Jonathan Stevens, co-owner of Hungry Ghost Bread in Northampton, brings his expertise as a bread artisan, teacher, poet, and songwriter to this beautiful book. As someone just beginning my breadmaking journey, I was immediately drawn to the title and curious about what Stevens had to share.

From the start, it's clear that Stevens has a deep passion for the art of bread making, and I eagerly absorbed every insight he offered. His approach to hand mixing was especially enlightening. Before reading this book, I had always relied on a bread machine, but now I feel much more confident experimenting with hand mixing. The section on proofing was equally fascinating, highlighting the science behind successful breadmaking in an informative and approachable way.

The recipes in The Hungry Ghost Bread Book are well-organized and easy to follow, making it an excellent resource for beginners and experienced bakers alike. I especially appreciated the variety of flours incorporated into the recipes, as it opened up a world of possibilities for texture and flavour in each loaf.

This book is an excellent choice if you're looking for a straightforward, informative breadmaking guide. I plan to gift a copy to each of my daughters so they can add this fantastic resource to their kitchen library—it's a book that will serve any baker well now and for years to come.

Thank you to NetGalley and Chelsea Green Publishing for providing me with an e-ARC of The Hungry Ghost Bread Book in exchange for my honest review.

Title: The Hungry Ghost Bread Book: An Offbeat Bakery’s Guide to Crafting Sourdough Loaves, Flatbreads, Crackers, Scones, and More
Author: Jonathan Stevens
Genres: Cooking, Food & Wine
Pub Date: 14 Nov 2024
Pages: 208
ISBN: 9781645022602
Format Read: PDF
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (4½ stars)

I wasn't entirely certain what to expect from this book. When I see the word 'offbeat', as a baker, I get slightly anxious as I'm not sure if the recipes (or, as often pertains to bread, formulas) are going to be completely experimental (combining ingredients that clash, or that are incredibly difficult to source), or if the recipes will be provided in such a way that they're not reproducible in a home baking environment.

Thankfully, none of those apply here. Rest assured, fellow baker, that you can pick up this book and (presuming you're not Coeliac) find something you'll be comfortably able to bake, whatever your skill level.

The techniques, ingredients, and indeed recipes include intros that make it clear the author has a very specific opinion on modern leavening agents (such as instant yeast) and, indeed, states that 'sourdough bread' is redundant as only bread leavened with sourdough counts as bread. He explains the reasoning for this and how the slow breakdown of gluten proteins & antinutrients in (modern) wheat by living cultures within sourdough starter (friendly yeasts and other microbes) makes bread digestible, whereas using brewers' yeast (the 'common' baking yeast available as granules or fresh blocks) doesn't allow for this process, leading to increased digestive issues and even sensitivities or allergies.

As someone who's familiar with the research surrounding modern processed foodways and the rise of gluten intolerance, I do agree with everything he says - though, as this is a baking book, the explanations aren't particularly in-depth and come off as a bit fringe, especially as they are also presented alongside some gently crunchy concepts like switching off one's phone, reducing screen time, slowing down, etc. None of that is problematic, but I presume this is the 'offbeat' vibe the title alludes to.

There are a few too many mentions of the scale & flow of his professional bakery - all well and good, but this isn't a memoir, and most readers aren't picking this book up with a view on eventually scaling up to low-industrial production or opening a bakery of our own (for which a lot more guidance would need to be included), or getting into daily baking in their wood-fired home oven(!), idyllic though that may sound.

Those minor quibbles aside, this is a brilliant introduction to sourdough baking for anyone new to sourdough, as well as an excellent troubleshooting and reference manual for those who are more experienced. I've been baking sourdough on and off for years, and I can honestly say that had I had this book to start with, I wouldn't have had to make quite as many adjustments before reliably being able to make truly excellent bread. The information on autolysing, high hydration, folding (rather than long kneading), and maintaining a starter are brilliant. I personally use a low hydration starter (the starter ratios in the book are more conventional) as I find it more forgiving of infrequent feeds, and, kept in the fridge, it's really quite low-maintenance. The author recommends a daily feeding regimen, which isn't necessarily practical for most home bakers (and can make sourdough off-putting or intimidating), but does concede that your starter won't hate you if you shove it in the fridge now and again.

The recipes for bread are very appealing and accessible; the recipes for crackers made using discarded starter are a great idea. The other recipes (for scones etc) are nice, but as they don't use sourdough don't really fit the whole vibe of the book - but again, are accessible and should appeal to a broad range of bakers.

All in all, this would make an excellent gift for the budding or experienced bread baker in your life.

Thank you to Chelsea Green Publishing & NetGalley for providing access to this eARC for consideration of review.
All opinions are my own honest & unbiased feedback based on the copy provided.

#TheHungryGhostBreadBook #NetGalley

Jonathan Stevens approaches the making of bread from an artisan’s angle; he makes baking accessible, however this is not your regular bread/baking book. Stevens’ approach is nuanced, detailed, unique and philosophical with amazing insights.
I have not yet tried all of the recipes and methods, but they all sound exceptional.