Cornell Bread

pitas-on-edge

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(… and a recipe for pitas from so-called “Cornell” dough).  Our third book will be officially released on October 25, 2011, but it’s now available for Pre-Order on Amazon! To view the book’s cover, which is now finalized, click here. It will have pizza and flatbreads from all over the world—plus, the recipes will be complemented with soup, salad, and dip recipes so that these pizzas and flatbreads become the basis of an entire five-minute meal.  As in all our books, the idea is to do all the mixing once, but serve many times from a big batch.  That’s a perfect fit for soups and dips (and you can get a salad ready while your bread’s in the oven).

Turns out that you can make great flatbreads (like the pitas above) using a modification of our Whole Grain Master Recipe (that original appears in Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day).  The modification was inspired by “Cornell Bread,” a bread baked from soy-enriched dough originally developed as a vegetarian protein source during World War II.  Many of you have asked us about whether our recipes work with some soy flour— they do…          Return to FAQs page, or scroll down for more on Cornell Pitas…

In the 1940’s, war rationing took hold, and panicky parents began to wonder whether their families were going to be able to meet nutritional needs, especially those with growing children. Back then, most Americans believed that you couldn’t be healthy without eating meat, which was one of the most strictly rationed goods.

Money was also tight; between the ration stamps and dwindling income, Cornell University nutrition professor Clive McKay was motivated to develop a high-protein dough that baked into what became known as “Cornell Bread.” To replace the protein and nutrition people were missing from meat, McKay added non-fat dry milk, wheat germ, and soy flour.  Along with Victory Gardens, “Cornell Bread” was promoted to dutiful families as a way to stretch budgets at a time of national emergency.

Here’s what blows my mind about Cornell Bread: the original is made almost entirely from white flour. McKay understood that Americans still hadn’t embraced the nutritional value (and good taste) of whole grains. White bread was still viewed as the pinnacle of developed bread-cuisine, and he needed something that would be embraced by everyone.

When I saw the original recipe for Cornell Bread, I was struck by how much skim milk powder, wheat germ, and soy flour was needed to make white bread more nutritious. I decided to use McKay’s ideas to create a super-fast, nutritious pita bread, but start with more whole grains so I wouldn’t need as much soy and milk powder.

The Master Recipe in our second book is based mostly on whole wheat flour and other inexpensive ingredients, so I used that as a nutritious and economical basis for Cornell pitas. Because whole wheat is so much more nutritious in the first place, I felt comfortable decreasing the wheat germ, soy flour, and skim milk, letting the grain flavors shine through.

And like all our recipes, stored dough is the key for busy families: if you have the dough mixed and ready to go every day, whenever you need it, you’ll make your own bread as often as you like.

Best news of all: all the ingredients for a four quarter-pound pitas cost less than 70 cents! When you do the math, you’ll see what I mean. Remember that the full batch makes enough dough for over sixteen pita breads. Buy your yeast in bulk or in 3-pound packages to realize the most savings. When you’re done with this quick and inexpensive recipe, you’ll have 4⅓ pounds of dough that will develop lovely sourdough flavors over its 5 days of storage. With our method, you just pull dough out of the storage container as you need it. Because that recipe has no milk, it can be stored for 14 days in the refrigerator. In addition, we go through the steps for forming loaf-shaped breads (Cornell dough can be used similarly).  As you look over this recipe, you’ll also find pictures and instructions from our other pita bread postings (click here).  Or, here, for Turkish-style pita.  And here’s a version done over a hot grill (click here).

Ingredients:
5½ cups whole wheat flour
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ cup soy flour
¼ cup non-fat dry skim milk powder
¼ cup wheat germ
1½ tablespoons granulated yeast
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
4¼ cups lukewarm water (about 100 degrees F)
1 to 2 tablespoons of whole seed mixture for sprinkling on top crust:  sesame, flaxseed, caraway, raw sunflower, poppy, and or anise
———————–
1.  Measure the dry ingredients into a 5-quart bucket or bowl, and whisk them together (you can also use a fork, or if it’s lidded, just shake them well).  Mixing the dry ingredients first prevents the vital wheat gluten from forming clumps once water is added.

