduce new bugs that are even harder to find."

So, yes, a first edition with an errata sheet may actually be the best gift.

Paul

Submitted by thomaschacon on November 21, 2011 - 5:31pm.

That's four in favor.

For me, personally, it would be like someone giving me a coffee mug with a broken handle and some superglue!

(How very thoughtful!)

I can understand giving someone a book as a gift not knowing it has errors; but, giving it knowing it does AND going so far as to print those errors out? That's too much! I'm laughing at the very idea. It's just too incredible. De gustibus non est disputandum lives!

(Incidentally (or not), my copy of Bread is stuffed with the 40 page errata. Everytime I turn to it for a recipe, I cringe, wondering if I have the latest version of the errata). That it's a good book is beyond question, but I can't help but wonder if I'm about to bake something disastrous.)

Submitted by LindyD on November 21, 2011 - 6:00pm.

Really?

(Incidentally (or not), my copy of Bread is stuffed with the 40 page errata. Everytime I turn to it for a recipe, I cringe, wondering if I have the latest version of the errata). That it's a good book is beyond question, but I can't help but wonder if I'm about to bake something disastrous.)

Forty pages? Must be large type. My copy (February 2011) is a mere seven pages with plenty of white space. Where did you source yours?

The only disaster you may bake from Bread will be of your own doing, not Mr. Hamelman's. Gary Turner's reply is spot-on, especially his remark about authors/publishers not making corrections available. Many of us have been there and done that with one particular book.

Have a pleasant Thanksgiving...

Submitted by thomaschacon on November 21, 2011 - 6:14pm.

There would be many disasters

There would be many disasters without that errata, yes.

I don't think Daniel Leader has published an errata for Local Breads, at least not that I can find. That's one I really wish would exist.

Submitted by hanseata on November 21, 2011 - 6:22pm.

Errata

I haven't seen any errors in Peter Reinhart's books, but in my beautiful "Swedish Breads and Pastries" (Jan Hedh) I found already one severe mistake: 10 x the amount of what it should have been (250 g instead of 25 g bran).

Karin

Submitted by decatur on November 19, 2011 - 12:37pm.

Count me in too.

Submitted by hanseata on November 20, 2011 - 3:48pm.

Looking forward to it.

Karin

Submitted by Urchina on November 20, 2011 - 7:12pm.

The first semester's schedule is posted on the Blogs

Hi, everyone. The first semester's schedule for this baking challenge is posted on my (new) blog here at TFL. We'll host the challenge there, and people can comment on posts I make each week. I decided to not keep track of who is joining in or not -- it'll be a free-for-all, so come when you can!

Here's the blog link: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/26029/inside-jewish-bakery-challenge-semester-one-december-2011-march-2012

Looking forward to seeing you all there on December 3rd. Happy Thanksgiving!

Kendra

Submitted by joyfulbaker on November 21, 2011 - 3:04pm.

Thank you, Kendra--

for this schedule and for organizing the challenge. I like the way you've set it up (makes it very un-threatening) and am looking forward to getting started. This will be fun and, somewhat like joining a book club, a great stimulus to take on something one might not otherwise do.

Joy

Submitted by Urchina on November 21, 2011 - 10:01pm.

Joy, you're welcome. I agree

Joy, you're welcome. I agree with the book club aspect -- I'm hoping to grow a lot as a baker with this challenge, and having "assignments" is going to push me farther than I've pushed myself thus far. Getting bagels and some good rye bread (OK, and cakes and cookies, too) out of it seems like a good deal, as well. My neighbors are going to love it. As will the teachers at my kids' school, the office where I used to work, the students where I work now, the firefighters at the local fire station..... and anyone else I can pawn baked goods off on.

Submitted by gmagmabaking2 on November 21, 2011 - 5:37pm.

Thanksgiving!

Wow, this challenge has become one of the things I am thankful for... it is going to be such fun!!! By the way, I just went though my cookbook and put a small star beside the title of any recipe that has an errata note necessary... then I printed the errata and following pages and folded them into the back flap of my book.... that way when I see a star -- I can check the pages to see what needs tweaking~!! Thanks to Stan for getting those out to us... December 3 can't get here fast enough!....

Submitted by joyfulbaker on November 22, 2011 - 11:01am.