Mother Grains

November 2, 2020
Jullapat, owner of the Friends & Family bakery in Los Angeles, serves up recipes that employ eight “mother grains” in this delightful work. A chapter is dedicated to each grain—barley, buckwheat, corn, oat, rice, rye, sorghum, and wheat—each of which begins with a study of that grain’s history (“rice toes the line between mundane and mystical”) and the forms in which it is available (barley comes as flour, berries, and a malt syrup that can be used, for instance, in a caramel topping for almond bars). Instructions—including those for home-milling flour—are thorough and use metric weights, and the author sets up schedules for more complicated projects, like chocolate babka with rye streusel. Jullapat doesn’t cut corners, insisting on homemade raspberry jam for a chocolate raspberry tart with a buckwheat crust. Flavor profiles run the gamut, from sweet Persian New Year rice-flour fritters with cardamom and rosewater to Finnish-style rye bread. Jullapat also pays homage to California with Sonora wheat croissants that can be split, filled with a halvah mixture, and baked. Homey choices include chocolate chip cookies made with seven of the eight grains, and spelt pretzels poached in beer. This compendium triumphs by making grains feel anything but stodgy.

April 1, 2021

Jullapat rose to acclaim as co-owner and head baker of Los Angeles restaurant Cooks County. Now the co-owner of Friends & Family, also in Los Angeles, Jullapat makes her authorial debut with an inviting collection about bread and pastry. With raw honesty, she recounts the impact of her mother's death at a young age, and her move from Orange County, CA, to her father's native Costa Rica as he attempted to find solace after grief. It was in Costa Rica that Jullapat began to immerse herself in the enjoyment of cooking. Her love of grains evolved after she moved back to California as an adult and began testing different flours as a baker at Cooks County. Jullapat explains how changing the type of flour in a recipe or adding a different grain can be transformative and inspire treats like her white cheddar cornmeal biscuits. The book's strength lies in its focus on grains that are easily accessible in grocery stores and online, including barley and rice. While all chapters feature inventive recipes, the oats section is a highlight, with star recipes like power oat bars. VERDICT Jullapat's conversational approach and winning recipes will draw in aspiring bakers and inspire existing ones.--Stephanie Sendaula, Library Journal

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