2.  Add the water and mix with a spoon to form a wet dough. Cover loosely (leave lid open a crack) and allow to rise for two hours at room temperature.  NEVER PUNCH DOWN or intentionally deflate.  The dough will rise and then begin to collapse.  Refrigerate and use over the next 5 days, tearing off quarter-pound lumps for pitas as you need them, or grapefruit-sized balls if you want to make a loaf bread (see end of recipe for instructions on loaf breads). The dough can be used immediately after the two-hour rise but is easier to handle when cold.

3.  On baking day, pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees for 30 minutes, with a baking or pizza stone on any shelf in the oven. If you don’t have a stone, a cast-iron pan works well.

4.  Cut off a peach-sized piece of dough (about a quarter-pound), using a serrated knife or kitchen shears. Quickly shape into a ball by pulling the top around to the bottom while rotating quarter-turns as you go.  DON’T KNEAD or otherwise overhandle—you don’t want to knock gas out of the dough. Place the dough on a pizza peel or wood cutting board (preferably with a handle). Using a rolling pin and dusting with flour, roll out in a circle-shape to a thickness of 1/8-inch. Use enough flour so the dough doesn’t stick to the board.

5.  Just before baking, use a pastry brush to paint the top with water and sprinkle with seed mixture.  Slide the bread onto the pre-heated stone or cookie sheet and bake for about 5 to 7 minutes and bread is just beginning to brown. Whole grain pitas don’t puff quite as much as white pitas.

6.  Wrap with a clean cotton towel for the softest, most authentic result.  Allow to cool inside the towel.

7.  Split open with a fork and enjoy as a sandwich bread or with dips.

Note: BreadIn5.com is reader supported. When you make purchases through links on the website, BreadIn5 LLC earns commissions.

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187 thoughts to “Cornell Bread”

  1. Is there an ‘expiration date’ on yeast? I recently used yeast that has been frozen for about 2 years to make the basic bread recipe and the result was extremely dense. Can yeast be too old?

    1. Ssmmrr: Yep, there’s an expiration date on yeast but freezing is a great way to get extra time out of it. If the initial rise was OK (things doubled), the problem isn’t the yeast. Do your results improve when you’ve used fresh yeast? If not, again, it’s not your yeast. Are you using bleached flour instead of unbleached? Is your oven temp off? Use a thermometer to check, such as this one https://www.amazon.com/Taylor-Gourmet-Thermometer-Stainless-Steel%252fCopper/dp/B000HB5NA4?&camp=212361&linkCode=wey&tag=arbrinfimiada-20&creative=380725. If these aren’t explanations, just get back to us here… Jeff

  2. I have just ordered your first book, and can not wait, well I haven’t waited. I have been using the ones from mother earth news.
    We are on a strict budget and making bread at home falls in line with this. I can not wait to read the book and have a cup of coffee with you over it!

  3. I used the Master Recipe in HB in 5 to make pitas, and they seemed to me to turn out great. Do you feel that the MAster recipe is not suited to making pitas and that Cornell variation is necessary to make pitas or is the Cornell version just a variation. Can the Cornell version also be used for regular loaves?

    1. Geoff: Master recipe makes great pita, I use it for that all the time. Cornell’s just a variation that some readers asked for in order to further boost nutrition. Cornell can absolutely be used to make loaf breads, just like the Master; use the same baking instructions. Jeff

  4. Made my second loaf today of Master dough (AB5). The loaf split open at the slit. Do I let it rest longer before baking? Make my scoring deeper? Tasted great though.

    1. Hi Stefanie,

      This is most often due to the slashes being too shallow. Try making them a bit deeper next time. Sometimes it can happen if the dough has not rested long enough, but I’d start with the deeper slashes.

      Thanks, Zoë

  5. I cant figure out your web siteso I dont know where to post this but I want to know why my boule turns out like sponge rubber inside. Not very good. followed your recipe to the T. Everyone else seems to be baking good bread, mine is not. do you know why?

    1. Hi Jim,

      We will be happy to help you figure this out. You may want to start by checking out this post we did on dense crumb https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?p=141. I see you’ve already checked out the videos, some show more detail than others so it may be helpful to view more than one.

      To create a smooth surface on your dough you want to very gently stretch the dough so that it forms a smooth ball. The trick is to do it gently and use enough flour so that it doesn’t stick to your hands.

      What dough are you using?

