This revolutionary book is based on the way Vanessa made sourdough bread when she had three young children and literally no time to bake. The Tartine Basic Country Bread recipe is the “mother recipe” from which all modern, high-hydration sourdough recipes are essentially derived. In this groundbreaking and beautifully illustrated book, she has compiled her teachings for the home baker, explaining the what, when, how and why of sourdough.

An entire section on pan loaves like this Everyday Sandwich Bread because I love sourdough pan loaves! It’s difficult to choose just three from the array of books on the subject but if I had to, and I have had to for this post, then these would be my three top choices. No one does it better than Wilson in describing the small tweaks, the subtle nuances, and the fleeting, elusive moments in the quest for the perfect loaf. There is a section on sprouted grains, smoking grains for flavour, and experimenting with starters to control flavour to produce the kind of loaf you want. I defy anyone not to produce a decent sourdough using her master recipe, and once you’ve done that, Elaine has done all the experimenting so you can get creative with different grains and techniques.Vanessa explores how to find gut-friendly alternatives to common cakes, tarts, pancakes, panettone and more. Forkish is not timid about describing the “one best way” to make bread, and sometimes this clarity is needed to cut through the noise.

On the other end of the line, the talent associate conjured difficult problems suited to only the fiercest intellects. Chaiman, with the sweet face and the earbuds never not leaking dance music, rode the motorcycle and delivered the food. At her renowned Sourdough School, Vanessa has taught countless students the secrets of this healthy, more easily digestible bread, and now she has compiled her teachings for the home baker. With the double spicy, one bonus slab of sourdough bread was included, always, for dunking in your soup.

It is clearly written and refreshingly more prescriptive than some other sourdough baking resources. In my apartment on Cabrillo Street, I existed mostly in a state of catatonic recovery, brain flaccid, cells gasping. When friends give her some sourdough starter and she begins making her own bread, everything changes. With The Perfect Loaf Maurizio Leo has given all bread-heads, whether newbies or experienced bakers, the ideal gift.