Local Breads: Sourdough and Whole-Grain Recipes from Europe's Best Artisan Bakers

Daniel Leader is the owner and baker of the Bread Alone Bakery in New York's Catskill Mountains. Dan's food career began when, nine months short of his undergraduate philosophy degree from the University of Wisconsin, he realized his need to work with his hands as well as his mind. He enrolled at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, graduated at the top of his class, and, worked as a chef for some of New York City's hottest restaurants, La Grenouille and the Water Club. Then, after eight years of cooking food "too fancy to eat," he became obsessed with the idea of creating something wholesome, timeless, and beautiful. Great bread and Bread Alone were born. Dan lives in Boiceville, New York, with his wife, Sharon, and four children, Liv, Nels, Octavia, and Noah.

Lauren Chattman is a former professional pastry chef and the author of several books, including Bread Making: A Home Course and The Baking Answer Book. Her other books include the IACP-winning Local Breads, which she cowrote with Daniel Leader, and Dessert University, written with White House pastry chef Roland Mesnier. She lives with her family in Sag Harbor, New York.