The Secrets of Baking:
Simple Techniques for Sophisticated Desserts

In writing this book, my goal is to take the fear, mystery, and guesswork out of baking.

I can never have too many baking books, well actually, I can never have too many cookbooks or even just books in general but baking books definitely hold a particular fascination for me, especially ones that talk about technique and the science behind baking. I just recently bought this book and I can't say enough good things about it. It's a terrific read and even if I never make a single recipe from it I will walk away a much better baker because of it. Now that's a pretty good deal. It was the 2004 James Beard Foundation/Kitchenaid Book Award winner in the category of baking and in my opinion (not that anyone asked) it was a well deserved win. The photography is outstanding, the writing is good, the recipes look mouthwatering and with Yard's guidance they certainly seem approachable. Oh who am I kidding, just knowing that she has a chocolate Labrador Retriever named Chunk was enough to convince me to buy the book.

Curd is not the most romantic of terms, but it is descriptive.

From the forward by Jacques Pepin which is short and sweet and thankfully doesn't drone on we get a sense that not only is Yard a passionate chef but that she is classically trained, highly skilled, and very down to earth. A real plus in my opinion since I tend to abandon books that are too didactic and severe in their approach. The concept of the book; to make baking a less formidable endeavor by teaching the basic principles of baking and the science behind it is well executed and written in terms that even a novice baker like myself can understand. The book is broken down into 12 chapters each chapter beginning with a master recipe including tips and troubleshooting for what might go wrong and how to correct it. The chapters are then further broken down into smaller subcategories (like a family tree) with recipes that stem from that one master recipe. For instance, in the section entitled Curds we are given a master recipe for Lemon Curd with variations including Blackberry-Lime Curd and Passion Fruit Curd. These curds are then divided into subcategories titled Baked and Augmented (not baked) with recipe examples of each style. On the Baked side there is Lemon Soufflé, Lemon Bars and Lemon Pudding Cakes and on the Augmented side there is Lime Fondue, Passion Fruit Bavarois and Ginger-Lime Curd Ice Cream. The point being that with the one recipe and the addition of flour and eggs in different quantities you can get at least six new and exciting desserts. I'd just like to take a moment here to say, OMG, Ginger-Lime Curd Ice Cream. For that recipe alone it was worth buying the book, I can't wait to try it.

Learn one technique and you'll have many different possibilities at your fingertips.

Some of the other chapters include Caramel: From Crunchy to Creamy to Clear, Pâte à Choux: From Cream Puffs and Profiteroles to Beignets and Cannoli, Financier: The Easiest Cake in the World, Laminated Dough: From Puff Pastry to Classic Croissants to Rich Apple Turnovers. The section on Ganache (Master recipe) is filled with recipes for desserts like Truffles, Chocolate Soufflé, Chocolate Sabayon, Champton Place Hot Chocolate (pictured above) and a recipe for a Deep, Dark Chocolate tart that is so unbelievably dark it looks black. Hmm, now that I'm listing these it might be best if I didn't make anything from this book, if the desserts turn out even half as good as the photography by Ron Manville then I’m in trouble.

Written by Deb on March 1, 2005 02:50 AM