From Baguettes to Naan
Discover a world of bread baking in your own kitchen and fill your home with the wonderful aromas of fresh-baked loaves with these recipes from around the globe. This collection includes everything from crusty French baguettes and airy Tuscan focaccia to classic Indian naan and cheesy Brazilian pao de queijo.
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Irish Soda Bread
If you think you can’t bake bread, this is a fantastic recipe to start with. With no yeast or long rising, Irish soda bread (so-called for its use of baking soda as a leavening agent) is quick, easy, and has a wonderful moisture and richness from buttermilk. You only need five ingredients to produce a gorgeous loaf you can enjoy with Irish stew.
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Pan de Muerto (Mexican Day of the Dead Bread)
Pan de muerto is an essential part of Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations each fall, when many families offer a loaf for the enjoyment of visiting souls. This version with orange zest and aniseed is common to Mexico City and produces one sweet round loaf decorated with pieces of dough in shapes that represent bones and tears.
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Classic Crusty French Bread
Crunchy on the outside and soft and airy on the inside, classic French bread is one of the true pleasures of life. This easy recipe requires only a single rise and no bread machine, producing two perfect baguettes you can slice and smear with butter or dip into meaty braises and stews.
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Naan (Leavened Indian Flatbread)
Naan is the soft, fluffy flatbread served with nearly every meal in India. You don’t need a traditional tandoor to make it at home with this recipe—just your oven, and a foil-lined sheet pan. The secret to its buttery flavor is ghee (clarified butter), which is used in countless Indian dishes.
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Khobz (Moroccan White Bread)
Moroccan white bread has a round, flattish shape similar to pita. It traditionally used for scooping up tagines, but makes an excellent sandwich bread, too. To achieve its unique, slightly coarse texture, use bread flour or another high-gluten flour blend.
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Tuscan Focaccia
Focaccia is a soft, olive-oil soaked flatbread with a wonderfully crispy crust and airy light crumb. Try it for a tasty alternative to garlic bread whenever you eat Italian. This bread is best enjoyed the day it is made, but you can slice up leftovers for use in panzanella salad.
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Italian Ciabatta Bread
Don’t believe everything you read. Italian ciabatta bread has a reputation for being difficult to prepare, but if you follow this recipe, it’s actually quite easy. Serve it sliced with good-quality olive oil, tomatoes, basil, and a sprinkle of sea salt for a taste sensation.
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Pan de Jamón (Venezuelan Ham and Olive Bread)
Venezuelans enjoy this slightly-sweet bread stuffed with ham, olives, and raisins at Christmas time, but you could serve as an attractive lunch or brunch item at any time of year. It looks impressive, but is straightforward to make by layering fillings onto the dough and rolling into a log for baking.
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Russian Sourdough Dark Rye Bread
Dense, dark, and hearty, with flavors of molasses, chocolate, and coffee, this is a bread to sustain you through the cold winter months. It can transform a bowl of soup into a meal, and tastes incredible with egg salad. This is not a last-minute project though—plan to make the rye sour four to five days ahead before you get baking.
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Vetebröd (Swedish Sweet Yeasted Bread)
Cardomom-scented Swedish sweet bread makes a satisfying snack with your afternoon coffee or tea. The nicely-spiced, enriched dough fills your kitchen with a heavenly, holiday-like scent as it bakes and the pearl sugar topping adds delicious sweetness and crunch.
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Dreikernebrot (German Seed Bread)
Thick with whole grain goodness, plus sesame, sunflower, and pumpkin seeds, this chewy German loaf will satisfy your craving for dense bread. Start a day ahead by preparing two separate doughs, which you leave to ferment overnight. In the morning, combine them, add other ingredients, and let rise again before baking.
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Pan de Agua (Puerto Rican Water Bread)
Puerto Rican water bread has a similar ingredient list to classic French or Italian bread. What makes it different is the baking method, which asks you to start the dough in a cold oven, set atop a pan of boiling water. The bread will continue to rise as the oven heats, producing a deliciously thin and crispy outer crust.
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Puerto Rican Pan Sobao
Also known as lard bread (pan de manteca), Puerto Rica pan sobao or “kneaded bread” is similar to French bread but with a softer crust. Making it with lard is key, but shortening or a vegan substitute can be used instead.
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Danish Rye Bread
This moist, seedy Danish rye bread is simple to make and open to customization. It’s a little bit like fermented oatmeal that you can slice and toast for breakfast or use as the foundation for an open-faced sandwich at lunchtime.
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Danish Kringle
From Denmark, this sweet bread recipe is perfect for breakfast and brunch. Danish kringle is a favorite for the holidays and offers a cinnamon roll experience in a more festive form. The yeast dough is shaped into a ring and filled with butter, cinnamon, pecans, and sugar. Topped with icing, it's a wonderful treat you'll want to make throughout the year.
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Krompirjev Kruh (Slovenian Potato Bread)
Use up leftover mashed potatoes to make this soft, supple, white bread. Enjoy it on its own, or use it for sandwiches, stuffings, or bread puddings. You’ll get two oval loaves out of this recipe. Slice and freeze one if not using right away for easy, homemade breakfast toast anytime.
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Pão de Queijo (Brazilian Cheese Bread)
Brazilian cheese bread rolls with soft, chewy centers are a savory delight that require no yeast or rising time. Make them with tapioca flour (find it at Latin markets or online), along with farmer’s cheese and just a few other simple ingredients. For extra-cheesy rolls, top them with grated cheddar before baking.
