Rating: 
Summary: Proportions of flour and liquid
Review: Am I the only one who felt these recipes produced very wet doughs? I weigh my flour when baking and found I needed to add a cup or more of flour to what the recipes required when mixing in a machine. This strikes me as alot of flour to knead in, without specification. Assuming a starter the consistancy of pancake batter, most of these recipes have an additional cup of liquid, making the proportions about five cups of liquid to six cups of flour. Nonetheless, all the breads I have made from this book have terrific flavor, and have been well received by friends and family.
Rating: 
Summary: Finally! I Get It!
Review: As an experienced, non-professional baker of conventional yeast bread, I'd been mystified by sourdough and the whole rustic bread thing. All my attempts turned out like sandwich bread with CRUST. Ed Wood's first couple of chapters set me straight: it's the lactobacilli (slow multipliers) that create the flavor, and the yeast (fast multipliers) that give it loft. And they both require feeding: just think of your starter as a hungry amorphous pet hanging out in the fridge, and you're on the right track. An article in Cooks Illustrated supplied the other key variable: moisture content (the wetter the dough, the more open the texture). Armed with theory, I ordered a couple of starters from Dr. Moore's web site and, following the instructions in World Sourdoughs, stirred and incubated for a couple of days, then followed the books' most basic recipe, and Whammo! Great sourdough bread! I'm sold. I'm empowered. Cool. Caveat: the previous review is right too, the book assumes you already know a lot about how bread works. For instance, the proportions in some of the recipes are a little suspect to my eye (for instance, how can you keep adding 'another cup of flour' and 'another cup of water' to a 1 quart jar, day after day, and not end up with basically an ocean of starter!? Beginners should begin elsewhere, then come to Dr. Moore for their graduate Sourdough training.
Rating: 
Summary: A scientist's approach to sourdough
Review: Ed Wood the pathologist makes sourdough cultures for bread baking accessible to the novice. He's spent his life studying these kinds of organisms and has applied his science in travels around the world, obtaining many strains of wild yeast cultures for study in bread baking. He's even created a company to sell these to aficionados who want to experiment with different cultures. Though his approach to bread baking is more technical than artistic, his book is a welcome addition to the library for its sourdough biology as well as history - he was involved in a National Geographic article tracing wild yeast bread culture back to the ancient Egyptians.
Rating:
Summary: Real Sourdough
Review: I am glad to have this collection of sourdough baking recipes, as genuine sourdough is almost extinct these days, even in France; books on sourdough baking are practically non-existent. On the other hand, this bread baking book is no better than other generic cookbooks with bread recipes. The recipes and procedures are lacking in necessary detail. This is a valuable collection of bread recipes, but only for those willing to devote the time and effort to properly adapt them to the home kitchen. The author correctly points out that until the last century, all breads were sourdough based, meaning that you had regularly feed, care for, and keep alive the yeast like a beloved family pet. Upon the invention of commercial yeast, almost all bread bakers switched. The commercial stuff is easier to deal with and more profitable, but it also means that the breads have much less flavor. In this book, the author has assembled a standard collection of bread recipes using a sourdough starter instead of the usual commercial yeast. He has recipes for standard loaf breads, ryes, egg breads, whole wheat, French, rolls, buns, pancakes, waffles, batter breads, and the like. Of particular interest are the kamut and spelt bread recipes (both are ancient predecessors to our modern wheat), and the bread machine recipes. On the down side, the author does not seem to have devoted much time to developing proper recipe instructions. He has one master recipe (for loaves, for example), and all the other ones are just ingredient variations of the master. This a problem, as the breads go all over the place; some are heavy, dense ones, some are similar to French breads, and others have vastly different hydration levels (moisture content). This common procedure does not work for all the varieties of different breads. All the doughs that require kneading simply say "until dough is satiny", but this description is never explained. Most of the loaves have both milk and butter as ingredients, including those breads where this is inappropriate. The various ethnic breads also have traditional makeup methods for the dough in their country of origin, but the author simply ignores them and uses his master recipe procedure, whether it is correct or not. To proof the doughs, a temperature of 85 degrees is specified; to get this, the author has rigged up a Styrofoam ice chest with a 15 watt bulb jammed into it. The wild yeast starter that I have makes sourdough that is similar to the classic San Francisco one (I live near, but not in, SF). I had trouble getting my culture to work properly with the recipes in this book. Most of his recipes have a 1 to 2 hour proof, but my culture at standard room temperature-around 70 or so-takes 4 to 6 hours to proof properly, sometimes more on a cold day. The rye breads I tried produced a loaf that was unacceptably heavy and dense, unless you are going to use it as construction material. This is not to say that the recipes are worthless. The experienced home baker should be able to work out the problems with a little experimentation and some test bakes; this is certainly worth the trouble, as many recipes are important ones that you will want to do on a regular basis. The many non-loaf recipes are especially useful, as they give you something to do with the extra yeast (which I often just throw out) when you refresh the starter and do not feel like making yet another loaf of bread. The author commits the ultimate sin in baking books: not telling us how he measures the flour, nor what weight of flour to use. This information is the sine qua non of proper baking. I should also note that much of this book is an advertisement to get to buy the live sourdough cultures that the author sells. Many of his recipes require the use of a "fast" culture, which most sourdough cultures are not (mine certainly is not). By coincidence, he sells such a culture, which he calls "Russian". Many of the recipes seem to have been developed for this specific culture. For these breads, I suggest that you simply use a commercial yeast; I know this defeats the whole purpose of this book, but his description of the Russian culture seems to be similar to the regular yeasts you can get at the supermarket. I found almost no editorial errors. The make-up instructions for a couple of breads were inscrutable (like Butterflake Rolls). The reference on page 119 should say "page 28". The pizza recipe, when made as specified, produced a thin, cracker-like crust; I believe there is an error somewhere in the recipe; I fixed it by reducing the oven temperature, and making the crust much smaller and therefore thicker. A more detailed Table of Contents would make it easier to find recipes.
