williamwaller wrote:
>
>
> ...I suspect this is why we got past the Stone Age.

I don't argue a Luddite position. There are times when
technology and precision measurments are indispensable. I am
saying that it is easy to get on a quest for knowledge about
bread that can get in the way of learning how to actually make
bread.

However, in this hand I hold a loaf of Wonder Bread, it's great
stuff. It is made by high tech equiptment that is tended by the
best engineers and scienists that money can buy. They have every
tool known to keep the production process flawless. Over here, I
have a loaf of bread flown in from France(right now you know this
is fiction) from the bakery of M. Poliane. This loaf is baked in
a wood fired brick oven of an old design. The baker is not
allowed to even use a thermometer. He must know his oven well
enough to gauge the temperature by the look of the coals and the
feel of the heat on his hand. ( I read this on the Poliane
Website). Which bread do you want with your wine and cheese?

>
> So the professionals: Nancy Silverton, Peter Reinhart et al. don't get it.


The late James Beard wrote a great book called "Beard on Bread."
The book is famous for the misinformation about sourdough it
contained. Mr. Beard was a great cook, author, and eater.
Because he was regarded as almost a god by the foodies of the
time, his words on sourdough were treated as gospel. Worse, his
misinformation was quoted, cribed, and outright plagerized by
lesser writers for years. Derivitive writings are all over the
place. I believed what he wrote and it delayed my sucess with
sourdough for some time. Ignoring the sourdough advice, the book
is still a good read and still in print.


Nancy Silverton and Peter Reinhart are good authors of a more
recent vintage. I have all their books and have enjoyed reading
them. Now I wouldn't for a moment disparage either as a baker or
author or as a person, but I still think it would be a mistake to
treat every word they write as gospel. I have learned that
lesson. Anyway, nobody can be the expert in every aspect of
baking.

For example. I think if I wanted to have a serious discussion on
beginning a starter from scratch, I would rather have that
discussion with Samartha than Nancy. If, God forbid, I needed to
have information on how enzymes facillitate the chemical
transformations in a fermentation process, I would probably
consult Dick Adams before Peter Reinhart.

> What's mo we are sheep.

I did not say that. You did. But, there is no question that
many folks read things, get confused, and post here seeking
clarification. My point is simply that the best way to learn
about bread is to bake some.


> Baaa!!!
>
Then, on the other hand, if it bleets like a sheep...

Regards,

Charles
--
Charles Perry
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** A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand **