“We’re in a bread renaissance in America,” says Greg Wade, head baker at Chicago’s Publican Quality Bread. Interest in the craft was reinvigorated in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic—remember all those starters?—and has sustained even as many have eased into new routines.
In Wade’s debut, Bread Head (Norton, Sept.), he explains the science of breadmaking and shares his best practices for rustic, naturally leavened loaves; offers a variety of recipes for sweet breads, such as buckwheat brownies and cornmeal whoopie pies; and brings his technical know-how to Ethiopian injera, Indian parathas, and Georgian khachapuri. He also addresses the restorative agriculture of grains, provides resources to accessing heritage grains, and champions solutions to climate change. “It’s a multipronged approach, and a labor of love,” he says.
Wade’s book and others this season celebrate what 18th-century Swedish taxonomist Carl Linnaeus called “the most noble” of all foods.
Baking Bread with Kids
Jennifer Latham. Ten Speed, Nov.
Latham introduces children ages seven and up (and their caregivers) to mixing, fermenting, proofing, and baking with 20 easy, familiar recipes—whole wheat bread, focaccia, pita, pizza, and more. Latham is former director of bread at Tartine in San Francisco and mother to two; some of the book’s recipes were tested alongside her children and drawn from her Baking from Home online video series.
Bread Head
Greg Wade, with Rachel Holtzman. Norton, Sept.
This eclectic collection of recipes emphasizes the use of sustainable, locally milled grains. PW’s starred review called the book “exceptional,” and said it “is sure to banish any remnants of sourdough fatigue.”
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Evolutions in Bread
Ken Forkish. Ten Speed, Sept.
The founder of Ken’s Artisan Pizza and Ken’s Artisan Bakery and author of Flour Water Salt Yeast (395,000 print copies sold) turns his attention to developing doughs and techniques specifically for pans and Dutch ovens, with recipes for black bread, rye bread with caraway, and 50% einkorn Dutch-oven levain bread. It’s a “surefire boon for home bread bakers,” per PW’s starred review.
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Le Cordon Bleu Bakery School
Le Cordon Bleu. Grub Street Cookery, Nov.
First published in French in 2021, this 80-recipe guide from the illustrious cooking school covers yeasted breads and Viennoiseries (Danish pastries). It highlights recipes for boulangerie classics such as brioche and croissants, as well as new spins on the familiar, including a milk bread baguette with white chocolate.
The Pain d’Avignon Baking Book
Uliks Fehmiu, with Kathleen Hackett. Avery, Oct.
Self-taught baker and Serbian émigré Fehmiu shares the origin story of his Cape Cod bakery and New York City café in this compendium of 60 recipes. Recipes adapted for the home kitchen include Cape Cod–inspired cranberry and pecan bread, double-baked almond croissants, cheese amman, and thyme baguette with a touch of lemon.
The Perfect Loaf
Maurizio Leo. Clarkson Potter, Nov.
Leo, known for his exacting techniques and encouraging tone, is the resident baker at Food52 and a regular contributor to the King Arthur Baking blog. In his debut, named for the website he launched in 2013, he shares recipes for freeform loafs (sourdough, demi baguettes), pan loaves (naturally leavened brioche), pizza and flatbreads (focaccia, naan), buns and rolls (English muffins, bagels), and sweet breads (doughnuts, peach and blueberry crostata).
All print unit sales per NPD BookScan except where noted.
