See my cover story of the American artisan bread movement, and how I translated it to my kitchen, in the May issue of Saveur magazine. Also, some great recipes by Dan Leader (Bread Alone).

Here's a crumb:

I was at a French conversation class in New Jersey recently, and a poor soul who didn’t speak French, having been dragged there by his wife, had taken refuge in the back row. The teacher asked each of us introduce ourselves, and when my turn came I said, in my fractured French, that I enjoyed baking bread.

“Pain au levain?” came a voice from the back of the class.

“I thought you didn’t speak French,” another student said in disbelief.

“Not a word! But bread I know!”

That’s when I knew the artisan bread movement had arrived.

Special Holiday Edition: Highlights from The Bread Doctor

In recognition of the special role that bread plays in Easter and Passover (think "matzo"), I'm publishing selected questions I've received recently on the Ask the Bread Doctor feature of my website, williamalexander.com. Feel free to chime in with your own answers -- most of these questions have stumped The Doctor!

Dear Bread Doctor,
Whenever I make Greek Easter bread, I add the dyed red, hard boiled eggs when shaping the loaves during the 2nd rising and what always happens is that the egg in the middle drops down into the loaf.
 I suggested that she insert a chicken instead, to delay the placement of the egg into the loaf. (She was not amused)

Dear Bread Doctor,
What happens when you leave a wet bread outside the window and describe the process.

 The birds eat it? The larger question is, why would someone be leaving wet bread outside a window???

Dear Doctor,
What is the correct quantity of preservative in 100kg flour?

Dear Reader: 0 kg.

(By the way, for you non-metric folks, 100kg is 220 pounds). Find out what commercial bakery would be asking advice from me....and avoid it!

Dear Doctor,
We own a large pizza franchise....

I really thought Herman Cain had enough on his hands back when this question came in without worrying about his pizza crust.

and my favorite...

Dear Doctor,
Getting readership on the internet is tuff enough without abusing the few you have.

No argument there!

But thanks, everyone, for the questions. Some are really fantastic! Keep those cards and letters coming!

Biscuits au Levain

Sourdough biscuits? Why not? After all, buttermilk biscuits are common, and buttermilk is cultured milk, while sourdough or levain is cultured water. The recipe for my levain, which I use in all my breads and pizzas, is here. I made these up in less than a half hour total, and they were fantastic. Beside levain, the other secret is lard. That's right, real, honest-to-goodness lard (if you can't bring yourself to use it, substitute unsalted butter). Here's the recipe (credit is due to the Sarah's Musings Blog, whose recipe I adapted for my levain)

Makes 8 2-1/2 inch biscuits

333 grams (about 2-1/2 cups) all-purpose unbleached flour
14 grams (1 Tbl) sugar
7 g (a scant 1 tsp) Kosher salt
10 g (2 tsp) baking power
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup lard or butter, frozen or very cold
180 grams (about 1 cup when frothy) levain 
115 grams, give or take (about 1/2 cup) milk

1. Feed levain at least 2 hours before beginning.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. Mix all dry ingredients. Chop lard or butter into chunks and work into dry mixture with fingers until reduced to the size of peas. Do not overwork.
4. Add levain and mix thoroughly.
5. Add milk, mixing in, until dough just holds together. It should be a very tight dough.
6. Using hands, knead lightly for a minute and push into a disk on a floured countertop, pushing it out gently and evenly until about 3/4 inch thick.
7. Use a biscuit cutter to cut into biscuits, recombining dough and reforming as necessary.
8. Place on cookie sheet covered with parchment paper
9. Bake about 30-35 minutes until just starting to turn brown on top.
10. Serve immediately.

Ich bin ein Berliner

As is now forklore, when President Kennedy made his famous speech in Berlin in 1963, pledging America's support against the Soviet blockade, he announced, "Ich bin ein Berliner," meaning, "I am a Berliner." Unfortunately, this was heard by most in the crowd as, "I am a jelly doughnut," as Berliner is the common name for this yeast-raised, deep-fried doughnut. I just cooked up a batch, using a recipe from Dan Leader's latest book, Simply Great Breads, using my wife's homemade wineberry jam for the filling. They are absolutely delicious, especially when eaten warm, right out of the fryer.  And gorgeous to look at on the plate. But be warned: they are highly addictive. Grab a copy of Dan's book and give 'em a try. One tip not in the recipe: forget the awkward pastry bag for filling these things. Instead splurge a few bucks for an icing syringe (aka cupcake injector). Bon appetit!

52 Loaves now in paperback

The last remaining hardcover copies of 52 Loaves have, alas, gone to where unsold books go to die (which is often to attics, as insulation -- I have this dream of my own books one day insulating my house), as bookstores make room (we hope) for the paperback release, complete with a lower price, a new cover design and shorter subtitle. If you don't own it yet, look for 52 loaves at a bookstore near you, or order online.

Yes, you can just take the recipes and instructional videos from my website , but if you really want to know why there's a picture of any abbey and the cover and what I'm doing with a scythe, you'll have to read the book. As Julia used to say, "Bon Appetit!"