Table of Contents

Vii Acknowledgments
 
Ix Preface
 
1 Bread in Italy
 
15 Baking Basics
 
15 About the Recipes
 
17 Ingredients
• The Basic Four
• Additional Ingredients for Bread
• Additional Ingredients for Pastry and Cookies
 
42 Equipment
• The Basic Three 
• Other Essentials
• Optional but Definitely Nice to Have
• Additional Equipment for Pizza
• Additional Equipment for Pastry
 
51 Techniques
• Techniques for Baking Bread 
• Techniques for Baking Tarts, Cakes, and Cookies
  
67 PANI

69 Pani Regionali e Rustici REGIONAL AND RUSTIC BREADS
70 Classic Tastes of Italy
103 Tastes of the Countryside
 
127 Pani Moderni MODERN BREADS
128 Vegetable and Herb Breads
146 Breads of Various Grains
  
159 Gli Avanzi USING LEFTOVER BREADS
160 Savory Dishes
174 Bread-Based Desserts
  
177 Pani Festivi CELEBRATION BREADS
179 Fruit and Nut Breads
191 Lightly Sweetened Breads
199 Sweet and Holiday Breads
 
223 Panini e Grissini ROLLS AND BREADSTICKS
223 Panini
238 Panini Dolci
243 Grissini
 
249 Pizze e Focacce PIZZAS AND FOCACCIAS
254 Pizza
269 Focaccia
 
283 Pani Raffinati ELEGANT BREADS
285 Sweet Croissants
290 Savory Croissants
298 Puff Pastry
312 Savory Appetizers
 
315 DOLCI
 
317 Crostate TARTS
319 Basic Tart Doughs
324 Basic Pastry Creams
327 Fruit and Jam Tarts
339 Nut Tarts
343 Chocolate Tarts
 
345 Torte CAKES
347 Ricotta Cheesecakes and Creamy Rice Tarts
354 Spice Cakes and Fruitcakes
361 Sponge Cakes
 
369 Biscotti COOKIES
371 Nut Paste Cookies
380 Butter Cookies
389 Biscotti
393 Cookies of Various Grains
397 Sweet Pastry Dough Cookies
399 Chocolate Nut Cookies
 
401 Appendix: Source Guide to Ingredients and Equipment
 
405 Index

About the Author

Carol Fieldis the author of five cookbooks, In Nonna's Kitchen, Focaccia, Italy in Small Bites, Celebrating Italy, and The Italian Baker, as well as The Hill Towns of Italy and Mangoes and Quince, a novel. She is an award-winning journalist and has contributed to Bon Appetit, Gourmet, and Food and Wine, among others. Field has won two IACP Cookbook Awards and a James Beard Award, and was featured on the PBS series "In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs." She lives in San Francisco with her husband and continues to visit Italy frequently.

Reviews

“A solid collection of traditional Italian baked goods…an authentic and trusted title.”
—Publishers Weekly, 8/15/11

“Carol Field's The Italian Baker is the one bread book I see in nearly everyone's collection, whether an experienced or amateur baker. It not only is full of timeless, classic recipes, but also takes you deep into the mind and heart of the Italian spirit.”
—Peter Reinhart, author of The Bread Baker's Apprentice and Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day
 
“The Italian Baker was incredibly influential in its first iteration and this revised version is even better. Carol has taken the volume to another level in both deliciousness and simple techniques. It is truly the definitive work on Italian bread baking and pastry for our time.”
—Mario Batali, author and restaurateur
 
“A classic, beautifully researched and considered book that keeps Italy’s traditions of bread-making alive. I love how it is peppered with astute observations and stories of Carol Field’s experiences in Italy, inspiring skilled bakers and novice enthusiasts alike.”
—Alice Waters, chef, author, and proprietor of Chez Panisse
 
“The Italian Baker has always been one of my all-time favorite baking books, and no one is happier than I am to see this brand-new edition, introducing Carol Field's classic collection of rustic breads, desserts, and biscotti to a whole new generation of cooks. If you're looking to capture the authentic flavors of Italian baking in your own kitchen, there's absolutely no better guidebook than The Italian Baker.”
—David Lebovitz, author of Ready for Dessert and The Great Book of Chocolate

“Bread bakers rejoice! There’s nothing like chewy, flavorful home-baked bread and  thanks to Carol Field’s inspiring recipes in this updated edition of her top-selling classic, the timeless art of bread baking will become more popular than ever.”
—Flo Braker, author of The Simple Art of Perfect Baking and Baking for All Occasions
 
“Anyone who has bitten into a ciabatta or an airy, full-of-flavor loaf with a bit of tang and a wonderfully dark crust, or mixed bread dough going by the wetter-the-better rule, has Carol Field to thank. She not only introduced the miraculous variety of Italian breads to Americans, but she also changed the way we think of bread--and the way we make it. No one who loves bread can be without this book.The Italian Baker shows that classics stay classics for a reason.”
—Corby Kummer, senior editor at the Atlantic Monthly and author of The Pleasures of Slow Food
 
“The original edition of The Italian Baker has been one of my culinary bibles ever since it was published in 1985. It is now splattered with stains and floury to the touch. Pasta Maddalena I noted was “perfect,” while the Torta Primavera, “excellent,” and so on. The crusty, chewy Pugliese bread, wickedly rich savory croissant dough, the delicate spongy little panini dolce have become constant staples in my kitchen. So celebrate with Carol Field the 'second coming' of this great book.”
—Diana Kennedy, author of The Essential Cuisines of Mexico
 
“Bravo to Ten Speed and Carol Field for updating and reissuing this absolute treasure of Italian baking. The fact that these recipes so thoroughly cover so many baked regional specialties, such as bread, cookies, tarts and torts, savory dishes, pizza, and foccacia makes it a must-own volume for any serious home cook and baker.”
—Joe Ortiz, author of The Village Baker and coauthor of The Village Baker's Wife
 
“The Italian Baker opened my eyes to an exciting new world of baking. It, along with Carol’s early advice and encouragement, became the inspiration for adding hearth baked breads to our line-up at the original Grand Central Bakery in Seattle.The Italian Baker was a trove of information then and remains so today. This new edition, updated, reformatted, and full of delicious color photography, has me inspired all over again!”
—Gwen Bassetti, founder of The Grand Central Baking Company
 
“I’m thrilled to have this handsome new, updated edition, with wonderfully informative photos that show not just what the breads look like but also what goes into the process of creating them. The Italian Baker is a treasure--not just for chefs but for anyone fascinated by the baker’s art, for anyone beguiled by Italian food, for anyone who simply loves to cook good honest food.”
—Nancy Harmon Jenkins, author of The New Mediterranean Cookbook
 
“Evviva! The Italian Baker lives again! For 25 years Carol Field's classic has been my inseparable and invaluable guide to the world of Italian breads and pastries, furnishing the best introduction to baking in general of any book I know. Younger generations will now be able to find the same comfort and counsel, thanks to this splendid new edition.”
—Mary Taylor Simeti, author of Pomp and Sustenance
 
“That an English-language book on something as essential as Italian bread could become the standard text in Italy, as the previous version did, says almost all you need to know -- except that this revised edition is even better. Anyone who really, truly cares about Italy must read The Italian Baker.”
—Fred Plotkin, author of Italy for the Gourmet Traveler