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The following list of titles offers something for everyone. For those who are excellent
bakers already, some of these books merely will up the ante on your baking prowess. For
those who really want to be good bakers but are lacking knowledge and experience, there
are books here that will answer every question you have ever had about baking perfection.
And finally, for those who want some simple but delicious recipes that are easy to make at
home, there are books here to suit those needs as well.
THE BAKER'S DOZEN COOKBOOK: Become a Better Baker with 135 Foolproof Recipes and Tried-and-True Techniques
edited by Rick Rodgers
William Morrow
ISBN: 0060186283
The Baker's Dozen began over a decade ago, when world-renowned cookbook author and teacher
Marion Cunningham and professional baker Amy Pressman decided to get together with
like-minded people to discuss baking problems and solutions --- sort of like a Baker's
Summit, if you will. At the first meeting, 40 people showed up with 40 lemon meringue pies
and ideas on how to prevent weeping and shrinking meringues. Quite a first meeting. Since
then, The Baker's Dozen has grown to hundreds of members with two simple goals: Share what
you know about baking and learn from one another. And that is precisely what they have
done with this book.
What's so fabulous about THE BAKER'S DOZEN COOKBOOK is the useful information spread
throughout. The opening sections contain glossaries of ingredients and tools as well as
cake basics, before moving on to the recipes for cakes, sweet and savory pies, cookies,
breads, and more. Each recipe has a helpful hint or a baker's note, which is key for those
of us who approach baking with some degree of trepidation.
With the holidays quickly approaching, I am looking forward to getting elbow deep in flour
and baking some tried and true recipes from masters of the craft.
For more information go to BakersDozen.org.
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BASIC BAKING: Everything You Need to Know to Get You Started Plus 101 Luscious Desserts That You Can Make
Lora Brody
William Morrow
ISBN: 0688167241
The title of this book says it all. However, although BASIC BAKING is clearly aimed at
novice bakers, there are tips and variations on recipes that anyone would find useful.
Each recipe takes home bakers step-by-step through each process, using straightforward and
simplified terminology and techniques. Two of the most helpful sections of the book answer
all the pesky questions of "How do I?" and "What should I do if...?"
Lora Brody is the author of 25 cookbooks, and her conversational tone in BASIC BAKING
helps her achieve her goal of making baking fun for everyone.
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THE BUTTERCUP BAKE SHOP COOKBOOK: More Than 80 Recipes for Irresistible Old-Fashioned Treats
Jennifer Appel
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0743205790
Jennifer Appel is the co-founder of the famous Magnolia Bakery in New York's Greenwich
Village. She more recently opened The Buttercup Bake Shop in midtown Manhattan in order to
have more space to create her favorite main course...dessert! With THE BUTTERCUP BAKE SHOP
COOKBOOK, Jennifer Appel tempts readers into creating genuine old-fashioned treats, such
as Lady Baltimore Cake complete with a maraschino cherry on top.
This book has something for every dessert lover. There are chapters on cakes, cookies,
bars, pies, cobblers, puddings, breakfast sweets, and much more. Also included is a
section on seasonal desserts and another on fillings and frostings. Each easy-to-follow
recipe contains handy tips, serving suggestions, and variations to please different
tastes.
I'm a big fan of the Raspberry Cream Cheese Buns, and I suggest a trip to the Buttercup
Bake Shop to sample some of these fresh from the oven for those of you who live in New
York. For those of you who, like me, live far from the Big Apple, pick up a copy of THE
BUTTERCUP BAKE SHOP COOKBOOK and find your own personal favorite. I guarantee there will
be many.
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THE CAKE BIBLE
Rose Levy Beranbaum
William Morrow
ISBN: 0688044026
First published in 1988, THE CAKE BIBLE was named Cookbook of the Year by the
International Association of Culinary Professionals. And as stated in the foreword,
"If you ever bake a cake, this book will become your partner in the kitchen."
With its beautiful color photographs and delicate line drawings, this great encyclopedia
of cakes shares countless tips, extensive decorating techniques, and detailed information
on equipment and ingredients in its 500 plus pages.
