from: Gary G. - KANSAS
Sam:  I received the DVD's yesterday!  Great service.  I just watched the Baguettes & Traditional French Bread DVD and it is just excellent.  I am very impressed by the thoroughness as well as your easy to understand and follow instructions.  I  hope to be able to reproduce the results that you have shown.  I am anxious to watch the other DVD's.  Thanks for sharing your ability.  Gary

Answer:
Thanks Gary, should you have questions feel free to email me. Many home bakers have a tendency to under mix the dough and they usually ask me why it is not holding the rise very well so remember to mix the dough very well following the time indicated in the DVD or more if necessary. Also some ask me why their bread has a lighter color so I tell them to bake it for few extra minutes. Enjoy baking. Sam

from: Gary G. - KANSAS
Sam:  Well, I just made it through the first baking of the French baguettes and they are fantastic!  I can not tell you how appreciative I am of your skill in sharing your knowledge.  I have looked at most of the other DVD's and will be branching out in the near future.  I have been trying to achieve this result for over ten years so this is a very special event!
I have gone through the Baguette DVD and have written down the instructions in detail.  That allows me to follow a script as I can not see the TV from our kitchen.  I also used a pause sequence on the DVD during the baking run today to keep me doing things right.
With regard and appreciation, Gary
PS--let me know when you have new DVD's and any other publications that you might be working on.

From: Catherine B. - New Jersey
DEAR SAM,
FIRST I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR MAKING IT SO EASY TO MAKE BREAD. MY PROBLEM WHICH YOU MENTIONED, WAS NOT KNEADING ENOUGH, AND THROUGH TRIAL AND ERROR, I WASN'T ADDING ENOUGH FLOUR. I BORROWED MY NIECE'S CAMERA AND TOOK A PICTURE OF MY BREAD,WHICH I AM SO PROUD OF.I HAVE BEEN ADDING THE YEAST TO MAKE IT LESS TIME CONSUMING, BUT THE BREAD IN THE PICTURE WAS WITHOUT THE YEAST. I DON'T GET THE BIG AIR HOLES AND I WONDER WHY. CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT??? I HAVEN'T MADE THE PIZZA DOUGH YET,BUT I WILL.MOST SINCERELY, CATHERINE.

Answer:
Hello Catherine, your bread looks good, you started with the sourdough bread which is usually a bit more difficult than the traditional one... the air holes can vary in size, they don't have to be very big as long as the crumb is light and not dense, however three things determine the holes:

1- very well mixing which you have done
2- allowing fermentation and proofing time, if your kitchen temperature is below high seventies you may have to give more time than suggested in dvd.
3- gentle handling of dough, try not to deflate too much the air inside when shaping it and transferring it.

also while proofing make sure the skin of the dough does not dry out so that it can rise and stretch, cover it with a damp cloth and mist it often... make sure your oven is hot and to the temperature required so that the dough bounces and rises more while baking... try to slash the dough deeper to get it to expand more while baking... other than that with more practice you'll be able to feel the dough and determine what it needs... Enjoy baking
regards
Sam

From: Roman S. - British Columbia
Hello Sam, I just ordered your 3 set French Collection DVD.  I'm thinking about buying a mixer, a Bosch Universal (has a grain mill attachment) or Kitchen Aid to mix/knead dough.  Do you use a mixer/kneader, or do you think it would not be necessary?  Thanks,

Answer:
Hello Roman, in the DVDs I demonstrate how to mix using both methods, the electric mixer (kitchen aid) or by hand, you can get good results both ways, however I find that an electric mixer gets better results because it's more powerful than the hand and it develops the gluten in the dough very well.

It is also good to mix by hand sometimes just to get the feel of the dough and the elasticity but you will have to knead longer and really good to develop the gluten but still it will not develop it as much as the mixer does. Good mixing results in bigger rise, lighter crumb with a creamy color and more flavor...

So I would think buying a mixer is a good idea if you want to do serious baking but again it is not an absolute necessity.

I hope I answered your question.
Thanks
Sam.

From: Roman S. - British Columbia
Hello Sam, I received my three DVD’s - really enjoyed watching them and learned a lot.  Thanks for sharing your knowledge.  (I'm especially interested in learning how to bake authentic German sourdough rye bread - our family used to be able to get exceptional sourdough rye bread from an Austrian baker when I was boy living in Vancouver but I've never since been able to find anything even remotely close to that wonderful bread.) So, I’d like to buy the 6 other DVD’s, how much would it cost to buy those 6 in Canadian dollars?

Answer:
Hello Roman, thanks for your email. The French sourdough DVD shows how to make rye sourdough, The whole grain DVD also has the regular rye bread recipe. As far as buying the rest of the dvds, to save money order the Italian collection from the package deals and then the rest of the dvds individually... In canadian dollar it's about 10% to 11% more plus shipping.
Thanks
Sam

From: Judy G. - Minnesota
I am a beginning bread baker and just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your DVDs. I've made a few loaves of your chocolate bread and it's just THE BEST ever! Thank you for sharing your recipes. Sincerely, Judy.