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A fascinating window into America's past via one of our favorite foods.
There is no humbler food than bread, none easier to take for granted. So ancient that it shows up in prehistoric sites, bread is still full of surprises. Heirloom grains and artisan loaves fetch top dollar, while home bakers pour their passion into naan and challah, anadama and pistolet.
In this book, award-winning author Andrew Coe provides the definitive history of American bread, from European settlers' introduction to corn through the COVID-era sourdough craze. Each chapter follows an emblematic loaf that connects flour, water, salt, and yeast to the evolving story of American agriculture, industry, immigration, and ideas about health.
Why did supermarket white become America's dominant bread, and how did rustic old-world bagels, ryes, and rolls find their way into our kitchens? Who was the early nineteenth-century dietary reformer who started the whole-grain revolution? Why not knead? An enriching and enlightening cultural chronicle, American Bread answers these questions and more and offers carefully sourced historical recipes to inspire the home baker.
"I love this book! So well researched, so much history, so much fascinating information about everything from the first breads brought by early immigrants to today's sourdough enthusiasts. A must-have for every enthusiastic baker."—Daniel Leader, founder of Bread Alone bakery and author of Bread Alone, Local Breads, Living Bread, and A Slow Rise
"Gracefully written and deftly crafted, Andrew Coe's book evokes the dazzling array of breads that tell our story, from Plymouth Rock to Minneapolis, by casting into relief the ambivalence of Americans' attitudes toward penury and plenty, taste and wellness, nature and modernity, ethnicity and patriotism, handicraft and industrialization, self-realization and profit."—Steven L. Kaplan, Professor Emeritus of History, Cornell University, and author of Pour le pain
"For lovers of history and baking of all kinds, American Bread is a fascinating study of the pursuit of daily bread and the human spirit, transporting the reader through American history, one loaf at a time."—Amy Scherber, baker and founder of Amy’s Bread
"In his deep, thoroughly documented dive into history, Coe valorizes the grains that made America and shows how they were shaped by different communities of origin. An essential reference.” –Apollonia Poilâne, baker and CEO of Poilâne bakery