The Family Baker: 150 Never-Let-You-Down Basic Recipes

by Susan G. Purdy

Whether you learned to make desserts standing on your tiptoes at your mother's side, or you think "batter" is only a baseball term, join Susan G. Purdy in the kitchen as she whips up a delicious collection of goof-proof, innovative recipes guaranteed to bring out the kid in everyone. These easy creations conjure visions of flour-flecked faces and noses dotted with icing, and say loud and clear, "homemade from the heart."

There's everything from simple shortbread and dense, fudgy brownies to cherry pie with an easy-as-pie quick lattice topping (baked separately and slipped onto the pie before serving). The Family Baker brims with such mouth-watering, buttery baked goodies as Blueberry Buckle and Chocolate Romance Cake, in addition to no-bake ideas perfect for even the youngest aspiring cook.

Try Susan's Ice Cream Sand Castle. Simply fill a sand castle mold with store-bought ice cream, unmold when frozen, and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar "sand." Her Peanut Butter-Honey "Clay Dough" feels like clay and can be modeled into a collection of creatures straight out of your child's imagination.

Accompanying her exceptionally detailed recipes, Susan provides decorating diagrams, trouble-shooting tips, and timesaving techniques that guarantee your muffins, cakes, pies, and cookies will be perfect every time. In charge of the school bake sale? There are merchandising suggestions that guarantee a money-making event. Need a conversation starter? How about make-your-own fortune cookies? And of course, there are plenty of ideas for birthday and anniversary parties and everyday celebrations.

So put on your apron, get out the flour, call in the kids, and start baking with The Family Baker by Susan G. Purdy.

Genres: Cookbooks

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 5, 1999

Reviews

[Kathy Wolf]

Haven't tried the recipes yet, but the book is informative about baking. A lot of the recipes most bakers already have but maybe these are better renditions of them. I'll be trying a few for sure.

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to say that this is currently one of my favorite cookbooks for baking. I purchased a used copy, but it has been better than most new cookbooks I have purchased. The first recipe I tried was for Steve's Brownies, and they were some of the best brownies I had ever had! They were super easy and I had all the ingredients on hand...love that!! I have made them several times and they always turn out great!! This 4th of July weekend I made the Lemonade Cheesecake with Honeyed-Blueberry Topping and it was a keeper!! I added strawberries to the blueberries to make it more patriotic. The addition of the honey to the cheesecake and fruit was amazing!! I was just looking through the cookbook to see what I want to try next...there are so many options!!

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down the best basic baking cookbook. I have baked from this cookbook for years and never found a single recipe to be a dud. From lemon sherbert to oatmeal cookies to gingerbread and beyond this is my one go-to for all basic baking. The instructions are clear, easy, and concise. There is some basic background on improving your baking (very helpful like why use unsalted butter and starting with evetything at room temp, etc.) and a whole section on baking with children, which is how I got started (with my grandmother). Overall I have found the recipes superior to all other similar ones on the internet and in books. This book can seriously be your secret weapon.

[S Vanorse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice clear directions, everything sounds delicious, Susan Purdy makes you want to bake everything in this cookbook, with the lead in before each recipe are clear equipment, advance prep, temperatures and yield amounts for all the recipes. I love that you do not have to search throughout to find this info. There are some simple and a few more advanced recipes. Have several marked to cook this weekend. Particularly interested in the Mexican Wedding cookies that call for cake flour I have made these for years but this change instead of reg flour I find interesting.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite selection of family-style baking recipes. So far everything I have made from this book has been great.

[Komal]

This is SUCH a delightful book about baking! I love how G. Purdy has given her own personal stories to each recipe and narrated a recipe book in a novel-ish form.
I was gifted this book on my 12th birthday by my aunt and uncle. It turned out to be my first foray into the world of baking. It taught me how to make the perfect double-fudge chocolate chip brownies along with the most tasteful and buttery Scottish Shortbread.

I owe Susan G. Purdy my oven and baking skills.