A Celebration of Breads from Around the World

Bread, in its myriad forms, is a staple food that transcends cultures and borders. It is a testament to human ingenuity and the diversity of culinary traditions. 

From the crusty baguettes of France to the soft naan of India, each type of bread tells a story of its origin and the people who bake it. 

Let's embark on a global journey to celebrate the different styles of bread that have delighted palates for centuries.

Baguette (France)

The quintessential French baguette is renowned for its long, slender shape and crispy crust. Made from simple ingredients – flour, water, yeast, and salt – the magic of the baguette lies in its baking process. The dough is allowed to ferment slowly, developing a complex flavour. Baguettes are often enjoyed fresh with a slather of butter or as the foundation of a classic jambon-beurre sandwich. In France, the importance of the baguette is such that it has been recognised as a cultural heritage by UNESCO.

Sourdough (United States/Various)

Sourdough bread has experienced a renaissance in recent years, particularly in the United States. This ancient bread, characterised by its tangy flavour and chewy texture, is made using a natural starter of wild yeast and lactobacilli. The long fermentation process not only enhances its flavour but also makes it easier to digest. San Francisco is famous for its distinctively tangy sourdough, thanks to the unique wild yeasts present in the area.

Ciabatta (Italy)

Ciabatta, meaning “slipper” in Italian, is a rustic, airy bread with a crisp crust and a light, porous crumb. Created in the 1980s in response to the popularity of French baguettes, ciabatta quickly became a staple in Italian bakeries. It is made with a high hydration dough, which gives it a unique texture. Ciabatta is perfect for sandwiches, particularly when used in panini, where its robust structure holds up well to grilling.

Naan (India)

Naan is a soft, pillowy flatbread traditionally cooked in a tandoor oven, which gives it a characteristic char and smoky flavour. This Indian bread is typically made with white flour, yoghurt, and yeast, which contribute to its softness and slight tang. Naan is a versatile accompaniment to a variety of dishes, from rich curries to grilled meats. Garlic naan, topped with butter and minced garlic, is a popular variation that adds an extra layer of flavour.

Rye Bread (Germany/Scandinavia)

Rye bread, with its dense texture and hearty flavour, is a staple in many Northern and Eastern European countries. German pumpernickel, made from coarsely ground rye and molasses, is dark, slightly sweet, and packed with nutrients. In Scandinavia, rye bread is often lighter and more sour, as seen in the popular Danish rugbrød. Rye bread pairs beautifully with smoked fish, cheese, and pickled vegetables, making it a key component of traditional smørrebrød (open-faced sandwiches).

Pita (Middle East)

Pita bread, also known as Arabic bread, is a soft, round flatbread with a pocket that forms during baking. This pocket makes pita ideal for stuffing with a variety of fillings, from falafel and hummus to shawarma. Pita can also be cut into wedges and toasted to serve as a crunchy accompaniment to dips. Its versatility and ease of preparation have made pita a beloved bread across the Middle East and beyond.

Soda Bread (Ireland)

Irish soda bread is a simple, hearty loaf made without yeast. Instead, bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) is used as a leavening agent, reacting with the acidity of buttermilk to create a light, tender crumb. Traditionally, soda bread is baked with wholemeal flour, giving it a nutty flavour and dense texture. It is best enjoyed fresh from the oven, slathered with butter and honey, or alongside a comforting bowl of soup.

Tortilla (Mexico)

The tortilla is a cornerstone of Mexican cuisine, with a history dating back thousands of years. Traditional corn tortillas are made from masa harina (corn flour) and water, pressed thin and cooked on a hot griddle. Flour tortillas, made with wheat flour, are softer and more pliable. Both types of tortillas are incredibly versatile, used in dishes such as tacos, burritos, and quesadillas. The humble tortilla's ability to complement a wide range of flavours and textures is a testament to its enduring popularity.

Challah (Jewish)

Challah is a beautifully braided bread traditionally eaten on the Jewish Sabbath and holidays. Made with eggs, water, flour, sugar, yeast, and salt, challah has a rich, slightly sweet flavour and a soft, airy crumb. The braided shape symbolises unity and continuity, and the glossy, golden crust is achieved by brushing the dough with egg wash before baking. Challah is delicious on its own, with a spread of butter or jam, or used in French toast.

Focaccia (Italy)

Focaccia is a flat, oven-baked bread similar in style and texture to pizza dough. It is characterised by its airy crumb and crisp, olive oil-infused crust. Focaccia is often topped with a variety of ingredients, such as rosemary, sea salt, olives, or tomatoes, making it a versatile accompaniment to meals or a satisfying snack on its own. The simplicity of its ingredients allows the flavours to shine, celebrating the essence of Italian baking.