      Thanks, Zoë

  6. you need to expand on that notion of stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom. I saw your video and have no idea what you did. Can you explain further? My bread looks like a train wreck after I try that.

  7. This is so very exciting!! I already make pizzas and various flatbreads from the various doughs in both books that I make regularly — so many of your doughs already adapt so well to pizzas/tarts/etc. Yippee!! More yumminess. In the past month, I have gotten two new people hooked on baking bread through your book — it’s a revolution, folks!

  8. Jeff,

    I did see the zataar recipe but did not have any at the time, now that I have some on hand will make with my next batch, My middle eastern friends love my flat bread! says alot about your recipe 🙂 The pizzas I have made from the ABin5 master recipe have been the best I have ever made, can’t wait for the new book.

  9. I clipped out the Olive Oil Fougasse and Master Recipes when they appeared in my local paper almost 2 years ago, and adapted them to use some whole wheat. When I found out you wrote a whole book on whole grain breads I had to buy it. (I love baking bread but hate waiting for it to rise… My only issue with your method is kneading was my favorite part!)

    My challah, oilive oil, and oatmeal breads all turn out wonderfully. My problem is my Master Recipe loaves aren’t rising properly, and the loaf is left feeling a bit wet-spongey. I’m mixing in a KitchenAid stand mixer and baking in a preheated cast iron dutch oven. I’ve tried letting the loaf rise for longer but that hasn’t helped. From watching your videos I can tell my dough is also spongier and less elastic than yours (it normally just tears off, I don’t cut it).

    I have a couple of culprits in mind: Could I be mixing too long since I’m using a stand mixer? Could my water (from the hot water tap) be too warm? Or do I need to try reducing the water?

    Sorry for such a long post. Thanks so much!

    1. Jessie: Yes, you may be overdoing it with the stand mixer; to test that, switch to a spoon. Second culprit: the flours. If you are using any bleached flour (the Master calls for unbleached AP), it will be too soupy and won’t be properly stretchy. Third possbility, you just need to decrease the water a touch.

      Check them out in that order, maybe? Jeff

  10. Your books have revolutionized the way I cook. Case-in-point – I have a cheap, healthy, spur-of-the-moment, late-night vegetarian pizza in the oven right now. What more could a 7-month-pregnant lady ask for? Right. Tums. 🙂 Thanks again.

  11. Jeff, I tried making the Msemmen again, and this time I was careful to roll it out into a really big circle before adding the oil/spice mixture. It worked, and the amount of oil was just right. Thanks for the tip (and for the great recipe).

    The book mentions how thin to roll the dough for the Msemmen, but it doesn’t say what diameter to roll it to. In a later edition of the book, it would be helpful to put the diameter instead of or in addition to the thickness.

    Thanks!

    1. Andrew: Good point. I think we get caught up in the idea that people will probably roll out variable amounts of dough, and aren’t precise about following our instructions. Thanks for catching. Jeff

  12. Jeff,

    I forgot to mention earlier, I’m using Trader Joe’s white whole wheat and all-purpose flours.

    I tried mixing a half batch of master recipe by hand, and the results are definitely improved. Felt stretchier when I pulled it out of the bowl, I actually had to cut it instead of it just tearing off. The loaf also had some oven spring, but it still feels a little damp and dense after it cools.

    I’ll try reducing the water 1/8-1/4 cup next batch. Or maybe my oven isn’t as hot as I think it is?

    Thanks for the advice!

  13. Jessie: So long as the all-purpose is unbleached, you should be good. Sounds like you may have been over-kneading with the machine, though I also should have asked to be sure you’re using VWG in high-whole-grain recipes. And yes, you should test your oven temperature, here’s a reasonably-priced thermometer on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Taylor-Gourmet-Thermometer-Stainless-Steel%252fCopper/dp/B000HB5NA4?&camp=212361&linkCode=wey&tag=arbrinfimiada-20&creative=380725

  14. Jeff: yeah, usually I get really lazy about amounts because it all works out. For Msemmen, the diameter really matters, so someone trying it out needs to be really careful about both the amount of dough or the thickness. Just getting the diameter right is a lot easier.

    I love how responsive you and Zoe are to your readers. I’m sure that’s an important part of the great success you’ve had. Thanks.

