Steam burns hurt. Like really, really hurt. The small mark on my left forearm begs the question every day: Maurizio, was it worth it?

But before we talk about my new baking badge of honor, let’s concentrate on overcoming the challenges of baking good bread at home. While many of these challenges present themselves early on in the two-day process (fermentation, flour selection, mixing, shaping, and so on), there is that crucial component at the end of this whole ordered procession: baking with steam in a high-temperature home oven.