The other day, the New York Times published a nice glossary of bread terms:
- Boule
- Any round, domed bread.
- Baguette
- Any long thin bread, often sourdough now but, classically, with a soft, light interior surrounded by a crackly, shattering crust.
- Bâtard
- Short, slightly flattened baguette.
- Ciabatta
- Flat, vaguely rectangular Northern Italian bread (the name means slipper) with an airy interior and chewy crust, usually dusted with flour.
- Ficelle
- Any extra-thin baguette. (The name means string.)
- Focaccia
- Flat, dense, tender bread from Liguria flavored with olive oil in the dough and on the crust.
- Fougasse
- Chewy-crusted, flattish sourdough wheat bread of Provence, often shaped into lacy and ladderlike patterns.
- Miche
- Any round sourdough French bread.
- Integrale
- The Italian term for whole wheat.
- Pain Au Levain
- A dense, whole-wheat French sourdough bread with a very chewy crust.
- Pugliese
- Big, round breads with very dark crust and light, airy interior, made from a mixture of white, whole wheat and sometimes rye flours.
- Sourdough
- Bread that has been allowed to ferment naturally, using a sourdough starter or wild yeast, instead of being hurried along with a commercial yeast.