  15. Zoe and Jeff, I don’t know if anyone has requested this…but please include a recipe for matzah! I made some this weekend and it went much better than I expected. They make great all around crackers as well!

    1. Matzah? Basically it’s flour, water, make a paste and roll it out, bake at 400 with steam… Kind of like the crackers on page 233 of the new book. Jeff

  16. I am so excited about this new book. I absolutely love your breads in the first 2 books. I do have one question though. What can be substituted for the SOY? For personal reasons, I REFUSE to eat Soy, therefore I will not bake with it. Thank you because that will be a deal-breaker for me and many others that I know.

    1. Hi Cindy,

      We added soy to boost the protein content, but you can get that from other bean flours like garbanzo bean flour. There are only 2 recipes with soy in HBin5, so I think you will find lots of breads that suit your needs.

      Thanks so much! Zoë

  17. I just made a pizza with your buckwheat dough from the second book – it turned out really really really good, very soft and fluffy, which I prefer to very crispy doughs. This pizza had a very strange ingredient combination, but we absolutely liked it and declared it our best home made pizza so far:
    https://cookingrookie.blogspot.com/2010/01/sun-dried-tomato-and-roast-beef-pizza.html

    Thanks a lot for the wonderful recipes!!!! I am completely hooked on bread baking now. Even when I fall asleep I keep planning what bread recipe to try next 🙂

  18. I just purchase HBin5 last week and am having more fun with it than I did with ABin5 which was great fun in itself. I now read about your next book on flatbread, etc. I really, really hope you will be including the flatbreads (pizza) we had both in Germany and in France. We absolutely loved them. Each was just a little different but the crusts were very similar. Good luck on your next book. I will be one of your first buyers!

    1. Christine: Please feel free to suggest the breads and the countries you had them it, maybe with a few more specifics. We’re still looking for candidates. Jeff

  19. So…here is an idea for a cookbook that I have had for a long time, and I think it would go really great with the concept you have here. You take a filling, (such as the mushroom, spinach, feta number from your HB5). Then you give a few different ways to use it – such as a 5 minute mini-pita pizzas recipe, a 60 minute calzone/stuffed foccacia recipe, as a pasta topping, as pizza sticks, etc. The thing I have loved about both of your books is the techniques – but I have consulted other cookbooks for “fillings” and “toppings” to create things the family loves. I really like the idea of having pre-cooked “toppings” in addition to the bread in the fridge.

  20. wow, i think i’m going to have to get this book.

    i absolutely LOVE the msemmen recipe in your “healthy bread” book! i tried it with the whole wheat and flax dough, made with flour i ground myself in my VitaMix attachment. that dough did not get good oven spring for a traditional loaf — my home-ground flour is probably just too coarse to use without mixing in something commercial — but i thought it might make good flatbread. i am new at this, and i was a little daunted by needing to use a rolling pin, but the msemmen recipe turned out to be incredibly easy (i sprinkled all-purpose flour on the whole-grain dough when i rolled it out, which probably helped) to make. the spice and olive oil mix was way too soupy to use it all in one flatbread, which was what the book seemed to imply that i was to do, so i used it to make several, and my family gobbled them up.

    i know this would make it a totally different thing, but has anyone tried it with a different combination of herbs or spices?

    1. Kit: This will work with pretty much any filling, I’m working on something similar for the flatbread/pizza book. Go for it! Jeff

  21. Jeff and Zoe,

    Thank for writing such a terrific book (Artisan Bread in 5). I make your bread just about every day and my family of six LOVES all of it. Every recipe we have tried has turned out well, every time. (My daughter asked if there was sugar in the bread (no) because it was so good.
    Q I would like to make bigger loaves of your Ciabatta, but when I try the crust is much too crunchy and the inside is yet not done. I have turned down my oven temperature, but I can’t get it right. It turns out absolutely perfectly with the size you direct, but if I try to double a loaf, I can never get it to work. Have you been successful doubling the size of a loaf?

    P.S. We also love your Montreal bagel recipe–they are exactly like real Montreal bagels. Except no one speaking French.

    Thanks for a great book and great recipes.

    1. Hi Jocelyn,

      Thank you for the lovely note, we are thrilled that you are baking so much! I’m especially thrilled that you are making the Montreal bagels! 🙂

      The trick to getting a larger Ciabatta to bake evenly and with the right crust to crumb ratio is to make it long and flat. If you double the dough it should be double the surface area, making sure not to be too thick! I hope this helps.