Starting with the idea of demystifying the basics of cakes, icings, and fillings so that
they can then be combined to make anything a cake lover's heart desires, Rose Levy
Beranbaum gives us not only the "hows" but the "whys" in covering
everything from pancakes to simple butter cakes to four-tiered wedding cakes. Each recipe
includes information on complimentary fillings and adornments, serving and storing
suggestions, and pointers for success.
If you love to bake cakes or are merely a cake lover, this is a book you should not be
without. Now I just need an excuse to make the Golden Glory Wedding Cheesecake. Yum.
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THE CAKE MIX DOCTOR
Anne Byrn
Workman
ISBN: 0761117199
I bake one mean chocolate cake. And for years whenever I made it, I would shrink when
people asked for the recipe. You see, I always made it from a mix...and store bought
frosting. Duncan Hines. Betty Crocker. I am sure that since the advent of the cake mix
there are many people who have done the same thing. Manufacturers have realized this as
well, which is why they have added little gizmos like trimmings to decorate the top of the
cake and other little things to swirl into the batter.
When I found THE CAKE MIX DOCTOR there was finally a guide to get me out of the rut of
"add eggs, water and oil," often in measurements that I have memorized much like
my grandmother remembered the ingredients in her tomato gravy. Here are 150 recipes on how
to doctor those mixes to create new creations packed with even more taste.
Byrn takes basic mixes and turns them into layer cakes, Bundt cakes, bars, cookies,
chewies, and more. And every recipe is easy enough to pull together in just a few minutes
more than the basic mix. Quickly readers will see why they should buy buttermilk, sour
cream, and an assortment of instant pudding flavors when they pluck a cake mix from the
supermarket shelf.
The cakes are grouped in chapters that include Chocolate Cakes, Cakes with Fruit, Strike
It Rich Cakes, Cake-Mix Classics, Special Occasion Cakes (including an adorable
gingerbread house), and Incredible Bars and Comforting Cookies. And for those who are
visually challenged bakers --- there are wonderful color photographs on the opening pages
that can serve as a true inspiration.
The magic does not stop with the cakes. There are also some incredibly tasty frosting
recipes. My true favorite: peppermint buttercream!
Since this book came out I have been triple-layering, buttercreaming and otherwise
punching up my mix cakes, thus waking up some new taste buds. And my audience of tasters
--- my family and the staff of The Book Report Network, for whom I traditionally bake
cakes for birthdays and other special occasions, have given these thumbs up. If you bake,
or wish you could, it's well worth checking this one out.
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COOKIES UNLIMITED
Nick Malgieri
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060192852
Who can resist a cookie? Chef, teacher, and cookbook author Nick Malgieri has taken his
years of experience and love of the homemade cookie and gathered together 400 recipes from
around to world for COOKIES UNLIMITED. In this book, bakers will find everything from the
familiar to the unusual, from easy to elaborate, from simple chocolate chip cookies to
petit fours.
COOKIES UNLIMITED opens with a short history of the cookie, taking readers from Roman
times and the small cookies adorned with fruits and nuts --- the ancestors of fruitcakes
--- which were eaten at weddings and rites of fertility to the commercial cookie
production that began in the early years of the 20th century. Following this short history
are chapters on every type of cookie and bar as well as crackers and savory cookies.
This is an indispensable book for cookie lovers. It guides readers through every step,
describing fundamental techniques that lead to more advanced baking skills. Every chapter
contains both simple and elaborate recipes, with colorful photos and instructional line
drawings throughout. Treat yourself to a copy of COOKIES UNLIMITED and, next thing you
know, you'll be building a gingerbread house.
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FEARLESS BAKING: Over 100 Recipes That Anyone Can Make
Elinor Klivans
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0684872595
FEARLESS BAKING is a wonderful book for anyone who is timid about baking or who just wants
to improve their baking skills.
The book is organized in such a way that readers begin with simple recipes, building upon
basics, before moving on to more complicated desserts. In each recipe, the instructions
are clear and they include answers to questions that may arise while baking, tips on what
can be done in advance, and storage of baked goods.
Author Elinor Klivans is a pastry chef, cookbook author and food journalist, and her
experience and knowledge come through in the pages of FEARLESS BAKING.
