Morton - Brilliant Bread

I want to kick this all off with a few promises.

I promise that, barring those blows that knock us all down from time to time, the very first bread you bake will be something to be proud of. Bake just a recipe or two from each chapter and welcome what I have to say; by the end youll be able to produce loaves like the worlds most impressive artisan bakeries. I assure you that your yields along the way will satisfy and inspire everyone who is lucky enough to taste or see or smell them.

These assurances are most sincere. Everyone has the right to know how straightforward baking brilliant bread can be. Allow me, and Ill humbly be your guide as very best I can if you have any problems, get in touch and Ill be happy to help you out. World-class buns are a goal that should be in every home ovens sights.

Theres a flaw with every bread book so far theyve all been written by professional bakers. This might seem logical, but it doesnt always work out. Most are a mishmash of scaled-down commercial recipes that are too convoluted to fit in with life, or are oversimplified and unexplained betrayals of the crafts principles. It remains a fact that home baking is on the rise, but still so few people make their own bread.

I hope youll notice that this book is a little different: it is built from the ground up for the home baker. I can show you how to blend baking into busy lives taken up by jobs and kids and build your bread confidence to a level whereby you can, on the shallowest whim, knock something together with the absolute assurance that it is going to be first-class. Youll be able to do this because you will understand not just how, but why it can be done. Certainly, everyone still manages to screw up from time to time, but Im happy to point out the pitfalls into which Ive tripped to help you avoid similar scrapes along your road.

Everyone can bake brilliant bread. As you progress through these chapters, the recipes will indeed become more challenging youll have to build on your new-found skills and experience, but very quickly youll be able to produce results that professionals strive to achieve. It is important that you take things a step at a time its best not to try a sweet sourdough as your first bread.

Every baker has their own story about how they got hooked. Mine is one of the more conventional I had an awesome granny. My circumstances, though, were a little eccentric.

Halfway down a hill in a tiny stone croft house at the end of a quiet single-track road in one of the most rural corners of the Shetland Islands: this is where I grew up. My grans house, a new Norwegian wooden number, was built to be next door. Shetland has its pros: its stunning, and in many ways is a wonderful place to grow up, but despite the howling wind, this kind of environment can get a bit quiet. Throughout my childhood, I managed to keep up with a few good friends but most days I chose my granny over them.

This was maybe due to her abundant supply of Jaffa cakes and our shared enjoyment of Countdown, but the baking also abounded. By the time I was in primary school, Gran was passing me recipes from her little handwritten book of secrets that she had never let my mother near. To this day, Mum still finds it hard to hide her raging jealousy.

Not long after I turned 11, we moved house. Not far away, but regular visits to Gran just werent possible anymore. Thankfully, the baking persisted. I progressed into my teens unsupported gastronomically and so had to find my own way. Predictably, I went through some phases: muffins was one of the longest, but other significant segments include pies, fairy cakes, sponges, biscuits, meringues, brownies, breads and, of course, tarts.

Bread stuck. Breads subtleties make it as seemingly diverse as all the other sorts of baking put together. It was quite easy to fill this book with recipes that all shine in their own way. There are elegances in it that youll come to know and love and admire. When a waiter with a bread basket passes you in a restaurant and you catch a whiff of its contents, youll instantly be able to tell if theyre carrying bought-in-bulk frozen and underbaked slabs or exquisite pieces of handmade sourdough. Bread made in a breadmaker is particularly pungent. When I galavanted off to medical school, my bread foundations were cemented into place. The fact is, baking bread is cheap you can buy 1.5kg strong flour for about 60p, which is enough for three big loaves. And I maintain that my breadmaking is the only reason my girlfriend fell for me (I may be wrong). Flatmates and family though, got frustrated with finding flour in funny places and with the sheer volume of starch they found themselves knocking back.

But even with the money I saved baking bread, after a year at uni I lacked cash. Sending my CV out to as many places as I could find, I was eventually offered one job in a posh cocktail bar (lots of money and good tips) and another job washing dishes in a kitchen (minimum wage). The kitchen won.

What I didnt know was that this production kitchen contained a fully equipped professional bakery, operated by my soon-to-be mate and mentor Big Davie C (real name David Carroll). Davie, just a couple of years older than me, was an inspiration. He was my gate into this amazing, varied and subtle world of baking that I had so far just scraped the surface of. He spoke lingo that I didnt understand but wanted to and, seeing my puzzled looks, he threw the few good home texts on the subject my way: Bertinet, Bourke Street, Reinhart.

Obsessively I did what I had not-too-long-ago learned to do very well: I studied. Very quickly, I was frustrated with the inaccuracies and inadequacies of the best books and plunged into the depths of science for answers. I soon saw that medicine and baking overlap quite pointedly.

Coincidentally, it was about this point that The Great British Bake Off Series 2 was on telly.

I dont like to dwell but its odd how things turn out, isnt it?

Some nine months later, when youre in a tent in Somerset with four judging eyes watching over your every intimidated move and half a dozen cameras are trying to capture the intricacies of the character portrayed within your baking, then the circumstances in which one can excel are limited. The time limits are ferocious and nothing goes the way it did at home assuming youve had time to practise. The warmth was the welcome hand of Sue or Mel or the contestants or crew.

Since Bake Off, lots of people have been in touch for all sorts of opportunities: glossy magazine interviews and fashion shoots? Yet another generic cake book? I dont know which is worse. This is what I wanted to do. If I introduce just a few more people to the world of bread, just as I was once inspired by Davie, then I will be happy. The more the merrier. Bread is as easy or complex as you want it to be. Its good for you, too.

The first few times you bake, you might find yourself scoffing the whole loaf straight from the oven. Dont worry, the novelty will wear off and perhaps the starch-induced nausea will set in. As a concept, home-made bread can be very good for you indeed.