March 1, 2011 - 5:05am
Bread Baker's Apprentice (BBA) Recipe Recommendations
I've owned this book for a while now, thanks to my daughter, and I've baked maybe a quater of the recipies. I have a list that I keep of breads that I want to bake from it. After seeing GSnyde's post on "Vienna Bread with Dutch Crunch" that bread has now gone to #1 on my list. Thanks GSnyder.
That got me thinking what are the favorite breads from this book for other people? There are a lot of breads that I am not familiar with.
So please let me know what your top 3 to 5 favorite breads are from this book. When the answers stop rolling in I'll summarize.
Here are mine:
1. Focaccia - this is really a fantastic bread!
2. Ciabatta
3. Bagels
Thanks, Dwayne
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I frequently make:
1. Italian Bread
2.English Muffins
3. Challah
4. Ciabatta
Oh, and his recipe for pizza dough is the best I have found. I like to make pizza on the grill by grilling the crust first and his recipe works great for that.
1. Bagels
2. Pain a l'ancienne
3. Challah
When I make pizza I tend to turn to PR's American Pie. Every recipe in that book is a winner.
Dwayne--
This was my first baking book, at the suggestion of many TFLers. I'm glad you liked the Vienna Bread write-up.
My favorite BBA formulas (so far) are:
1. Cinnamon-Raisin-Walnut Bread (with swirl, and using a combo of Pecans and Walnuts).
2. Vienna Bread rolls with Dutch Crunch.
3. Focaccia with Rosemary and Garlic (I use less oil and more garlic than PR's formula).
The Cinnamon-Raisin-Walnut Bread disappears faster than anything else I bake.
I find his recipe writing to be both reliable and educational.
Happy Baking.
Glenn
Glenn,
I like your Cinnamon-Raisin-Walnut Bread variation as well as the Focaccia. I have made a couple of sweet Focaccias and they were great. One was Cranberry and the other was raisin and cinnamon.
Thanks,
Dwayne
When I first tried the focaccia I was absolutely blown away. It was my first try with BBA. It just melts on your tongue. It's amazing. It blew Jamie Oliver's recipe I used up to then out of the water.
For French bread and pain a l'ancienne, I've had more luck with Artisan Breads Every Day (ABED). But I'm just two months into being into baking.
Basbr,
I think that Peter should have highlighted this recipe a lot more. I had never had any Focacia until I made this. Unbelievably Good.
Dwayne
My go-to recipes in BBA are:
1. Pain a l'ancienne - great for use as pizza dough, too
2. bagels - very reliable recipe. Don't skimp on the flour - KA Sir Lancelot is expensive, but worth it. In my experience, skipping the final proofing step actually gives a better texture. I like a very chewy, dense bagel, so you may find the same results undesirable.
3. Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread - definitely do the cinnamon sugar swirl he recommends in the margin.
BBA recipes to approach with caution:
ciabatta - in the margin, he does say that you can push the hydration level as you get more comfortable working with wetter doughs, but I don't think this is optional if you want to achieve an open enough crumb. You definitely have to make the dough much wetter than he specifies in the formula.
I would say Pane Siciliano for yummy-nuttiness.
Challah, traditional yet adaptable to many things like Apple, actually won a ribbon for that [french toast] last fall.
My favorites:
1. Italian Bread (I've made it so much I don't need to get out the book anymore to bake it).
2. Potato Rosemary Bread
3. Bagels
4. Vienna Bread (with dutch crunch)
5. Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread
I use to make Pain a l'ancienne a lot. Pane Siciliano is also fantastic, though I've only made it a couple of times.
I've made about a dozen or so of the breads, yet Portuguese sweet bread used for french toast is too much. When relatives visit for the holidays they can't stop raving. Good book.
Jim