Apple Pie, Patis, and Pâté

First of all, the bad news: there will be no Bread Baking Day in September and October. What’s to keep our ovens fired up now that the mercury is dropping, you may ask? The good news is it’s almost time for world’s largest virtual breadbasket, the 3rd annual World Bread Day, to be hosted in October by none other than Bread Baking Day’s creator, Zorra of 1x umrühren bitte. We all have plenty of baking to do until the new theme for Bread Baking Day is announced in November, so look forward to details and the official announcements!

In the meantime, check out 34 whole grain bread entries for this month’s Bread Baking Day. Enjoy the roundup!

View Bread Baking Day 13: 100% Whole Grains Roundup »

I grinned like an idiot as I lifted the dark brown loaves from the charred baking stone with bare hands. The soft crust smiled back with its wide open slashes, a sight that every bread maker hopes for upon opening the oven door. It didn’t matter that my calloused fingertips started to burn or that hot air threatened to singe my eyebrows into an unnatural curl; the scent of steaming mugs of hot chocolate made the pain strangely comforting.

Half melted chocolate morsels that clung perilously to the crust instead of being safely nestled inside the warm loaf tempted me to pick on it. I decided to wait until the following morning, a cup of freshly brewed coffee in hand.

More importantly, I decided to wait until after taking photos.

If you read this far, two things may seem obvious: the coffee I’m having as I write this is really strong and this semisweet chocolate bread is pure bliss.

View Pane al Cioccolato - Italian Chocolate Bread formula »

I previously mentioned the combination of sesame and flax seeds in the form of unleavened honey-glazed crackers. I always keep sacks of sesame and flax on hand to fuel the addiction to the sweet and salty crisps but this hearty leavened version is showing up more frequently in my daily weekly baking schedule.

The baking temperature for this whole grain loaf is much higher than that used for the crackers and it makes a noticeable difference in the finished product. The higher heat is more effective in drawing out flavor from the sesame and flax seeds, allowing the nutty oils to thoroughly flavor and permeate the dough.
View Whole Grain Sesame Flaxseed Bread formula »

The shape of a bread is probably the best indicator of its provenance and ingredients, short of having the recipe in hand. Shaped like a stick and scored decoratively? Probably a French baguette with nothing more than flour, salt, water, and yeast. Flat, wide, and heavily floured? Probably an Italian ciabatta, hydrated much more than your standard dough. Looks like a gigantic Hershey’s Kisses? Uh, wheat, rye, and cornmeal sourdough from Galicia?

So Pan Gallego de Centeno is not exactly iconic to most people outside of Galicia. What can I say? I like trying out obscure regional recipes.

View Pan Gallego de Centeno - Galician Rye Bread formula »

Chicago is home to several vibrant Latino neighborhoods, some predominantly of Mexican heritage. It follows that there is hardly any shortage of sources for Mexican ingredients. There are even several tortillerias open to the public that produce freshly made tortillas by the truckload and buying from these factories is easily the best option — the turnover will be high and the tortillas will be at their freshest. Since tortillas stale quickly, most store-bought varieties are pumped full of preservatives and could have been on the shelf for weeks.

It’s one thing to cook labor-intensive Mexican dishes in a city home to excellent Mexican restaurants — the options range from humble street food and taquerias to fine-dining establishments with elaborate tasting menus. New heights of obsessiveness are reached when one also makes the simple but somewhat finicky tortillas at home.

View Homemade Corn Tortillas using Masa Harina recipe »