Contact

To arrange interviews, print media, or television, please contact our publicist Nadea Mina at 646-307-5573, or e-mail her at Nadea.Mina@stmartins.com.  For questions about using adapted versions of our recipes or other material on your own website or in a publication, please click here for more information.

Answering readers’ questions: If you have a bread-baking question, there’s a good chance you’ll find the answer on our FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) page, so look through all of those before you post a question.  If the FAQs page doesn’t have what you need, you can post baking questions and comments  to this website. Here’s h0w:  Click on any “Comments” field at the top of any of our “posts” and scroll down to the bottom; then enter your question or comment. Tell us which book you’re working from, and which recipe and page number–we need that in order to answer your question. We answer all questions ourselves here on the website within 24 hours, often with a reference to a page number in our books where possible.  Please remember that our blog is moderated so your post may not appear until we’ve read and approved it; this can take 24 hours.  And don’t look for our response in your personal e-mail– come back here to the site to look for our answer.

We’ve gotten such a marvelous response from readers that we’ve had to get efficient–we don’t have time to answer baking questions as individual e-mails anymore…

Other great ways to keep in touch…

…follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/artisanbreadin5

… and on our Facebook Fan Page http://facebook.com/BreadIn5

… subscribe to our videos on our YouTube Channel http://YouTube.com/BreadIn5

… posting pictures:  join the Flickr group at http://www.flickr.com/groups/artisanbreadinfive/ and upload your pictures there.  Then copy the picture’s link into any of our “Comments” fields and they can be viewed by everyone.

260 thoughts on “Contact”

  1. Hi, I bought your book ” healthy bread in five minutes a day”. My question is: I don’t have the baking stone, can I use the regular equipment in my conventional oven ? Thanks.

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Nani,

      Yes, you can bake the bread on a cookie sheet or in a loaf pan. The baking stone will get you the very best crust, but isn’t essential for baking.

      Thanks, Zoë

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      • zoe,

        made your general recipe a few times and use my digital therm to bake it to 210F.

        it has no problem for the bread to get to 200F, but the last 10 degrees take forever. i am talking an extra 1.5hrs to get. i even reduce it down to 200Foven temp to prevent burning.

        my oven is set right. just had it checked last week.

        any ideas why the bread refuses to bake to 210F?

      • Hi George,

        Does your bread seem under baked at 200, is that why you are concerned about getting it to 210? How is the crust? Baking the bread for that long might produce a very tough crust? Last loaf I baked and checked the temperature, which I rarely do, it was 205 and perfectly baked on the inside. Which dough are you using?

        Thanks, Zoë

  2. This isn’t my first question, so I thank you in advance for your patience. I’ve been using your book(s) since the first one appeared and have had mostly great success. I recently wrote you about a dough that was so wet it was comical when I struggled to get it to stay on the stone, but it produced absolutely the best bread ever. However, all of my recent batches have been too wet and the finished product hasn’t been as great as that first one. Good texture but flattish. I am exceedingly careful in measuring, which I do by weight, so I can’t figure out what the problem is. My question: if I can tell immediately that the dough is too wet, can I correct it by adding more flour? Would that mean I throw the whole recipe off balance? If I am mixing flours should I maintain the mix if I add more?

    Thanks again for your incredible care and attention. You turned me into a bread baker at a very advanced age.

    Reply ↓

    • Roz: you definitely can add more flour right away. It’s not so crucial that you maintain the exact mix if the recipe calls for multiple flours.

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  3. Hello,

    I have both of your books & have had a lot of success so far with your recipes! My question: i have seen (& read in your books) about the shortest time the dough should sit after mixing a batch before it can be used. But I have not seen a LIMIT to how long the dough CAN sit out & not go bad. I made a batch late evening & then fell asleep. The dough was still on the counter (covered with plastic wrap) when I got up in the morning. Can I still put the dough in the fridge & use it? Or should I through it out & start again (which i hate to do, this was my first time using the whole wheat basic recipe with 7.5 cups of flour)?

