Fougasse - Artisan Bread & books

Recently, I am really into bread making. The fermentation smell of the yeast is so addictive. While I am baking the bread, my little daughter will come to me as usual when the oven is releasing the aromatic smell. She would ask, "What are you baking, I want to eat it when it is done". Oh yes, it does make my kitchen smell like a bakery.

I have been searching high & low on store bought "real" bread or how to make a "real" bread. Finally, I managed to buy some great books on how to make real bread. Before we starts the bread talks, I knew that some of you always wonder where do I get my recipes .
Here are a few good books that I would recommend for making bread or pastry:

Bread:
http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Reinhart/e/B001H6W6I0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
http://www.dr-schnitzer.de/whole-grain-baking.htm
http://www.amazon.com/Dough-Simple-Contemporary-Richard-Bertinet/dp/1904920209

Pastry:
http://www.wilton.com/
http://www.marthastewart.com/
http://www.nigella.com/recipe/

Full fledged BAKING almost everything:
http://as.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-047178348X.html
http://www.channel4.com/food/recipes/

Let's get back to bread talks. This is my first attempt to make "Fougasse", 100% handmade. All along, I have been making bread using my mini industrial grade stand mixer. Last week, I have took up a challenge to make "Fougasse". In French cuisine, fougasse is a type of bread typically associated with Provence but found (with variations) in other regions. Some versions are sculpted or slashed into a pattern resembling an ear of wheat or leaf. I really "sweat" over it & working my hand non stop on the dough for 300 times ( at least 20mins). Of course, a French sifu will only take about 8-10mins. But, the result was satisfied. I have used the same dough to make 2 "Fougasse" & 2 "Baguette".

We ate 1 "Fougasse" after resting it for about 40min after it left the oven. Another "Fougasse" for our breakfast today. I do love the crunchiness of the bread. It tasted like a "yao zha guai" without oil. Yummy~ will definitely make it again.

By the way, I have made about 500g dough on Monday & the bread can only last until Wednesday morning. Guess what? I am raising a "pet" inside my fridge because it was so difficult to get fresh yeast in Malaysia for bread making. My "pet" is the sourdough levain ( or biga or polish.