Rating:
Summary: Somewhat disappointed.
Review: I consider myself an experienced baker but not with sourdough cultures. That's why I turned to World Sourdoughs From Antiquity. Dr. Wood's recipes and procedures are straightforward enough. The only complaint I have is that Dr. Wood does not devote enough space in the book to troubleshooting. Working with sourdough cultures can be a bit tricky and there's no guarantee of success 100% of the time. For example, I have had persistant problems with dough not rising properly (it seems to want to spread out on the baking sheet rather than rise up the way it should-this has happened with two very different cultures). The book just doesn't address this problem. Too, the construction of the book could have been better. Dr. Wood must be a practicing baker and not just a theorist. As such he should have made the book with a spiral binding so it would lay flat on the kitchen counter. This is a working book and not something you read only at bed time! I too found the author accessible through his website. When I sent an e-mail I did receive some helpful advice. All in all I have not given up on sourdough baking and would advise anyone buying this book to be persistent if difficulties arise.
Rating:
Summary: So, THAT'S how it works!
Review: I've been an avid hobbiest baker for over 20 years, and sourdough had always been a frustrating mystery. It didn't work, or it didn't work right, and every article and book I read seemed to have conflicting advice. Even the great James Beard's otherwise wonderful "Beard on Bread" was of no help. (James Beard, despite his many talents, didn't have a clue when it came to sourdough.) I just KNEW that sourdough had to be more workable and reliable, or the commercial bakeries that produce sourdough bread couldn't survive! Ed Wood's book, World Sourdoughs from Antiquity, cleared up the mystery for me. His techniques work, they are understandable, and they don't involve witchcraft or the phase of the moon. While Dr. Woods sells sourdough cultures he has collected from around the world, his techniques will work with any culture, even ones you captured yourself. The book not only tells you how to use sourdough, it explains what it is, gives an interesting history of sourdough, has amusing stories about how Dr. Woods collected the starters he sells, and has a number of very good recipes. As I write this, there are four more loaves of sourdough bread in the oven, and the smell is driving me crazy.... before Ed Wood's book, I hadn't had any real sourdough success!
Rating:
Summary: So, THAT'S how it works!
Review: I've been an avid hobbiest baker for over 20 years, and sourdough had always been a frustrating mystery. It didn't work, or it didn't work right, and every article and book I read seemed to have conflicting advice. Even the great James Beard's otherwise wonderful "Beard on Bread" was of no help. (James Beard, despite his many talents, didn't have a clue when it came to sourdough.) I just KNEW that sourdough had to be more workable and reliable, or the commercial bakeries that produce sourdough bread couldn't survive! Ed Wood's book, World Sourdoughs from Antiquity, cleared up the mystery for me. His techniques work, they are understandable, and they don't involve witchcraft or the phase of the moon. While Dr. Woods sells sourdough cultures he has collected from around the world, his techniques will work with any culture, even ones you captured yourself. The book not only tells you how to use sourdough, it explains what it is, gives an interesting history of sourdough, has amusing stories about how Dr. Woods collected the starters he sells, and has a number of very good recipes. As I write this, there are four more loaves of sourdough bread in the oven, and the smell is driving me crazy.... before Ed Wood's book, I hadn't had any real sourdough success!
Rating:
Summary: If you love Sourdough, you'll love this book!
Review: It is loaded with first rate information. There are so many great recipes, you won't know which bread to bake first. I love this book! It is a must have.
Rating:
Summary: A synthesis of science and country wisdom
Review: This book has clear instructions and easy traditional recipes. I've baked some of these breads and my neighbors and relatives love them! But this is more than a sourdough bread book. Ed Wood describes amazing experiences including travel to Egypt to assist archaeologists documenting how the pharaohs baked bread. The photos bring scenes of ancient bread-baking to life. Anyone who eats sourdough bread, or loves bread of any kind enough to bake it themselves, will enjoy this book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: What an outstanding manual for sourdough baking. I was easily able to capture my own culture, which I have been using now for about 6 months. Dr. Wood fully explains the relationship between yeast and lactobacteria, which I found fascinating. However, most of all I am pleased with the accessibility of the author. He has a website, and I have emailed questions to him twice and each time received a prompt response. The author is an MD/PhD so he knows all about micro-organisms. It is like having a professor of sourdough, with office hours.
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