    Also, 2 suggestions/requests, do you have a recipe for Rosemary Bread? I have used your herb option that goes with your Boule, but it has a much milder flavor than our local Italian rest, who’s Rosemary bread I would like to make. And, is there a way to make the Sun-dried tomato Parm bread where the Tomato & Parm are mixed within the dough (vs layered in then rolled)? I tried to mix in tomatoes and parm into the dough & it worked, but the bread was flat & did not rise much even during baking.

    We bought Healthy Bread, b/c we enjoyed your first book so much. Thank you for your wonderful books!

    N. Kelly

    Reply ↓

    • N: I’ve done that, no problem. Don’t do this for dairy or egg-containing breads, because of food spoilage concerns. Or at least, that’s what USDA says on its website.

      Just increase the rosemary, consider fresh rosemary (which you need to double in any case). You can put the tomatoes and parm directly into the mixture initially.

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  4. my question today is: how to fix a loaf that did not quite cook fully. I did put them back in the oven for about 10 mins. but it did not finish cooking in the middle. I have decided it is not a good idea to bake 2 loaves at the same time, these were in loaf pans.

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Georgia,

      What kind of bread were you baking, what sized loaves and for how long? Do you have an oven thermometer to make sure your oven is the proper temperature?

      Thanks, Zoë

      Reply ↓

      • Sorry, I don’t remember the recipe, I have been trying so many. This has become an obsession to figure out the best of the recipes and try to whittle it down to a few that I would make on a regular basis. I will get a new thermometer and see if that makes a difference. I want to let you know that since I put a hole in the lid of my bucket, the dough stays moist. It was drying out on top before that. Thanks again for a wonderful bread making experience.

  5. Dear Jeff and Zoe,

    I had just about come to the end of my rope with experimenting on various bread recipes, when I decided to try your method. It’s a keeper! I have finally convinced my husband not to buy bread in plastic bags. Also–thank you for posting your videos here and on YouTube. I love the extra personal touch of showing you both making the bread in your actual kitchens. I did have a question to post but I watched those videos and got it resolved. My only problem now is that my fridge isn’t big enough to hold a huge container of dough! I’m telling all my baking friends about your books. Keep up the great work!

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Emily,

      So glad to hear you are baking and will no longer buy bread in a plastic bag! ;)

      If you get as crazy about this as I am, you may need a little fridge in the basement for the dough buckets!

      Cheers, Zoë

      Reply ↓

  6. Hi Zoe & Jeff,

    Some time back a reader sent in a comment/request which stated that she couldn’t find or get Bob’s Red Mill vital wheat gluten. she wan’t sure, but thought they no longer might be producing it. Down here in San Antonio TX, both the HEB – a local chain – and Whole Foods Market carry Bob’s Red Mill vital wheat gluten, therefore, I’m assuming that it is still available. Perhaps her source was temporarily out of stock.

    Reply ↓

  7. Thanks Zoe. Though I’ve not checked their site, I had suspected that they were still producing the product.

    On another issue. Will you be doing a bread class in the Austin/San Antonio TX area any time this year?

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Don,

      The closest we have to TX at the moment is our class in Phoenix next week! We’ll let you know if something closer comes up.

      Thanks, Zoë

      Reply ↓

  8. I bought your two books – Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day and Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I made several breads using your recipes and they all turned out very good!

    I was wondering, though… Can any of your recipes be used or adapted to make bread in a bread machine? At the very least, can I use the “dough” cycle in the machine, then transfer it to the oven?

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Alex,

      Neither of us has experimented with the bread machine. Our doughs are made in large batches, so you will have to scale it down for the machine. Then you are losing the time savings.

      If you try it, please let us know. Zoë

      Reply ↓

  9. hi both. i have all your books, but i prefer to weight my flour when i bake….. can you please give me the weight of a cup in grams/ kilos or ounces/pounds ? thanks.
    p.s. – love your books !!!!!

