Hello Friends,
I’m posting below my gift guide for bread lovers. It was created for my newsletter, which I send out a few times a year. If you’d like to be added to my newsletter, please email me and let me know.
Gift Guide for Bread Lovers
For those looking to take their baking to the next phase, you might be thinking about a home mill. I’ve had my Komo Mill for about 8 years and it’s definitely paid for itself in high quality flour that I get from buying grains in bulk. This mill is made in Germany.
A similar mill that was actually designed by a person from the original Komo team is the Mockmill.
It’s not quite so beautiful on a countertop, but as ecologically and soundly made, so it’s a great option.
Proofing Baskets are not mandatory, but very handy things to have. I like the ones from Breadtopia. While you’re there, go ahead and check out their whole inventory, but make sure you have a lot of time.
Jess Wagoner makes the most beautiful clothing for grain lovers. To find her inventory, go here.
I like Amy Halloran’s Pancake Papers so much, I decided to stock them in my store. All money gathered for this book goes back to her and her mission to get everyone more excited about flour.
For a pretty instrument to hold in your hand as you score bread, check out Wire Monkey Shop. He works with well-known bakers to design lames that give a flourish to your scoring because they feel so good to hold. I’m especially drawn to the one that raises money for one of my favorite podcasts: The Sourdough Podcast.
The beloved pan I make my mama bread in is the Lodge Combo Cooker which gives you a cast iron frying pan and dutch oven in one. I’ve recently seen these at Costco for the insanely good price of $30. Otherwise, you can find them on the Lodge site itself for a good price.
Another company to have on your list for bread cookware is Emile Henry. They have a dutch oven that is the favorite of a lot of bakers; they also have specialty cookware, such as a baguette baking pan I have yet to try, but it’s definitely on my list this year.
For loaf pans, I like a combination of two pans: The first is a Chicago Metallic 1 pound loaf pan that makes a nice sized sandwich loaf. As a lid, I fit a USA Pan 1 ¼ pound pan over top.
The best bread knife I’ve ever used is made by Opinel. They also have this really cool camping set with a foldable, travel bread knife and a small cutting board.
For flour gifts, check out anything by Grist & Toll, Carolina Ground, Maine Grains, and Camas Country Mill. All of the above ship direct and produce wonderful stone-ground flours that I love using for bread. In addition, Hayden Flour Mills has wonderful, thoughtful gift boxes that are worth checking out.
In the book department, there are some great new ones!
Heirloom by Sarah Owens is chock full of whole grain recipes, and also general staples for a nourishing and flavorful way of life. Her recipes are well tested and are always show stoppers, like the Purple Barley Milk Cake and Einkorn Cardamom Rolls.
Flour Lab by Adam Leonti is a great book for anyone looking into getting a home mill. He details a lot of information about home milling and makes a solid case for the health and flavor benefits of freshly ground flour. It is part sourdough recipes and part straight doughs. He also has a pretty extensive section about different kinds of pizza dough styles.
Living Bread by Daniel Leader is brimming with interesting information about flour and grain all over the world. This long time baker and trusted cookbook author went to great effort to find unusual recipes that you won’t find anywhere else. It is not an exaggeration to say that I couldn’t put this book down.
Poilâne by Apollonia Poilâne is a book by and about the venerated Paris bakery that is one of the oldest in the city. In a twelve hour layover in Paris one time, I eschewd all the well-known landmarks and made time to drag my partner to get an early morning croissant at Poilâne instead. That’s how iconic this bakery is to me. The recipes in this book range from simple basics to complex, creative spins on bakery favorites. There’s a plethora of bread, a whole section on sweets, and even a recipe (a recipe!) for perfect toast.
Here’s what’s on the menu this month:
Mama Bread
This month’s Mama bread is made with Hollis wheat from Moon Family Farms in Washington. Garrett and Jessica steward their farm that’s been in the family for five generations. They have a thoughtful approach to managing the land, building the soil in their dry environment, and also keeping the price of their wheat affordable. They save the seeds for the Hollis wheat year after year, and it makes wonderful loaves at 100% whole grain that I mill right here at home.
Organic Sandwich Loaves
The sandwich bread this month is made with organic sifted wheat flour from Maine Grains as a nod to my visit to the Kneading Conference in Skowhegan, Maine this past summer. The fact that this flour is sifted after being stone ground makes it a bit lighter, while still containing much of the germ and bran (thus more nutrients) than the typical flours found on grocery store shelves. To these loaves, I’m adding a bit of malted barley flour from Tuality Plains in Forest Grove, Oregon. The barley adds a hint of cereal sweetness and boosts the browning capabilities.
100% Einkorn Loaf
Einkorn is the most ancient wheat that we still cultivate. It’s genetically different than modern wheat because it reflects the time when wheat had a simpler DNA profile. It has a buttery color and a savory flavor with mineral overtones. I’m using grains from Bluebird and milling them at home on my Komo. This bread is a pan loaf and it’s superb as toast dripping with butter and a shaving of parmesan cheese.
Sesame & Nigella Wheat Loaves
I swoon over both sesame seeds and nigella seeds, which are less familiar to most people. Nigella is a black seed that tastes a bit like a toasted onion bagel with a hint of oregano. The aroma is alluring and when I get a craving, there’s no stopping me. I added these two types of seeds to a mixture of Sonora white wheat from farmer Sally Fox in California and Rouge de Bordeaux red wheat from Camas Country Mill.
To place an order, email me to let me know what you want and what day in the coming week you would prefer to get it. You are always welcome to drop by for espresso & morning toast, or we can work out delivery or pick-up via email. I have a limited amount of each item, so the earlier in the week you let me know, the better your chances of getting what you want. For the more spontaneously-minded types, drop me a line whenever and I’ll let you know what I have on hand. Oh, and if you want to pay for the bread on-line, here is the link. Of course, I’m always open to trade…
Savor your month with madcap delight and untamed gratitude,
Other news from the world of grain:
-Cascadia Grains is a conference that brings together farmers, breeders, millers, maltsters, bakers, and grain lovers in Olympia, Washington in January. I’ve been attending this event for the past several years, and I love it! I’m lucky enough to be on the steering committee this year, and I’m already getting excited about the program. Go here to sign up. Hope to see you there!
-Have you seen Michael Kealty’s work about how to taste bread? If not, check it out here. I really enjoy how he outlines the ways we taste the flavor and aroma components of bread.
-A friend and fellow baker Emily Squadra of Wildflower Baking is offering a whole grain croissant class through Airbnb Experiences. I’m taking the class soon, and you should, too! It’s an insanely good price, so don’t miss it. Sign up here.
For information about taking my class through AirBnB, go here.