      Happy baking, Zoë

  22. I own both of your books and am now a bread addict. But I find that once I have two or three containers of bread dough in the fridge, I want a ‘cheat sheet’ to tell me all the things I can make with that dough, instead of having to skim each bread recipe. I know that typically after a new dough recipe are recipes to use that dough with, but sometimes a special bread has four suggested doughs. It would be great if they were all compiled in an easy to read chart so I could select and recipe and go to it. Does such a chart exist?

  23. OMG, Havn’t been back here for a while, but I had to share – and then to find you were doing a flatbread book!

    Here’s the scoop: came home from the playground with sleeping toddler, absolutely starving, but nothing in the fridge but a bit of leftover master dough made out of ultragrain flour (costco), some ham and cheese. not wanting to go through the rigmarole of firing up the oven – or waiting for the rest period, I hauled out the tiny george foreman grill, shaped a round squished it flat, swiped it with a bit of olive oil, and sat it on the cold grill, plugged it in and let the heating george do the work. I came back when I could smell bread and OMG it was really good – and FAST! I split it and filled it with ham and cheese – Sort of like a crusty panini/foccacia/nann (sp?)

    What a find – you have to try this out – a whole new audience for singles/teens & dorm rooms!

    Now I have cleaned out the bucket, I’m going to do a trial run of my hot cross bun recipe with your brioche, and I’ll report back how it goes. It’s getting to that time of the year again. I’ll post an update on that thread…

    1. Kristina: Smaller loaves are an easier way to learn our method. When you first start, do the smaller ones. When you graduate to bigger loaves, the hint I’ll give you is to avoid really tall loaves; they tend to be more challenging to know when to pull them out of the oven so the center’s not underbaked.

      But I make 4 pound boules all the time– just not super-tall ones. And very large flatbreads are no problem at all. Jeff

  24. I love your recipes and can’t wait for the Pizza and Flatbread book. Please, please put a recipe for Alsatian Tarte L’oignon in it. Thanks!

  25. Like everyone else, I LOVE both books and ALWAYS have dough in the fridg..mostly for pizza!
    Will you have a recipe for Fry bread in the new book? We were just in Phoenix and had some for the first time…Oh..so good. I know..it’s fried..but it IS Native American!!
    Thanks..
    Carla

    1. Hi Carla,

      I had my first fry bread this year and loved it. What a great idea, I will see about making a recipe with our dough!

      Thanks, Zoë

  26. wooow ….i realy love the idea of the soups,dips,and salad. what a creative idea …coz now when ever i bake any of your breads i go and search my other cookbooks for dips or soups that match with the bread flavour.
    i think (or i KNOW ) that if you managed to give good recepies you will have another bestseller.
    thanks again……i hope you the best

  27. Looking forward to your pizza-and-flatbreads book. I have both your books at home, and never realized how easy it is to make pita bread. Whole-wheat, no less. Thanks so much.

  28. This concept has changed my life!!! I’ve got both your books and can’t wait for the next one!

    I am having some problems with pizza not cooking all the way and having a raw/doughy center. The crust is really thin, close to the 1/8″ I’m using a pizza stone, tried at 500 degrees and at 450 (oven’s been tested). I’ve also pre-baked the crust for around 5-6 minutes (any longer and it overbrowns). Pre-baking has helped and I’ve ended up with a more beautifully browned crust, although it does remain a bit doughy. Do you have any other ideas?
    Thanks!!!
    Angela

    1. Hi Angela,

      Are you using an oven thermometer? Is that what you meant by the oven being tested? If you are sure that the oven is right, based on an oven thermometer and not the oven’s gauge, then you may need to allow the pizza stone to preheat longer. It can take up to 30-40 minutes to get a thick stone up to temperature. I have been using the iron pizza pan and love the crust I get: https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Logic-Cast-Iron-14-Inch-Pizza/dp/B0000E2V3X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1271301311&sr=8-1

      You want your oven as hot as it will go with your stone preheated on the bottom rack.

