Baking Style: Art Craft Recipes – A Comprehensive Guide for the Home Baker with Culinary Essays and Methods for Mastering Desserts

by Lisa Yockelson

A dazzling celebration of the art and craft of baking In Baking Style, the award-winning author of Baking by Flavor and ChocolateChocolate, presents what has fascinated her during a lifetime of baking. In 100 essays and more than 200 recipes, along with 166 full-color images, Baking Style is infused with discoveries, inspirations, and exacting but simple recipes for capturing the art and craft of baking at home. Baking Style combines the genre of the culinary essay with recipes, their corresponding methods, and illustrative images, revealing Yockelson's uniquely intimate expression of the baking process.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Cooking

528 pages, Hardcover

First published September 2, 2011

Reviews

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baking Style is Lisa Yockelson's newest book on all things baking. The extra large format and bright pink cover are eye-catching so it won't get lost and forgotten on your shelves. She starts with a detailed explanation on various techniques, equipment, and ingredients. Then she moves on to the recipes. The organization is hard to follow, it seems more whimsy than anything else, but the photographs are plentiful and gorgeous and the large format means the recipes are easy to read.

Marzipan Scones -
These were the lightest, fluffiest, tastiest scones I've ever made! The base is not too sweet and it really highlights the little chunks of marzipan that are scattered throughout. I will definitely be making these again.


Dirty Cake -

More like a coffee cake than say a birthday cake, this had loads of cinnamon flavor. It was a little hard to get the second layer to cover the cinnamon brown sugar topping, but I persisted and won out in the end. This cake tasted even better the next day.

Parmesan and Gruyere Popovers -

My one disappointment in this book. I was surprised that the recipe called for refrigerating the dough. Every popover recipe I've ever made calls for all the ingredients to be at room temperature to help the popovers "pop". I followed the recipe and, indeed, these popovers didn't "pop". The flavor was nice, but I missed the light, airy texture.

There are so many more recipes I will make from this book - Saturated Orange and Bourbon Cake, Big and Crazy Chewy Date Bars, and Cardamom Buns that (Almost) Levitate, just to name a few!

[Mrs. · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a disappointment. I have several of the author's other books, and have enjoyed them. This is an attempt to do something new, and it falls flat. The book is such an organizational nightmare, that it renders it almost unusable. There are so many dinner roll recipes, brownies, and chocolate cakes that I stopped counting. Traditional recipes are "tweaked" in some cases to the point where the subtle flavors are lost. Finally, the cutesy, nonsensical names for recipes and entire chapters drove my crazy - "dewy cake" is a date cake, "chocolate dunkers" are madeleines, etc. Maddening. The whole book is pink: the cover, a lot of the print (some of which is in tiny, unreadable font), and the backdrop of EVERY SINGLE PHOTO. I like pink but this was too much. Finally, this expensive coffee table book comes without a dust jacket. I don't know what the editors were thinking with this one.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of a coffee table cookbook: huge and unwieldy, with a lot of artfully constructed photos. The writing style is formal to the point of being prissy, most of the recipe names are too creatively vague to make an association to the resulting product, and the book is arranged by sections such as “Past Perfect” as opposed to, say, “Savory Yeast Breads.” Fortunately the index is thorough enough that most recipes can be located by ingredients or more traditional descriptions. The detailed explanations about standard baking procedures would be useful to a beginning baker. I liked the recommendations for various kitchen tools, and there are a few recipes I might try. A pretty book, just not my type.

[Pirate Nurse · Rating 2 out of 5]

Potentially some good recipes. Title is misleading. I though there would be craft projects as well as recipes, but the author is just elitist and talks about her recipes as ART. And I hate to be this shallow, but judging by the way the author looks, the recipes probably suck. Also, many recipes are just duplicates with one or two ingredient differences. Would not purchase again.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best baking book I have used. I've been an avid baker for years and am unafraid to try new recipes and techniques. This book breaks down baking techniques clearly so there is no room for confusion and then takes those techniques and puts them into recipes that are decadent, refreshing, and extremely enjoyable.

[Cody · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wordy and boring.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am just delighted by the artistry and love of subject this author possesses. Wonderful collection of recipes. Truly a feast for those who love baking.