February 2024 Cookbook Reviews

 

The Fresh-Milled Flour Bread Book by Tim Giuffi

I've started getting into milling my own flour and my library hasn't had very many books on the subject at all. So, when I saw this one I definitely wanted to check it out. But, almost immediately I was disappointed. The author talks about how he got into milling and baking in the Introduction, then talks about grain mills and different types of grains. Then it goes right into the recipes. My issue? At least 2/3 of the recipes require a sourdough starter - that is not super obvious by the title. Yes, it is in the subtitle, but I would argue that the subtitle does not imply that ALL the recipes will be for sourdough. Also, there are a lot of tools and specific types of pans noted in the recipes with no explanation. I'm a good home cook and read a lot about cooking and food and I had to look some of the equipment up because I wasn't familiar with it. There is no section about recommended tools/pans/etc. or a chapter on how to start and maintain a sourdough starter. It was very disappointing because I felt like there wasn't enough information.

Week Light by Donna Hay

I had checked out a couple other cookbooks by Donna Hay so I decided to check this one out too. While I'm all about eating healthy, I just didn't see hardly any recipes I wanted to try. I did like that in the "basics to brilliance" chapter there was a base recipe and then several recipes using that base. If you really enjoy ethnic, vegetarian food I think this is the cookbook for you. But, if you want to eat healthier and still include meat and dairy there wasn't much here for you. I liked her other cookbooks that I checked out but I didn't like this one much.

Flour Lab: an at-home guide to baking with freshly milled grains by Adam Leonti

I've started getting into milling my own flour but have had a hard time finding cookbooks that are designed specifically around home milling. This one seems to fit the bill. I think I will end up buying this one because I felt like it was the most comprehensive one I've seen yet. I especially liked how much information he gave in the first few chapters about types of wheat, types of mills, general info about wheat and milling, supplies, cooking tips - then on to the recipes. While I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, they look pretty simple to follow and there is a wide variety of recipes. This book has definitely inspired me to source some more varieties of wheat and try to expand beyond just whole wheat bread.