      Hope that helps, Zoë

  29. Still enjoying lots of pita!

    For measuring out whole-wheat flour for the basic whole-wheat dough recipe, what would be the equivalent weight per cup of the flour? I ask because I’ve been reading where people get varying amounts of the flour depending on how they do the scoop-and-level, and I’d like to try my next batch measuring it out on a scale. Thank you.

  30. I guess this question would fall under the category of flatbread. A popular item in grocery stores now is a small, low calorie flatbread called a “sandwich thin”. I believe the brand is Arnold’s, although there may be others. It is a perfect sandwich size. Any ideas for duplicating something like this? I like the concept, but, of course, would much rather bake than buy these days. Thanks so much.

    Sheryl

    1. Hi Sheryl,

      I’ll look into the Arnold’s flatbread you are talking about and see if we can’t make one like it.

      Thanks for the great idea! Zoë

  31. I just picked up your Healthy Bread book and I’m drooling over the recipe for Stuffed Sandwich Loaf. I can’t wait to try it but I have a question. The recipe says to use any lean or enriched dough – but I’m not sure what defines lean or enriched in your recipes – help! Which dough do you recommend for this recipe?

    1. Hi Cathy,

      Lean doughs have no dairy, eggs or sweeteners. Enriched doughs are those that have any combination or all of those things added to them. My go to dough for these loaves is the brioche dough, which is pretty enriched.

      Thanks and enjoy the bread! Zoë

  32. I have been baking bread for many years, on and off. I have several recipes that I absolutely love. Is there a way to adapt my favorite recipe to your method? I really appreciate any help.

    1. KGMOM: Check out our FAQ on this question (“Traditional recipes: How can they be converted to the ABin5 method?”), just click on the tab above and scroll down.

  33. I’m quite excited about your third book coming out in 2011! I was wondering if you have stumbled across/plan to include a recipe for crackers in that book? Crackers are perhaps the most “flat” breads of all … but I haven’t been very successful at my attempts. Just curious if you have any resources to point me toward, or if you will be including a cracker recipe.

    Thanks for all you do! Looking forward to the third installment!!

    -Bethany

    PS – I’m hoping for a more traditional cracker, not a cracker made from baked pitas..

  34. WOW! Exciting. I make pizza about once a week for our family night! I would like to know if there are any recipes in your Healthy Breads book that can be used for making bagels other than the one you provided. I’ve made bagels the old fashioned way. I like to make “everything” bagels and would like to know what you suggest for dough and the process. Thanks!!!!

    1. Tisha: Any toppings can be put on any dough base. AB5 has basic white dough, HB5 uses the 75% whole wheat dough from that book’s Master, with rolled-in cinnamon-raisin inside. It worked well without drying out the dough as we did in the first book.

      There’s a lot of flexibility in what dough you use– generally, it needs to be a little drier than the Master in AB5, either by using higher-protein flour, or by using whole wheat.

  35. Just found your site last week and picked up the first book this week, have ordered the 2nd one. It’s going to be pure agony waiting for the 3rd book. Have been simplifying our lives, less boughten processed foods , more “natural” foods from home. Keep up the good work.

    1. Hi Mrs B.

      Thank you so much for trying the breads! Please let us know if you have any questions along the way!

      Enjoy, Zoë

  36. I love both of your books and have tried many of the receipes but I can’t get the bread to rise. The flavor of the breads is wonderful and my husband loves them but I was hoping that you could offer a suggestion that hasn’t been written about. Also, can I lower the temperature that the breads are baked at. I think my oven maybe the problem. I have a thermometer in the oven and the temperature does seem to fluctuate when I am at 450-500 degrees.

    1. Hi Sherry,

      Let me know what doughs you are working with, are they the whole grain breads from HBin5 or are they from our first book? This will help me determine what might be going on.

      If your oven were running cooler than 450 degrees I might think it was part of the issue of breads not rising, but running hot wouldn’t cause this, it may however brown your crust too quickly.

      Have you searched through our FAQs? https://artisanbreadinfive.com/?page_id=1479

      Thanks! Zoë

  37. I have a question regarding your new book: Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: 100 New Recipes Featuring Whole Grains, Fruits, Vegetables, and Gluten-Free Ingredients.

    Would you recommend this book even though I may not have purchased the first Artisan Bread Book? I’m trying to get healthy and want to stick to the healthy bread book, and was wondering if I can do just as well only purchasing your healthy book.