Conclusion

The world of bread is as diverse as it is delicious, with each type reflecting the cultural and historical context of its origin. From the robust flavours of rye bread to the delicate texture of naan, bread connects us to our heritage and to each other.

Celebrating these different styles not only enriches our culinary experiences but also fosters a greater appreciation for the shared human endeavour of baking. So, whether you are enjoying a slice of warm challah or a piece of crusty baguette, take a moment to savour the rich history and tradition that each bite represents.

The Science of Baking: An In-Depth Exploration

In common with my wife and I, most readers of That's Food and Drink bake at least sometimes. But what about the science behind the baking that we do?

Baking is a delightful blend of art and science. Whether you're crafting a fluffy Victoria sponge or a crusty loaf of sourdough, understanding the scientific principles behind baking can elevate your culinary creations to new heights. Let's explore the key elements that make baking a fascinating science.

Ingredients: The Building Blocks

Flour: The foundation of most baked goods, flour is primarily composed of starch and proteins, mainly glutenin and gliadin. When mixed with water, these proteins form gluten, a network that provides structure and elasticity to doughs and batters.

Sugar: Beyond its sweetening power, sugar plays multiple roles in baking. It caramelises upon heating, contributing to the golden-brown colour of baked goods. It also tenderises by slowing gluten formation and helps retain moisture.

Fats: Butter, lard, and oils add richness and flavour. They also create a tender crumb by coating flour particles, hindering gluten formation. In laminated pastries, solid fats create flaky layers by separating dough sheets during baking.

Eggs: Eggs bind ingredients, add moisture, and contribute to leavening. The proteins in eggs coagulate upon heating, providing structure, while fats in the yolk add richness.

Leavening Agents: Baking powder, baking soda, and yeast are responsible for the rise in baked goods. Baking powder and soda release carbon dioxide when combined with acidic ingredients or heat, while yeast ferments sugars to produce carbon dioxide and alcohol.

The Role of Temperature

Temperature control is crucial in baking. Here’s how it affects different stages:

Mixing: The temperature of ingredients, particularly fats and liquids, influences the consistency of the dough or batter. 

For instance, cold butter in pastry dough creates flaky layers, while room-temperature butter in cake batter ensures even mixing.

Proofing: Yeast activity is temperature-dependent. A warm environment (around 24-27°C) accelerates fermentation, while cooler temperatures slow it down. Overproofing can cause dough to collapse, while underproofing results in dense, heavy bread.

Baking: Oven temperature affects the rate of leavening and the development of the crust. Too hot, and the exterior may burn before the interior cooks; too cool, and the structure may not set properly, resulting in a dense texture.

Maillard Reaction and Caramelisation

Two key chemical reactions occur during baking:

Maillard Reaction: This complex reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars occurs at around 140-165°C, leading to the browning and development of rich flavours in baked goods.

Caramelisation: Sugar starts to caramelise at around 160°C, breaking down into new compounds that add depth of flavour and a golden colour to the crust.

Humidity and Its Impact

Humidity can significantly affect baking. In high humidity, flour absorbs more moisture, which can alter the dough’s consistency and the final product’s texture. Bakers often adjust the amount of liquid in the recipe to compensate for these variations.

Tips for Perfect Baking

Measure Accurately: Use a kitchen scale for precise measurements, especially for flour, as it can be easily compacted.

Room Temperature Ingredients: Bring ingredients like eggs and butter to room temperature for even mixing and better texture.

Don’t Overmix: Overmixing can develop too much gluten, leading to tough baked goods. Mix just until ingredients are combined.

Preheat the Oven: Ensure your oven is fully preheated to the correct temperature before baking. An oven thermometer can help verify this.

Know Your Oven: Oven temperatures can vary. It’s helpful to rotate your trays halfway through baking to ensure even cooking.

Conclusion

Baking is a delightful journey of discovery where precision and creativity go hand in hand. By understanding the science behind the ingredients and processes, you can improve your baking skills and create consistently delicious results. Happy scientific baking!

Perfecting Your Sourdough Starter: A Comprehensive Guide

Several days ago we covered a recently established and award-winning artisan baker  Dave de la Riviere who runs runs Your Davey Bread, which uses sourdough in its bread baking   (https://thatsfoodanddrink.blogspot.com/2024/05/weekend-baker-wins-britains-best-loaf.html) so we decided to run a feature on perfecting your sourdough starter.

