For Christmas, my husband gave me a book called "Cookwise" by Shirley O.
Corriher. It is written by a research chemist, to whom many professional
chefs send their recipes when they are not working properly, for her to
diagnose the problem. The first 100 pages of the book are on breadbaking,
and it is really fascinating if, like me, you enjoy understanding why bread
behaves the way it does. One interesting tidbit: bread keeps better if
you make a sponge and let it sit for half to two and a half hours. And she
even suggests, for bread machine aficionados, that you make a "flourless
sponge": mix the yeast and water and let it sit overnight before making
your bread, to increase the keeping power of the bread. She also explains
away some of the questions I've seen raised here, which relate in the end
to the protein and gluten content of various flours. Did y'all know that
"Southern" all-purpose flour (e.g., White Lily brand) has substantially
less protein and gluten than "national brand" all-purpose (e.g., Gold
Medal), and that all-purpose flour in Canada is roughly equivalent to
(high-protein and -gluten) bread flour in the US? The protein content also
influences how much water the flour will absorb, so you can see it will
have a big impact. She explains how to figure out the protein content of
your flour by mixing it with water...The book also includes some recipes,
though the one I made (honey whole wheat bread) was pretty bland. Still, a
great read if you're interested in why food does what it does. (Since I
also got a butane torch from my husband--honest!--I made incredible creme
brulee following the directions in "Cookwise")
Oh, and a word to the wise--I also got some beautiful jewelry. I may love
to cook, but that's not how I want my husband to define me!
Regards,
Bobbi