    Thanks so much in advance!

    1. Hi Veronica,

      Absolutely, you don’t need any prior baking experience to have great success with our second book. They are equally easy, just different style breads. The second book introduces a couple new flours that you may not have used before, but they are all readily available. If you are in a rural area that doesn’t carry something, we can help you locate it online!

      Thanks and happy baking, Zoë

  38. I’m so excited about your upcoming book! I love your books and will be giving them along with stones and a basket of bread making ingredients to everyone as Christmas gifts so they can create delicious artisan breads and make their homes smell like European bakeries too!

  39. Jeff – I’m responding on this post rather than the red star give away post with regard to poor performance with a stoneware pan.

    I’ve tried making loaves in stoneware pans and the loaves don’t rise adequately. The same dough, used with a free form loaf rises fine. I’m just wondering if its taking too long for the pan to warm up and I’m not getting oven spring? I’m using Pampered Chef 9×5 loaf pans.

    Thanks for your help!

    1. Cathie: Your theory makes sense to me– it’s the only one I can think of too. But, does your stuff rise nicely in aluminum bread pans (like on the Red Star post)? Jeff

  40. Jeff, Sorry for the delay…this will sound strange, but I have not aluminum pans, only stoneware. I will have to bite the bullet and either buy one or borrow one.
    Thanks!

  41. I am excited about your upcoming book! I am also wondering if “Healthy Bread” will be out in paperback soon?? Thanks!

    1. Hi Angela,

      As of now there are no plans for any of our books to be in paperback, but we’ll let you know if it ever does.

      Thanks, Zoë

  42. In Healthy Bread in 5 Mins. a day, on page 145 ‘100% whole grain maple oatmeal bread’. Is there any reason why I couldn’t bake this bread in a free form loaf, instead of a pan? I like the crisp crust you get with higher temps and steam. Thanks, and I can’t wait until your new book comes out. Jim

    1. Hi Jim,

      Certainly you can, just be careful of it getting overly dark due to all the maple sugar. Keep an eye on the crust and if it is browning too quickly turn down the temp a bit to make sure the interior is baked enough.

      Thanks, Zoë

  43. I had never baked anything before and now have two different loaves under my belt (in more ways than one.) A suggestion for a future issue and for the website – how about an index of recipes based on the kind of basic dough recipe. For example:
    Master recipe (boule dough)
    sun-dried tomato parmesan
    olive bread
    etc
    Deli-style rye
    all of the variations that can be made with this basic dough, etc.

    I have made one sort of dough and now I want to know what choices I have for making subsequent breads and these recipes are scattered all over the book. An additional index or a part of the regular index would make this a simple task.

    1. Thanks for the suggestions Steve, definitely an option for future books. But…

      Our publisher would kill us if we index this website— an indexed version of this site would basically be a free electronic version of our material. There’s a wealth of free material on this site, but we can’t make it any closer to the electronic versions of our books for Kindle, iPad, and Nook.

      But you’ll find that restrictions as to what doughs can make which breads are largely artificial. You can make just about anything with just about any dough. Though sweet doughs make the best desserts, etc.

      Jeff

  44. I made your pizza dough on p. 134 in ABin5MDay. I mixed it by hand, let it rise 2+ hours then put it in the fridge (in a tupperware container w/ the lid not sealed all the way). When I got it out today (one day later) to make the dough, the dough was just coming apart as I tried to shape it into a ball/stretch it as you describe on p. 136. Holes kept appearing in the dough. I eventually got it to roll out and form a pizza dough and it tasted great. However, I was just wondering if the “holes” were normal. I just kept kneeding until they were gone. There were also hard pieces of something (maybe flour) that weren’t mixed into the dough as well. Maybe I didn’t mix it completely??? I will definitely try it again next week but wanted to get your feedback first. Thank you!!!

    1. Megan: Is there any chance you used too much olive oil? What kind of flour are you using? Any chance it’s bleached?

      Shouldn’t be hard bits in the dough, either… Jeff

  45. Hi Jeff,
    I’m using unbleached King Arthur’s flour…..I think I added too much flour (I just made the cinnamon raisin with 1/2 less flour than you call for and the dough is awesome). I’m going to try again w/ less flour…..thanks!!! Can’t wait for your next book to come out.

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