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MY MOST FAVORITE DESSERT COMPANY COOKBOOK: Delicious Pareve Baking Recipes
Doris Schechter
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060197862
I must admit that, upon first getting this book, I did not know the term pareve. What I
now know from this delightful book is that pareve means made without those foods
designated dairy or meat by the rabbis. Because Kosher laws do not allow meat and dairy to
be served together, Doris Schechter has created an entire line of desserts that do not use
dairy products, although dairy may be substituted in any of the recipes.
My Most Favorite Dessert Company is the name of the restaurant that Doris Schechter and a
friend opened in Great Neck, New York in 1982. In 1986, the restaurant moved to Madison
Avenue, and in 1996, the final move was made to Avenue of the Americas. The restaurant is
certified by rabbis as Kosher, but they do serve dairy along with the pareve baked goods.
MY MOST FAVORITE DESSERT COMPANY COOKBOOK is written in a conversational tone with clear
directions and helpful hints. The book is nicely divided into sections: loaf cakes; layer
cakes and specialty cakes; pies and tarts; cookies; and Passover baking. Full of
wonderfully delicious recipes that are dairy free, MY MOST FAVORITE DESSERT COMPANY
COOKBOOK is a great addition to any kitchen.
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SWEET SICILY: The Story of an Island and Her Pastries
Victoria Granof
Regan Books/HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060393238
Sicily is an island that occupies a truly desirable spot in the Mediterranean. The climate
is mild and the landscape is lush, and the island has seen its fair share of visitors from
distant lands throughout the centuries --- all of whom have left their imprint on the
culture and, most notably, the cuisine. One local bakery uses jasmine blossoms from
jasmine that was planted by the Seracens over 1,000 years ago in a recipe for jasmine
gelato, and another uses a 500-year-old recipe for chocolate pastries brought to the
island by Bourbon conquerors.
SWEET SICILY opens with a brief history of the island, followed by a calendar of the
Festival Year. In Sicily, every religious holiday has a corresponding dessert --- marzipan
lambs for Easter, crunchy clove-scented cookies called "Bones of the Dead" for
All Souls Day. Also included are recipes for the familiar cannoli and the not so
familiar lucumie --- eggplant and chocolate pastries. Throughout this lovely book
there are gorgeous photographs of these desserts and of the people and the landscape that
make up the island of Sicily.
With the history, the calendar, the guide to pastry shops across the island, and the
photographs, SWEET SICILY obviously is not just a book of recipes. But the desserts are
just as complex and exciting and full of superstitions as the island itself. There is a
saying that pregnant women can't make pastry because their hands are too hot, so better to
send them to make bread. Well! Incredibly, most of the recipes for this book had never
been written down before --- they are handed down through generations and are made by
feel. But don't let that discourage you. As Victoria Granof says, as long as you cook with
heart, that is the best gift you can give. Still, I think I'll start with lemon gelato and
work my way towards "Triumph of Gluttony."
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A YEAR IN CHOCOLATE: Four Seasons of Unforgettable Desserts
Alice Medrich
Warner Books
ISBN: 0446526649
From the luscious photographs and names of the delectable sweets in this book, one would
think that it is only for the experienced chocolatier. Not so. I will freely admit
that I am a great cook but that baking always has me running a little scared. However, I
recently made the best ever chocolate cake right from the pages of this book. Alice
Medrich, the only two-time winner of the coveted James Beard "Cookbook of the
Year" Award, has written a book that takes readers step-by-step through her recipes
in such a skillful manner that she makes it all seem very easy and fun.
The introduction is full of helpful tips --- from the simple basics to more sophisticated
techniques --- that make all the difference for the recipes that follow. The book is then
broken into sections by seasons of the year. Hot chocolate souffle for a winter evening,
chocolate pound cake for a summer picnic. From very simple treats to the most decadent of
desserts, each recipe is laid out beautifully, with lists of ingredients for each
component --- cake, filling, icing, decoration --- along with a list of equipment to be
used and precise instructions.
And if you don't have the time to bake, pick up a copy of A YEAR IN CHOCOLATE anyway, if
just for the incredible photography and the prose of a chef who has a love affair with
chocolate. "Fall chocolate begs to be woven into deep primal flavors and rich aromas:
a harvest of nuts and lush fruit, the sweetness of caramel and honey...Fall chocolate is
ripe with nuance and possibility."
--- Reviewed by Anita Bunn and Carol Fitzgerald
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