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View Full Version : Peter Reinhart is awesome!


Adagimp
02-27-2011, 04:20 PM
I first was introduced to Reinhart back in 08 when I was gifted "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" and I instantly fell in love with his writing style and his passion for bread.

I got good results baking rustic breads, using "Apprentice" as a guide, but I seldom had the time to commit to the lengthy process of pre-ferment+ferment+shape+rise+re-shape+re-rise etc...

After I graduated I went to work in Chicago for a year and found that I really never had time to bake anything besides a 24hour no-knead loaf and subsequently lost my interest in baking.

Fall last year I bid farewell to that frozen hellhole in IL, and moved to gorgeous Tempe, AZ (where the temperature makes for so much faster rising) to continue my education in graduate school. I found that I once again had free time to bake and happened to stumble upon Reinhart's new book "Artisan Breads Every Day" while looking for a new bread pan on amazon.

So I snapped it up and have just started using some of the recipes in the book and I am thoroughly impressed. Reinhart has done away with all the pre-ferment business for these recipes and the two breads I love the most (ciabatta and french) take no more than a couple hours of prep (aside from the overnight ferment in the fridge) before a baking period of a scant 30mins.

If you love fresh bread, but don't have 6 hours to burn for prep, then I think Reinhart's new"ish" book would be a great investment.
Fred
02-27-2011, 05:05 PM
Is that loaf yours or his?
Adagimp
02-27-2011, 05:22 PM
Is that loaf yours or his?

Mine.
Fred
02-27-2011, 07:51 PM
Outstanding. You must be feeding the yeast honey or something. ;)
Adagimp
02-28-2011, 11:59 AM
Outstanding. You must be feeding the yeast honey or something. ;)

Thanks Fred. I attribute my limited success more to the warmness and dryness of the region than anything else. Beats the heck out of Chicago anyway.
dough
02-28-2011, 12:26 PM
that bread looks awesome.
Adagimp
03-14-2011, 11:17 PM
Link to a youtube video showcasing some fresh ciabatta using reinholdt's recipe and method.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsgnZFmr9CM&feature=channel_video_title

Yeah there's a bite out of it and yes that's a globally despised global that was used to cut the bread.
paulraphael
04-02-2011, 02:18 PM
Reinhart is the man, definitely.
The technique he outlines for pain a l'ancienne is basically how I make every kind of bread, including pizza dough. It's not an unusual method anymore, but it was back when Reinhart first learned about it. Is this the technique he uses in the newer book?
Adagimp
04-04-2011, 01:49 AM
Reinhart is the man, definitely.
The technique he outlines for pain a l'ancienne is basically how I make every kind of bread, including pizza dough. It's not an unusual method anymore, but it was back when Reinhart first learned about it. Is this the technique he uses in the newer book?

Pretty much. Slow fermentation in the fridge coupled with gentle stretching and folding of the dough prior to the fridge trip.
paulraphael
04-04-2011, 02:18 PM
Is the part about the gentle stretching and folding new to this book? I don't remember him talking about it.
Adagimp
04-04-2011, 05:13 PM
Is the part about the gentle stretching and folding new to this book? I don't remember him talking about it.

I believe so. I don't recall him mentioning it in Apprentice and he makes a big deal of it in the new book.

For what it's worth the stretch and fold does seem to work quite well, takes less time and is more forgiving, at least from my perspective, when compared to traditional kneading.