Baking with the St. Paul Bread Club

Recipes, Tips, and Stories

Author Kim Ode

Minnesota Historical Society Press (May 4, 2021)

Join the St. Paul Bread Club as they fashion their favorite recipes, share tips and secrets that have long been kept, and build a rich community dedicated to the art of the perfect loaf.

Description

In St. Paul, Minnesota, a diverse group of men and women have found each other, united by a single passion: baking bread. Once a month, a professional production bakery is transformed into a lively forum for those hooked on this satisfying ritual. Veteran journalist and club member Kim Ode invites novices and masters alike to join these dedicated bakers in the kitchen as they share family traditions, experiment with new ingredients, exchange tips, and roll up their sleeves to work the dough.

Over seventy favorite recipes emerge from intimate profiles of the club members who perfected them—from the accountant and her nearly flawless baguette to the former Iron Ranger who shares the secrets of her grandmother’s strudel-like potica. The club’s newest member, a book designer who was given a copy of The World of Breads nearly four decades ago, has since transformed the book’s anadama recipe into a peppery delight, swapping out molasses for chipotles and butter for bacon fat.

Author Kim Ode demystifies this ancient art with special sections on “Bread Wisdom for Beginners” and “Seasonal Favorites,” and club founder Dan “Klecko” McGleno offers a step-by-step guide to starting a bread club in your own hometown. Whether you prefer to bake in solitude or wish to build a community in pursuit of the perfect loaf, this book reveals the true heart of this everyday food.

(Originally published in hardcover, 09/01/2006)

Author information

Kim Ode is a veteran newspaper reporter and columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. She lives with her family in Edina, Minnesota, where the aroma of fresh-baked bread regularly wafts from the wood-fired brick bread oven in the backyard. She currently teaches baking classes with the North House Folk School.

Reviews and news

The Heavy Table

City Pages

Good Age

MNArtists

Baltimore Sun

East Bay Times

The Culinary Cellar

Lavash, Winter Midnight Bulgur Bread, Ihla's Oatmeal Bread recipes in the Star Tribune

Videos with Kim Ode for the North House Folk School

Advance Praise:

“Baking with the St. Paul Bread Club give us come-hither recipes, but even more valuable are the people themselves. You will want them in your life, and with this book, you will bake bread. You won't be able to help yourself.”
Lynne Rossetto Kasper, host of public radio's national food show, The Splendid Table®, from American Public Media

“Baking with the St. Paul Bread Club is a delightful book. I love all the stories about bread bakers and the recipes are terrific. The bits of helpful information and baking tips make the book a valuable resource. It will send me right to the kitchen!”
Beatrice Ojakangas, cookbook author, including the popular The Great Scandinavian Baking Book

“The St. Paul Bread Club reminds us that baking is part of our communal heritage and that bread will always taste better in the company of neighbors.”
David Bauer, baker and instructor, North House Folk School, Grand Marais, Minnesota

• 160 pages
• 70 recipes, 5 illustrations and 5 photographs
• 8 x 9 inches
• ISBN: 9781681342054