Food52 Baking Is a Treat

I consider myself blessed to come from a long line of solid cooks who know their way around a kitchen. My mother was in her element baking dozens upon dozens of cookies and breads for Christmas. My grandmother kept a variety of freshly baked treats in her kitchen "just in case company stops by." Both would appreiate Food52's newest offering, Baking: 60 Sensational Treats You Can Pull Off In a Snap.

Personaly, I'm thrilled that the 60 treats includes some breakfast treats (I have a love affair with scones going) and some savory delights (pizza dough! Basil onion cornbread! Cheese crispettes!) for times you want a special something that's not sweet. The recipes are divided into seven sections: breakfast, cookies & bars, fruit desserts, custardy cakes & puddings, everyday cakes, special occasion cakes, and savory baked goods. The recipes themselves are clearly written with ingredients listed in a column on the left, an introduction to begin (which often includes serving suggestons, help with less familiar ingredients, and personal anecdotes from the contributor'a experience), and step by step instructions below. Any special technique instructions are also included at the end. (This is why it is always a good idea to read any recipe through to the end before beginning.) For example, p. 63 instructs readers "How to Cut in Butter."

The fact that each section is delineated by a full-spread color photo (try not to drool) and each recipe includes an equally scrumptious image (if only it were scratch & sniff!) had me me ogling the pages like teenaged boys who've gotten their hands on their first swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated. What really hooked me in and made me fall in love with this book were the slight twists on familiar treats that made me exclaim things like "of course!" and "genius!" aloud. The addition of cinnamon and yogurt in "Bestest Banana Bread" now seems like something I should have known before. The recipe for Spiced Parsnip Cake (parsnips replacing carrots) is pure genius. And although it sounds really odd, I'm willing to trust the authors that the addition of a can of tomato soup will enhance a spice cake with cream cheese frosting in ways that will leave your guests asking for more.

I'd like to thank Blogging For Books for the review copy I received free in exchange for this review. I am thrilled to add this to my cookbook collection and look forward to baking delicious treats from it for years to come!

From the Publisher . . .

A stunning collection of hassle-free recipes for baking cakes, cookies, tarts, puddings, muffins, bread, and more, from the editors behind the leading food website Food52.

Whether it’s the chocolate cake at every childhood birthday, blondies waiting for you after school, or hot dinner rolls smeared with butter at Thanksgiving dinner, homemade baked goods hold a place in many of our best memories. And that’s why baking shouldn’t be reserved for special occasions.

With this book, curated by the editors of Food52, you can have homemade treats far superior to the store-bought variety, even when it feels like you’re too busy to turn on the oven. From Brown Butter Cupcake Brownies to “Cuppa Cuppa Sticka” Peach and Blueberry Cobbler, these sixty reliable, easy-to-execute recipes won’t have you hunting down special equipment and hard-to-find ingredients or leave you with a kitchen covered in flour and a skink piled high with bowls. They’re not ordinary or ho-hum, either: ingredients you’ve baked with before (and some you haven’t – like black sesame, coconut oil, and lavender) come together to create new favorites like Baked Cardamom French Toast and Olive Oil and Sesame Crackers. Filled with generations’ worth of kitchen wisdom, beautiful photography, and tips you’ll return to, Baking is the new go-to collection for anyone who wants to whip up something sweet every day.

A Jewish Baker's Pastry Secrets

This book should come with a warning label: May Cause Drooling and/or Hunger Pangs.

I will be the first to admit I have a problem passing up pastries. So it is my own fault I found it hard to put this book down. I grew up with a grandmother who baked and I miss her cinnamon rolls, coffee cakes, Christmas bread, and pastries. Discovering this book is like wandering into her kitchen while she was in the throws of kneading the dough or forming the rolls. What a treasure!

If you haven't baked pastries or been around others who do, one thing that you may find surprising about this book is that several different creations can be made from each "master dough". The main difference in results comes from the fillings and the way the dough is formed or shaped.

Greenstein, and his off-spring who helped compile this book following his death, offers readers detailed instructions not only on each recipe, but also on things such as why measuring is most important in baking and how to "read" your oven and adapt your baking to maximize what's going on in your particular kitchen. (I found this insight most helpful!)

Two drawbacks I discovered while enjoying this book: 1) I began to feel sorry for myself for not having a stand mixer (this would make the job of producing yeast bread doughs infinitely easier!) and 2) I found myself hating the fact I live in the middle of Iowa in a place devoid of a bakery (other than what you can find at the local grocery store. Which is better than nothing, I know.) I found myself ruminating on what it must be like to live in New York or another metropolis where neighborhood bakeries abound, and you come to know what day the baker is going to have your favorite pastries fresh in the display case just waiting for you to stop in and pick one up. A girl can dream, can't she?

If you have the slightest interest in learning to bake, you NEED this book! It'd be crazy to pass on the lifetime of insights a professional baker is offering you! Many of the treats are of Eastern European or German descent, which is a plus in my book since that is a big part of my own heritage. I am going to pass this free copy (which I received from Blogging For Books for this review) on to my daughter (who does have a stand mixer and a love of baking!) in hopes she will bake me something, ANYTHING from it!

From the Publisher . . .

This follow-up to the author’s James Beard award-winning Secrets of a Jewish Baker is a charming collection of European-style bakery classics, such as coffee cake and strudel.

George Greenstein had a gift for teaching home bakers to think, work, and bake like the pros with his evocative and tactile descriptions of baking. In A Jewish Baker’s Pastry Secrets, he crafts master dough recipes for Jewish holiday baking and European classics, creating a comprehensive set of building blocks for both beginners and baking enthusiasts. Greenstein’s expert guidance for making doughs like bundt, babka, strudel, gugelhopf, stollen, pressburger, puff pastry, and Danish create a jumping-off point for more than 200 variations of classic pastries, including napoleons, coffee cakes, and sweet buns. The book also offers an in-depth guide to ingredients and equipment, including both professional and home ovens, as well as basic recipes for fillings, icings, and glazes. With Greenstein’s steady guidance and familiar voice, home bakers and professionals alike will be encouraged to turn out flawless pastry creations for any occasion.

About the Author . . .

GEORGE GREENSTEIN is a third-generation professional baker, now retired. For twenty years he owned and operated a Jewish bakery, The Cheesecake King, on Long Island. He lives in Monroe Township, New Jersey. This is his second book.