I generally shy from any bread that strikes me as overly soft. That said, I think there is a place for quick and easy eating bread, such a a type I made recently during my Thanksgiving dinner. Known in French as "petit pain aux restaurant," it translates to simply "a roll."

They come in various shapes and names (e.g. "jockey roll"), and have a more slightly dense crumb then their cousin, the egg-shelled baguette. With a bit of pre-fermented dough and a touch of yeast for rising, this makes for a quick bread for a dinner or lunch party. There's even a bit of butter to soften the crumb for longer lasting qualities. For a while now, I have been looking back at my old school formulas, some of which I don't think we even covered during the nine months of the course, taken over ten years ago. My teachers, more often then not, tweaked and changed the curriculum and hydrations when finding some mistakes along the way. So I think with my knowledge and practice, I can go back and see for myself what is good or not good for baking

My best critic (my wife), surprisingly didn't like the crumb; too doughy, she said. I can't figure her out, either too crusty or too doughy, there's no pleasing her! I suppose I'll have to just make her baguette or brioche, her only favorite breads in my repertoire.