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Pastry books and your experiences


chefette

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I have found the baking with julia book that has recipies from all kinds of bakers to be outstanding, somone took all the different recipies and wrote a usefull book. Chefs themseves usually write beautiful but useless for the home baker cookbooks. If they work with a real writer and the recipies are tested things seem to work better. Another book i have always like is called the cake bible, the author of this escapes me as i am at work and not near the bookshelf, all things are clear and work fine for the home baker. another one i like is called Sweet Baking. These days i mostly bake bread and have found the bakers appretince by rinehart to be a revolation to me. Not so much for the recipies, and some of them are great but he explains things in a manner that no one else has ever do so for me. I certainly do not have the time to do everything he does, however, the book is well written and i very much like it

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This is my first post here so I'll identify myself as a sort of newbie/pro, seven years of baking/pastry fulltime, but 25 years in the kitchen, with a large cookbook collection, which range from Fannie Farmer to Pierre Herme, and I have to say I am very skeptical of a LOT of what passes for quality nowadays. I just bought Rose Levy Beranbaum's Bread Bible and was appalled to find the first recipe I wanted to make was garbled. I managed to find out how to email her, and she answered right away, but still I was so annoyed I almost returned the book. She, in her own quirky way, has reduced bread baking to minutiae in this one. Who ever made a loaf of bread with 1/3 cup sourdough starter? I spill that much every time I make bread. I once spent an afternoon making the little Love's Nests from Michel Roux and couldn't believe what I was looking at amidst the wreckage. And his raspberry parfait cake, I'd love to make but seems to hover at the edge of unhuman skill. How do I make a pate bombe with such minute quantities of ingredients? I have a lot of books I wished I'd held off on buying. They cost money, take up space and are not very useful. I want pictures in my books, lots of them. If I can get an item to come out looking most of the way like the picture in the book, then I'm happy.

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A- Dessert/Baking books by women (not pastry chefs - Fannie Farmer, Betty Crocker, Joy of Cooking, Martha Stewart, etc.  Baking with Julia would not actually count since it is a collection of work by other pastry chefs)

B- Dessert/Baking books by men (not pastry chefs - can't even think of any off hand hmmmm)

First:  Fess up about your skill level

Amateur home baker/ Pastry student/ Newbie professional / Established Pro

Then:  Talk about the category of books from which you most frequently and successfully derive recipes

Then:  Talk about the category of books from which you get the most inspiration

Lastly:  Talk about the category of books that give you the most satisfaction and which ones frustrate you the most

Just sort of interested/curious in how things might fall out.

Skill level: I am a decent cook. I run a synagogue kitchen, cater, take on "personal chef" gigs, and have worked as a cook in a domestic setting and as a cook in a vegetarian deli. I don't get to bake as much as I would like, so I keep my skills fresh baking for home and friends. I write a monthly food column and am at work on my first cookbook.

Inspiration: If I had to choose one cookbook as an inspiration, it would probably be "Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet" by Jeffrey Alford & Naomi Duguid. I know I'm supposed to say Mastering the Art, which I loved, but this is the truth. It is both a beautiful book of pictures, taking the reader on a culinary tour of Southeast Asia and a collection of some of the best-written recipes I have found collected in one place. Every recipe I have made -- and I cook from it regularly -- has been exactly as expected. My only complaint is that the shape of it makes it difficult to handle.

Category A: So many people have bemoned the lack of clear and illuminating instruction in pastry books. I think it is important to note that Baking With Julia is a perfect example of how things SHOULD be done. Illustrations are primarilly instructive, with a center-spread of color "sexy" shots. Technique is explained in detail -- making Danish pastry and croissants seem easy. (This I know -- having always been intimidated by laminates, I worked my way through them all last week... the Danish and croissants were spectacular!) Anyway -- Baking with Julia is probably so good because all of the wonderful, talented, energetic chefs DID NOT write it. Instead one professional food writer took the project from beginning to end.

Category B: I don't know if anyone has read Bernard Clayton's book on Pastry -- I think it is his only book that is out of print, but it is a really wonderful read. If I were editing it today, I might ask him to figure out one method for each pastry and write about it, rather than set forth instructions for mixer, food processor, and hand-mixing, but I also realize the book was a product of its time, and it was important then to incorporate new machines in order to accomodate the modern kitchen. Clayton wrote what I think is the most illuminating puff pastry recipe I have ever read.

I know that many will disagree, but for me the most frustrating trend in pastry is the "mine is bigger than yours" phenomenon. I remember having pastry in France which rocked my world -- a cornmeal cake with a simple apricot glaze served on a plate sauced with creme anglaise. I still dream about the crispy crust of the cake giving way to the moise crumb, the apricot scenting every bite, and the cool, silky richness of the creme anglaise.

I was recently given a (VERY expensive) book of pastry recipes intended to recreate "restaurant" pastries in a home kitchen. While I was appreciative of such an extravagant gift, I was appauled by the contents. Most "desserts" requiring 6 to 10 components and, as I estimated with one recipe, three days of preparation. Absurd! (I knew right away that I would never prepare anything from the book. I exchanged the book for a copy of "Mr. Latte" and a hardcover of an M.F.K. Fisher I only had in paperback and still had enough money left over for a cappie and a crumb cake in the cafe.)

Aidan

"Ess! Ess! It's a mitzvah!"

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Comfortme.

Was that book of restaurant dessert's the Richard Leach book?

It is over the top but at the same time you could pick out a few components for the main feature and have yourself a nice dessert. :biggrin:

2317/5000

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Comfortme.

Was that book of restaurant dessert's the Richard Leach book?

It is over the top but at the same time you could pick out a few components for the main feature and have yourself a nice dessert. :biggrin:

I believe the book was by Andrew MacLauchlan, but I could be mistaken.

After posting my comment, I had a moment of remorse -- I had visions of Yves Thuries or Gale Gand swooping in my office door with a santoku knife ready to put a stop to my heresy! But then I experienced this wonderful feeling of freedom! It was just like the time I told my best friend that watching David Rosengarten on television made me want to stick straight pins in my flesh! It may hurt a la minute, but the truth will set you free!

One comment -- why pay $55 for a book you have to deconstruct? There are very few components in a fancy-schmancy book which aren't covered elsewhere for less. I would much rather read Rose Levy Berenbaum's Cake Bible -- with it's meticulous directions and inspiring variations. And I'm much more likely to utilize the book if the product is realistic.

Actually, I'm going to bake from Rose tomorrow -- I have an 18 x 12 x 6" cake to bake which will eventually be sculpted and frosted to resemble a 3D iceberg with resident penguins. The preasure is on -- it is for my Rabbi's daughter's bat mitzvah this Saturday! Thank G-d Rose is reliable!

Eat! Eat! You're too thin!

Aidan

Aidan

"Ess! Ess! It's a mitzvah!"

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I had forgotten about A.M.'s books.

Well, a lot of those books like his are (to me) meant to inspire people, use for research,etc. People like Claudia Fleming, for instance, have cited A.M.'s 'new classic desserts' as an inspiration.

I suppose it's all a bit 'different strokes for...'

RLB's books have always crossed my eyes and never really spoke to me.

And I'm much more likely to utilize the book if the product is realistic.

I think the recipes for most of those items would turn out better then you think.

2317/5000

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