    Reply ↓

  10. RE: Healthy Bread in 5 mins a day: Hearty whole wheat sandwich loaf recipe: p.62

    I use the method for the master recipe but use the dough fresh that day and make 2x 2-pound sandwich loaves (ie. no refrigeration and 40 minute final rest time in tin).

    My question is: If I am always using fresh dough and make 2x 2-pound sandwich loaves, to bake at the same time, can I shortcut the recipe like this:
    1. Mix wet and dry ingredients using spoon in mixing bowl.
    2. Transfer dough directly into 2x sandwich loaf tins for its initial 2 hour rise.
    3. Use pastry brush to paint water on top prior to baking and bake WITHOUT needing another 40 minute rest time because the bread has already risen undisturbed in its baking tins.

    Will this shortcut method work?

    If it does work, should I wait a full 2 hours for the bread to deflate, or should I bake it while it’s still fully puffed up?

    (I also don’t slash the loaf diagonally anymore because my bread rises more when I don’t.)

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Kathleen,

      I have tried this, and it does actually work, but you will have to give it a try and see if you like the results as well. You will want to let it rest until the dough has risen, but not collapsed. This time will depend on type of dough and how warm the room is.

      Thanks and let us know how you like it, Zoë

      Reply ↓

  11. I’ve just been reading through the ‘Five Minutes a Day’ book & was wondering which of the recipes would be best for making hamburger buns.

    I suspect that it would be the Soft American Style White Bread on page 204, but maybe there’s a better option.

    We have many wonderful breads here in France, but hamburger buns isn’t one of them so far as we’ve been able to find out. I do miss having an occasional burger, but a proper bun is essential.

    Thanks for your help.

    Dave

    Reply ↓

    • Dave: you want something soft. So, challah, buttermilk enriched, brioche. Soft Am-style’s good. Or just paint a leaner dough with melted butter or oil before baking.

      Reply ↓

    • Hi Karen,

      I know people have made our doughs using rice or soy milk. You can use any butter substitute as well. Hope that helps.

      Thanks, Zoë

      Reply ↓

  13. I have purchased a “sprouted grain bread” at our local artisan bakery. They said it is easily digested because your body recognizes it as a vegetable rather then a grain. Would love to make this bread and am wondering if you have a recipe or will be developing one?

    Thank you

    Reply ↓

    • Julie: Haven’t worked with it– but I’m guessing that you can swap in about 1/5 of the total flour for it– it’ll be an experiment, please let us know how it comes out.

      Reply ↓

  14. Hi Joe and Zoë,

    I tried to bake the Hearty Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread from HBin5. I tried to make a sandwich loaf, so I placed the dough in a 8.5 x 4.5-in loaf pan. All the steps went well except for the baking. The directions says to bake it at 450 F with a broiler pan filled with some hot water. I did that, but I noticed that the crust started browning faster than I had anticipated. After 40 minutes of baking, I went back to the kitchen and smelled something burning. I saw the crust had turn dark brown. I took it out and the crust had burnt, but the rest of the bread was fine.

    I flipped through some more recipes and noticed that for the Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread recipe in HBin5, it calls for baking at 350 F. Is the 450 F a typo? Should I try the recipe again at 350 F? Thanks!

    -Alex S.

    Reply ↓

  15. zoe, thanks for the reply.

    the crust was very, very tough. i used King Artur’s unbleached, and today i used their whole grain. I put water in the oven and still the same result. the inside of the bread is a little wet unless it gets to 208 or higher.

    i just dont know what the problem is. i use the “convection roast” setting. could that be the problem?

    Reply ↓

    • George: I bet that’s the problem– go back to regular baking. Using convection requires you to decrease the temp by 25 degrees F. But I’d re-try this with regular heat.

      Reply ↓

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