If you’re at Costco, Walmart, or the grocery store this week, throw a box of Maldon sea salt in the cart. You’ll need it for Saturday’s focaccia, and once you have it you’ll use it on everything. Pretzels, roasted vegetables, finishing steaks, you name it. A box costs a few bucks and lasts months. Here’s why it matters for this bake. Regular table salt or fine sea salt dissolves into the olive oil and disappears. Maldon’s pyramid-shaped flakes hold their shape on the surface, giving you visible crunch and little pops of salt in every bite. That’s the texture contrast that makes Ligurian focaccia special. The brine seasons the bread from within. The Maldon finishes it from the top. 📖 Check the full ingredient list in the Pantry so you’re ready for Saturday: https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/ligurian-style-focaccia​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

This Saturday we're making something special. Valentine's Zebra Bread. Pink and white swirl. Soft, pillowy milk bread made with the tangzhong method. Natural color from roasted beetroot. No artificial dye, no specialty ingredients you can't find at your grocery store. The technique is called lamination. You make one dough, split it in half, color one half pink, then stack and roll them together. Every slice reveals the swirl pattern. It looks like it came from a high-end bakery, but the technique is actually straightforward once you see how it works. We've got two versions ready in the Recipe Pantry: Yeasted version: Same-day bake. About 4.5 to 5.5 hours start to finish. Mix in the morning, bake in the afternoon. Sourdough version: Two-day process. Build your levain Friday night, mix and shape Saturday, bake Saturday evening or cold retard overnight for a fresh Sunday morning loaf. Both use the same tangzhong base, same lamination technique, same scoring pattern. You pick which one fits your schedule. Don't have beetroot? No problem. This recipe works with any color contrast: - Cocoa powder for chocolate brown - Pumpkin puree for orange - Matcha for green - Turmeric for golden The swirl pattern works regardless of color. But for Valentine's Day, that natural pink is hard to beat. 📅 Saturday, February 8 — Bake-Along Day I'll post the working thread Saturday morning. Follow along, post your progress, ask questions as you go. We'll figure it out together. 📅 Friday, February 14 — Show Us Your Swirls Valentine's Day photo drop. Post your finished loaf. Best slice wins bragging rights. The Recipe: https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/valentines-zebra-bread?utm_source=skool&utm_medium=community&utm_campaign=recipe-share

What did you pick up? Pay attention to how they score the loaf—how many cuts work best and at what angle. This influencer probably needed five tries to get that one perfect shot. Just think about how many loaves they went through. There’s no need to replicate the spectacle, but we can learn from the technique.

Working Thread This is it. We’re making Vietnamese Banh Mi baguettes. Thin, crispy crust. Cloud-like crumb. That signature crack when you break it open. This is what we’re after. The Recipe: https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/vietnamese-banh-mi-baguette?variant=yeasted What makes this different: The sponge method. The steam technique. The way we’re handling the dough to get that texture. We talked about the rice flour question earlier this week, so if you’re experimenting with that 10-15% substitution, let us know how it goes. Shaping matters here: These need to be shaped tight. We’re going for those classic baguette scores that open up in the oven. Check the recipe for the technique. Steam is non-negotiable: However you’re creating it—pan of water, spray bottle, Dutch oven for the first part—you need steam. That’s what gives you the crust. Post your questions, your dough progress, your shaped loaves, your baked results. Everything here so we can all see what’s working. I’m here all day. Let’s see those baguettes. You got this.. 👇​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Get ready. This week we're baking one of my favorite breads, the Vietnamese bánh mì baguette. If you've ever had a great bánh mì sandwich, you know the bread matters. That shatteringly crisp crust that crackles when you bite into it. The soft, airy interior that doesn't compete with the fillings. It's lighter and faster than a traditional French baguette, and honestly, more forgiving too. This bread has a story. French baguettes arrived in Vietnam during colonial rule, and Vietnamese bakers made it their own. They adapted it to local ingredients, local tastes, local needs. What came out the other side is something special. Throughout the week, we'll break it down together. We'll talk about the sponge method and why it matters. We'll cover shaping a proper torpedo. We'll get into steam baking and how to get that crust right. A little history, a little science, all building toward Saturday when we bake together. Take a look at the recipe now: https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/vietnamese-banh-mi-baguette?variant=yeasted Familiarize yourself with the ingredients and the process. Grab what you need. When Saturday comes, you'll be ready. More posts coming this week. Stay tuned.