Tartine
by Elisabeth Prueitt
from Chronicle Books
Every once in a while, a cookbook comes along that instantly says "classic." This is one of them. Acclaimed pastry chef Elisabeth Prueitt and master baker Chad Robertson share not only their fabulous recipes, but also the secrets and expertise that transform a delicious homemade treat into a great one. It's no wonder there are lines out the door of Elisabeth and Chad's acclaimed Tartine Bakery. It's been written up in every magazine worth its sugar and spice. Here their bakers' art is transformed into easy-to-follow recipes for the home kitchen. The only thing hard about this cookbook is deciding which recipe to try first: moist Brioche Bread Pudding; luscious Banana Cream Pie; the sweet-tart perfection of Apple Crisp. And the cakes! Billowing chiffon cakes. Creamy Bavarians bursting with seasonal fruits. A luxe Devil's Food Cake. Lemon Pound Cake, Pumpkin Tea Cake. Along with the sweets, cakes, and confections come savory treats, such as terrifically simple Wild Mushroom Tart and Cheddar Cheese Crackers. There's a little something here for breakfast, lunch, tea, supper, hors d'oeuvres and, of course, a whole lot for dessert! Practical advice comes in the form of handy Kitchen Notes. These "hows" and "whys" convey the authors' know-how, whether it's the key to the creamiest quiche (you'll be surprised), the most efficient way to core an apple, or tips for ensuring a flaky crust. Top it off with gorgeous photographs throughout and you have an utterly fresh, inspiring, and invaluable cookbook.
The Pastry Queen: Royally Good Recipes from the Texas Hill Country's Rather Sweet Bakery & Cafe
by Rebecca Rather
from Ten Speed Press
Texas accent and all-American flavor, even pitching in to help her put a fresh coat of paint on the porch of her Main Street shop. Rather takes the best of the Lone Star State—pecans, peaches, pralines, chiles, dulce de leche, German sausage—and turns out treats that taste like home, only better than anything homemade ever tasted before. There are the Bacon-Cheddar Scones, the Texas High Hairs Tarts (the only big hair Rather has ever had!), Fourth-of-July's Fried Pies, Turbo-Charged Brownies with Praline Topping, pillowy Kolaches (yeasted buns with savory fillings), dulce de leche, German sausage—and turns out treats that taste like home, only better than anything homemade ever tasted before. Self-taught, Rather's 150 utterly original recipes reflect her made-with-love-from-scratch philosophy and are guaranteed to get everyone fixin' to bake.
The Pie and Pastry Bible
by Rose Levy Beranbaum
from Scribner
- The Pie And Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
- scribner
The Pie and Pastry Bible is your magic wand for baking the pies, tarts, and pastries of your dreamsthe definitive work by the country's top baker who's a frequent contributor to all the major food magazines and The New York Times. This extensive, 692 page cookbook includes:
Reading about the ins and outs of baking the perfect, flaky pie crust is a little like reading about how to achieve the perfect golf swing: the proof is in the doing. And it often takes a remarkably intuitive reader to understand exactly what the author is getting at. Not so the work of Rose Levy Beranbaum, the author who gave us The Cake Bible. If ever there was a cookbook author who could place her hands on top of yours, putting you through the proper motions, helping you arrive at just the right touch, Beranbaum is the one.
The Pie and Pastry Bible begins with the crust. The author confesses right up front that 21 years ago, when she first began her quest for the perfect crust, "it was a complete mystery to me." She wasn't looking for a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but something she could consistently turn out at a moment's notice. The ideal pie crust, she writes, "has light, flaky layers, but also ... is tender, and nicely browned, with a flavor good enough to eat by itself."
In a book that stretches to about 700 pages long, her favorite pie crust is the first recipe: Perfect Flaky and Tender Cream Cheese Pie Crust. Typically, Beranbaum lists the ingredients by measure and weight for three separate sizes of pies, then gives instructions for the food processor or by hand.
After 70 pages of pie crusts, tart crusts, and crumb pie crusts of every imaginable make and combination, Beranbaum starts with fruit pies. Her first (of many) detailed charts shows exactly what her ratios are of fruit to sugar to cornstarch. Then each recipe (start with The Best All American Apple Pie) includes pointers for success as well as several variations on the theme. Under the headline "Understanding," Beranbaum goes that extra mile by taking the trouble to explain just why something works the way it does.
If you are only going to own one cookbook for pie and pastry recipes of every imaginable stripe and combination, you can't go wrong with this one. It's the Bible, after all. --Schuyler Ingle
Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes
by Alisa Huntsman
from Chronicle Books
- Layer upon layer of delectable treats!
- Recipes are clear and easy to follow.
- Simple for the novice.
- Appealing to more experienced bakers.
- Stunning photographs.
Elevate the classic layer cake to new heights of creativity in many flavors, textures, and beautiful presentations. Use fillings and frostings in a wide range of delectable flavors. Recipes are clear and easy to follow. Designed to look beautiful with minimal decoration, simple for the novice but appealing to more experienced bakers. Stunning photographs. Hardcover, 222 pages. Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne.