Sourdough bread, with its delightful tang and rustic appeal, has become a favourite for many home bakers. 

At the heart of every great sourdough loaf lies a well-maintained starter—a living culture of flour and water teeming with wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria. Mastering the art of the sourdough starter can elevate your baking from good to extraordinary. Here's how to perfect your sourdough starter.

Understanding the Basics

What is a Sourdough Starter?

A sourdough starter is a mixture of flour and water that has been fermented by wild yeast and bacteria. This culture serves as a natural leavening agent, giving sourdough bread its characteristic flavour and texture. Unlike commercial yeast, which is a single strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a sourdough starter contains a diverse community of microorganisms, each contributing to the complex profile of the bread.

Getting Started: Creating Your Starter

Ingredients:

Whole grain flour (such as whole wheat or rye)

Water (preferably filtered or non-chlorinated)

Day 1: Mixing

In a clean jar or bowl, combine 50g of whole grain flour with 50g of water. Stir until you have a thick, smooth paste.

Cover loosely with a lid or a cloth to allow airflow while preventing contamination.

Leave the mixture at room temperature (20-24°C) for 24 hours.

Day 2-5: Feeding

Discard half of the starter mixture.

Add 50g of whole grain flour and 50g of water to the remaining mixture. Stir well.

Repeat this process every 24 hours. You should start to notice bubbles and a slight rise in the mixture, indicating that fermentation is occurring.

Transitioning to Maintenance: A Healthy Routine

By day 5-7, your starter should be active, bubbly, and have a pleasant, tangy aroma. Now, it's time to switch to a maintenance routine to keep your starter healthy and ready for baking.

Feeding Schedule:

Discard half of your starter (or use it in a recipe).

Feed the remaining starter with 50g of flour and 50g of water. Stir well.

Continue this feeding routine every 24 hours if kept at room temperature, or every 3-4 days if stored in the refrigerator.

Flour Choice:

While whole grain flour kickstarts the fermentation process, you can switch to all-purpose or bread flour for maintenance. However, periodically feeding with whole grain flour can boost microbial diversity.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Lack of Activity:

Ensure your starter is kept in a warm environment (around 24°C).

Use non-chlorinated water, as chlorine can inhibit yeast growth.

Give it time. Some starters take longer to become fully active.

Hooch Formation:

Hooch is a layer of liquid that forms on top of the starter, indicating that it's hungry. Stir it back in and feed your starter more frequently.

Unpleasant Odour:

An off smell can indicate an imbalance in your starter. Discard more starter and feed with whole grain flour to restore balance.

Using Your Sourdough Starter

When your starter is bubbly and doubles in size within 4-6 hours of feeding, it's ready to use. Incorporate it into your favourite sourdough recipes for a delicious, tangy loaf with a perfect crumb and crust.

Storing Your Starter

If you bake infrequently, store your starter in the refrigerator. Feed it once a week to keep it healthy. For long-term storage, you can dry your starter into a powder and rehydrate it when needed.

Perfecting your sourdough starter requires patience and attention to detail, but the rewards are well worth the effort. With a bit of practice, you'll develop a robust, reliable starter that produces exceptional sourdough bread every time. Happy baking!

Weekend Baker Wins Britain's Best Loaf Accolade

IT expert by day and baker the rest of the time, Dave de la Riviere runs Your Davey Bread.

Dave has managed to (flour) scoop the prestigious acoldade British Baker's Britain's Best Loaf for his seeded sourdough made only with Matthews Cotswold Flour's award-winning Cotswold Crunch. 

Dave cheerfully reveals that he only began baking during the COVID lockdown, but that he rapidly gained a loyal following and beat off strong competition to win the award.

Explains Dave: “I'm fairly new to baking, I began baking in the pandemic whilst I was working from home and luckily a neighbour offered me some sourdough starter. 

"The truth is I baked a lot of frisbee style loaves at first as I began learning more and more about baking from YouTube and books. I gradually progressed from the early attempts to baking edible loaves which I began gifting to neighbours. 

In January last year I took the decision to launch "Your Davey Bread" providing pre-order and pickup of sourdough loaves from our front porch in Swallowfield, Berkshire. 

"I attended a Wayne Caddy micro bakery course, and that really taught me how to produce consistent results and how to scale up from a few loaves to batches of loaves. 

Now we sell at village markets, fetes and supply the local tea room in Riseley, in addition to our pre-order business, which is still operating.”

Dave describes his bakery business as 'a hobby gone rogue' but he has a growing community of adoring bread shoppers who were the impetus behind his Best British Loaf Awards entry. 