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Jewish Bread Machine Challah
Eggy challah bread is a staple of Jewish Yom Kippur holiday celebrations. It makes excellent French toast and grilled cheese sandwich bread, too. This recipe that can be made with your bread machine or oven yields a large, two-pound loaf suitable for feeding a crowd.
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Polish Buttermilk Rye Bread
Buttermilk adds the tang you crave in rye bread, without all the time and effort of making a sour starter. It needs only a single rise and bakes up quickly, producing two lovely, round, golden loaves. Use them for sandwiches, stuffings, or as an attractive serving vessel for bread bowl dips.
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Indigenous Fry Bread
Indigenous fry bread is fried in oil, versus baked in an oven. This egg-free version needs only four ingredients, plus oil or shortening. Make it in about 15 minutes in a tall-sided skillet or Dutch oven, to serve with chili or other hearty stews for dipping. Tastes great topped with maple syrup or fruit preserves, too.
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Pan de Leche (Spanish Sweet Milk Bread)
Spanish sweet milk bread makes a special treat at breakfast or a sweet pick-me-up with your afternoon cup of tea. It is easy enough for even novice bakers to make. Use unbleached white flour for a nicely dense texture. This recipe produces four large rolls.
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Traditional Italian Bread
Rustic Italian bread—with its thin crispy crust, and tender crumb—is a thing of beauty. This is the essential recipe you need to make the bread easily at home. It yields two long loaves, perfect for slicing and serving with hearty soups and pasta dishes (or for turning into garlic bread!).
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Wurzelbrot (Swiss Twisted Bread)
Swiss wheat bread gets its name from its signature, twisted shape, which is said to resemble winding tree roots. During its long rise in the fridge (from overnight to a full day), many of the starches in the dough are converted to sugars. When baked, these natural sugars caramelize, creating wonderfully deep, nuanced flavors.
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Lachcha Paratha (Layered Indian Bread)
Flaky, buttery Indian paratha is a traditional accompaniment to chicken tikka masala and other hearty curries. It takes just 30 minutes to make with no oven needed. Layer together multiple discs of the simple, buttery, four-ingredient dough for pan-frying on your stove top until the bread puffs up and turns crispy and golden.
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Christopsomo (Greek Christmas Bread)
Greek Christopsomo (literally “Christ’s bread”) is a sacred tradition in many Orthodox homes at holiday time. Filled with brandy, red wine, nuts, dried fruits, and cozy spices, it will fill your kitchen with wonderful baking aromas. Tips are included for decorating it the traditional way, with pieces of dough formed into crosses and other seasonally-inspired shapes.
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Schwarzwaelder Kruste (German Black Forest Bread)
There is nothing quite like this gorgeously rich dark wheat and rye German bread for making ham and Swiss cheese sandwiches with Dijon mustard. Set up the simple sourdough and sponge the day before baking. Use a pizza stone in your oven when baking time arrives to create the desired thick, chewy crust.
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Bolillos (Mexican White Bread)
Bolillos are the white bread rolls most often used to accompany Mexican meals. They’re small and individually-sized, similar in texture and shape to French rolls. Make them easily with this recipe, which is simple enough for beginning bread makers. It needs only six ingredients and just a bit of kneading.
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Turkish Lavas Puff Bread
Turkish lavas puff bread is sometimes called “balloon bread” because the dough puffs up with steam as it cooks. This creates a hollow center and a thin, crispy crust. Cut it into wedges for a fabulous party appetizer you can serve with artichoke dip, roasted red pepper dip, or warm goat cheese.
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Khobz dyal Smida (Moroccan Semolina Bread)
Semolina, more commonly known as an Italian pasta ingredient, combines with white flour to create this flavorful flatbread from Morocco. You can experiment with the proportions as you gain confidence with this recipe. The more semolina you use, the deeper the yellow color and chewier the texture.
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Pogacha (Croatian Bread)
Pogacha is a rustic Eastern European bread with a similar texture and flavor to Italian bread. This recipe for a single round loaf uses all-purpose flour and other common baking ingredients. You could also add dill or sesame seeds into the dough for a true taste of the region.
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Bread Machine Oregano and Romano Cheese Bread
Bake up this aromatic Italian herb and cheese bread to accompany a hearty family meal of spaghetti and meatballs. Only seven ingredients are needed, plus a little water, to form the dough for baking in the bread machine. Or use the included tips to make a free-form loaf for your oven.
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French Whole Wheat Bread
This beginner-friendly recipe uses whole wheat flour to increase the fiber quotient of a classic, long French bread. To get a crispy, caramelized crust, spray the loaf with warm water twice—once before placing it into the oven on a baking sheet, and a second time about five minutes into the bake.
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Danish Rye Bread
Danish rye bread is incredibly dense and full of texture. It might even be a superfood bread with its nutritious ingredient list that includes a fermented sourdough starter. There’s spelt and dark rye flours, whole rye berries, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, honey, and dark beer.
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Bauernbrot (German Farmer's Bread)
Don’t let the humble name fool you. Bauernbrot (farmer’s bread) is one of the great German breads. It uses half white and half whole wheat flours, a bit of sourdough starter, and caraway seeds to recreate the quintessential German bread experience. This is a bread that freezes well so you may want to make an extra loaf.
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Israeli Pita
Make your own, fresh Israeli pita for enjoying with hummus, tabbouleh, or baba ganoush. The recipe produces pita that are flat and designed for dipping, versus the stuffable pitas you might use for sandwiches.