Crabapple Bakery Cupcake Cookbook
by Jennifer Graham
from Penguin Global
Grand Livre de Cuisine: Alain Ducasse's Desserts and Pastries
by Alain Ducasse
from "Stewart, Tabori and Chang"
In this magnificent volume, the second in the Grand Livre de Cuisine series, celebrated chefs Alain Ducasse and Frédéric Robert comprehensively cover the art of making desserts, pastries, candy, and other sweets. Everything is here— mousses and fondants; cookies and cakes; ice creams and sorbets; bonbons and nougats; fruit tarts, profiteroles, and sweet crèpes.
The book’s 250 mouth-watering recipes range from traditional treats such as peach melba, candied apples, and oeufs à la neige to audacious concoctions such as tropical fruit– stuffed ravioli and coconut-encrusted lollipops. Decidedly French yet international in flavor, the book presents the authors’ masterful takes on American cheesecake; Italian cannolis, zuppa inglese, and tiramisù; and the Austrian confections known as viennoiseries.
Organized by main ingredient, the Grand Livre’s structure epitomizes Ducasse’s philosophy of cooking and baking, which holds that culinary techniques should accentuate and enhance an ingredient’s true nature—not mask it. The book features more than 650 color photographs, including a full-page, close-up photo of each finished dish. Cross-sectional drawings clearly display the internal “architecture” of some of the more complex creations.
On Baking: A Textbook of Baking and Pastry Fundamentals
by Sarah R. Labensky
from Prentice Hall
Rosie's Bakery All-Butter, Fresh Cream, Sugar-Packed, No-Holds-Barred Baking Book
by Judy Rosenberg
from Workman Publishing Company
They're full of butter, cream, eggs, sugar, and sometimes the chocolate doesn't quit. But the cakes, cookies, pies, and goodies assembled in Rosie's Bakery are hands-down the best you'll ever taste. And aren't you worth the treat?
A nationally celebrated baker from Boston, Judy Rosenberg shares 200 of her recipes, including Pieces of Cakes: Rosie's Famous Sour Cream Chocolate Layer Cake, The Queen Raspberry, The Velvet Underground. The Smart Cookies: Orange-Pecan-Chocolate Chip Cookies, Gingersnappers, Sunken Kisses, Very Short Shortbread Cookies. The Harvard Squares: Extra Extra Fudgy Brownies, Chunky Chocolate Bars, Honeypots, Linzer Bars. The Cutie Pies: All-American Apple Pie, Blueberry-Plum Crumb Pie, Nectarine Synergie, Raspberry Chiffon Pie. And The Old Smoothies: Bourbon Bread Pudding, Pumpkin Caramel Custard, Truffle SoufflS.
Along the way, the author proves to be a trusted and knowledgeable guide who reveals almost all the hard-won secrets of her baking success. She lists her five basic rules of baking, and gives instructions on how to mix, bake, remove, serve, and store every different kind of baked good-from angel food cakes to filled pastry cookies. Winner of a 1991 IACP/Julia Child Cookbook Award. 181,000 copies in print.
Baker's Manual (5th Edition)
by Joseph Amendola
from Wiley
Crucial formulas for baking success--an updated edition of the classic reference
What do virtually all breads and desserts have in common? They rely on baking formulas, the building block "recipes" that every serious baker must master. For example, behind every tempting napoleon lies a formula for classic puff pastry, while a truly heavenly chocolate brownie cannot exist without the knowledge of how to temper chocolate. Compiled by a veteran instructor at The Culinary Institute of America, this authoritative reference contains 200 completely up-to-date formulas using essential ingredients found in today's pastry kitchens. From American Pie Dough and Pâté Brisée to Pastry Cream and Crème Anglaise, these recipes are written in small- and large-yield versions to accommodate the needs of the serious home baker as well as the pastry chef.
Olive Oil Baking: Healthy Recipes That Increase Good Cholesterol and Reduce Saturated Fats
by Lisa Sheldon
from Cumberland House Publishing
Recent media attention has focused on research showing the health benefits of a Mediterranean-style diet. Olive Oil Baking is a unique addition to the growing selection of Mediterranean diet cookbooks, applying the lessons learned from this research to familiar desserts.
The focus of Olive Oil Baking is the whys and how-tos of substituting olive oil and other healthy oils and fats in favorite desserts and treats that typically use margarine and/or butter. These recipes also introduce other simple changes and options that make them healthier than traditional recipes and store-bought bakery goods. In every case, these changes preserve or improve on the familiar tastes, smells, and textures we have come to expect from a baker's kitchen.
Olive Oil Baking is not just another pretty face in the crowd of dessert cookbooks. In addition to more than 120 recipes for healthy, irresistible cookies, bars, and other desserts, it helps home bakers learn how to make healthy changes in their favorite recipes without sacrificing flavor or texture. It presents techniques and tips that show how to make healthy changes in cooking that do not require families to adopt a new diet or eat foods they won't enjoy. It is filled with recipes that are simple to prepare, using easy-to-find ingredients that are within any budget.
Olive Oil Baking is for anyone who enjoys baking, from the novice to the experienced baker. An indispensable reference for traditional home bakers who want to make healthy changes in the family diet, it can also help small-scale bakeries interested in offering fresher, healthier alternatives to their customers, in contrast to the mass-produced "low fat" cookies and treats found on supermarket shelves.
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