Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes A Day - Really Just 5 Minutes!

In 2007 when Dr. Jeff Hertzberg and Chef Zoë François rocked the world with their book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking I waited a long time on the library list to get my hands on a copy so I could understand the secret. You see, I love bread. I love to make it, I love to smell it baking, I love to eat it, I love to share it, I even love kneading it.

I love it enough to prefer making it by hand rather than using my bread maker.

I was impressed by the first book and was therefore excited when the opportunity to receive, read and review Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients By Jeff Hertzberg, M.D., and Zoë François came my way.

When the book arrived I decided the best way to honestly review it was to actually READ the book. A lot easier said than done with a cookbook, a BREAD cookbook, filled with recipes for breads that make you want to start baking immediately. Much like the first offering Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day begins with some lessons for the average person who has maybe never attempted to bake a loaf of bread from scratch before. (bread machines do not count) With chapters covering topics from why a person should choose to make their own whole grain breads, to detailed analysis of the ingredients, equipment and techniques necessary to create your own artisan bread a novice baker has all the information to dig in and get baking.

The recipes offered cover a wide range of bread flavors, types, and styles. (There are even some dessert like donuts and crescent rolls that I'm looking forward to making and eating as soon as my Not New Years Not Resolution has accomplished something positive - we'll call it a reward!) (And gluten free offerings too!) The directions for each recipe are clear and easy to follow including hints to help make a better loaf along the way. If all you ever make is the Master Recipe, offering your family a wonderful loaf of freshly baked whole grain bread made of ingredients you can trust this book is worth the investment.

I've posted a recipe that the authors wanted to share for Chocolate Espresso Whole Wheat Bread (YUM!) separately.


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About the Authors:

Jeff Hertzberg, M.D., coauthor of Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients, is a physician with twenty years of experience in health care as a practitioner, consultant, and faculty member at the University of Minnesota Medical School. His interest in baking and preventive health sparked a quest to adapt the techniques of Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day for healthier ingredients.

Zoë François, coauthor of Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients, is passionate about food that is real, healthy, and always delicious. She is a pastry chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America. In addition to teaching baking and pastry courses nationally, she consults to the food industry and is the creator of the recipe blog www.zoebakes.com. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband and two sons.

The authors answer bread questions at their Web site: www.healthybreadinfive.com.

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FCC Bru HaHa -
This is a review website and as a reviewer I am occasionally given things (for free) to try out so I can impart my opinion about them. This would be one of those times. In exchange for reading and reviewing this book I was sent a copy to keep as my own.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

I'll admit to using a bread machine. I'll also say that I don't use it nearly enough because I'll eat the whole damn loaf. This sounds fabulous though. Must put on to be read list.

Chris said...

Did you make any of the bread?! I'm on the list at the library for this one.

Joie said...

Bread machines are evil. However my uber-powerful stand mixer with the kneading attachment is sublime. I may cheat a little on my breads by using my Precious, but oh man, nothing makes a house smell like home the way bread rising and baking can. Will put this book on my to-read list.