He goes on to say:”I'm thankful to the persistent people who convinced me to enter and the lovely customers we have who allow me to bake in sufficient quantities to learn the intricacies of sourdough baking. 

"I'm just so thrilled and proud my Seeded Sourdough won its category against tough and established competition. The judges' comments were complimentary too. There is an element of disbelief for me, as I'm a micro baker, one guy in his back room with a small mixer and a small oven.”

Dave loves to give his loaves punning names, and his prize-winning loaf, called Uncle Tom Cobbler N'all, is no exception. 

Dave explains: ”It's created using cobbler/malted flour, the "n'all" element originally covered any ingredients I needed to use up in my baking. I experimented with adding various percentages of malted flour to my standard country loaf, until we hit the sweet spot of taste and texture. This also took a few experiments with the hydration level of the dough. The dough is covered in poppy seeds and semolina to give the crust some more crunch.”

Dave adds: ”Choosing the right flour is critical and I came across Matthews Cotswold Flours in Waitrose and I was aware Elaine Boddy, the Sourdough Whisperer, uses their flour a great deal, so obviously I wanted to try their range out myself. I used their Cotswold Crunch in my prize winning loaf because it's got a great aroma when baked and it's simplicity to incorporate into a recipe. The malted wheat flakes give a little welcome bite and texture, too.

Bertie Matthews, the MD at Matthews Cotswold Flour adds: “We're obviously thrilled to see our award-winning flour is at the core of this award winning loaf. We work very hard to develop a wide range of premium flours that exceed the expectations and needs of our artisan and home bakers. It's incredibly rewarding to see our ingredients play a key role in Dave's success.”

Dave is at a crossroads in his baking career. Buoyed up by the award and now selling out every weekend, he wonders if it is time to scale up?

He says: “I'd love to expand to be able to offer my bread in more shops, cafes and restaurants. Perhaps it's time for a second oven and some help? I've ave also been considering running beginner sourdough workshops to pass on what I have learned."”

For more information on Your Davy Bread visit yourdaveybread.com or follow them on Facebook and @yourdaveybread on Instagram.

For more information visit www.cotswoldflour.com or follow @CotswoldFlour on Instagram or Facebook.

Matthews Cotswold Flour Signs Foodbod as Brand Ambassador This Sourdough September

Perfectly timed for the month of Sourdough September, Britain's leading speciality flour producer, Matthews Cotswold Flour, has appointed Elaine Boddy from Foodbod Sourdough as its first ever Brand Ambassador.

Elaine Boddy is a world-renowned sourdough baker, who has published three books all about sourdough, has a large and loyal international baking community, and is a big supporter of Matthews Cotswold Flour.

All of Elaine's recipes and sourdough creations have been made and tested using Matthews Cotswold Flour, so she has a wealth of knowledge and expertise about the company's high-quality products. Elaine knows how all their flours feel, taste and behave, plus she knows all about how best to use them when making sourdough and other recipes.

Elaine says: “I am so excited to be taking on this role, to be uniting my sourdough world with a business I really love, and to be formalising my relationship with Matthews Cotswold Flour. I have used and recommended their flours for so long now, I know exactly how they behave in sourdough baking and how to maximise my recipes for home bakers using this great range.

“I think this is a fantastic opportunity for myself and Matthews Cotswold Flour, and I look forward to unveiling our new VIP Super Sourdoughers Club - check the website for more details and sign up now!”

Bertie Matthews, who has, in our opinion, the absolutely to job of being Managing Director at Matthews Cotswold Flour, says: “We've worked closely with Elaine for some time already, and have always been impressed by her sourdough recipes and her undoubted expertise. It's really absolutely fantastic to have her on our team, and we're looking forward to creating lots of new Sourdough content and resources for our home baking community together!”

Elaine will be of great assistance help to Matthews Cotswold Flour's home bakers, with her extensive experience of being a home baker herself. Elaine bakes everything in her home kitchen, using only standard domestic ovens and apparatus. 

She offers real, straightforward, useable advice for home bakers, because they are from a home baker, herself. Elaine also hosts a food podcast, The Foodbod Pod, which is all about food!

Elaine has been a part of the Matthews Cotswold Flour family for a while now, using their flours in all of her baking. She has supported the artisan miller, both online and in person, and they are absolutely thrilled and delighted to be working together to develop an exciting new Cotswold Flour Sourdough Experience. 

www.cotswoldflour.com or follow @CotswoldFlour on Instagram or Facebook.