Jump to content

  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

"Bakewise" by Shirley Corriher

SethG

By SethG
in Cookbooks & References

 Share

Recommended Posts

SethG

SethG

Posted
Posted

Today's New York Times has a nice article (free registration required) on Shirley O. Corriher's forthcoming book Bakewise.

Fans of Cookwise will be disheartened to learn that she won't have the book out until at least next Christmas. But three very tasty-sounding cakes are published along with the article-- look at the "Related" sidebar.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

bloviatrix

bloviatrix

Posted
Posted

Actually, a year wait isn't so bad. It'll give everyone a chance to digest McGee before moving on to the next "kitchen science" book. :raz:

"Some people see a sheet of seaweed and want to be wrapped in it. I want to see it around a piece of fish."-- William Grimes

"People are bastard-coated bastards, with bastard filling." - Dr. Cox on Scrubs

Moopheus

Moopheus

Posted
Posted

I just hope they don't do a rush job on the production to make up for the book being late, to get it out in time for the holiday. What am I saying? Of course they will.

"I think it's a matter of principle that one should always try to avoid eating one's friends."--Doctor Dolittle

blog: The Institute for Impure Science

Gifted Gourmet

Gifted Gourmet

Posted
Posted

Methinks Shirley will never "sign off on" anything not done quite properly and to her exacting standards ... after all, she is a biochemist by profession!

Melissa Goodman aka "Gifted Gourmet"

Suzanne F

Suzanne F

Posted
Posted
I just hope they don't do a rush job on the production to make up for the book being late, to get it out in time for the holiday. What am I saying? Of course they will.

Now I know what to wish for for my birthday :wink:

joiei

joiei

Posted
Posted

I assisted Shirley at a cooking demonstration. She is something else. And I love her. I use Cookwise for reference more than anything, especially when trying to dissect what went wrong on something. I now will look forward to the new book.

It is good to be a BBQ Judge.  And now it is even gooder to be a Steak Cookoff Association Judge.  Life just got even better.  Woo Hoo!!!

  • 1 year later...
SethG

SethG

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

I was reminded this week that a year has passed with no publication date in sight for Bakewise! :sad:

Anyone have any info? A Google search turns up nothing, Amazon has no listing, and B&N says it was published in 1924(!).

I made her tunnel of fudge cake the other day for a party. The Times article and the accompanying recipes are still accessible a year later. I thought the cake was good but it is absurdly sweet. (The overwhelming amount of sugar is what keeps the cake from solidifying in the center.) Mine was pretty loose in the middle, but it didn't run the way Shirley's does in the picture that appears next to the Times article. I guess I cooked it a couple minutes too long, but I was grateful; it made for easier serving.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

  • 2 weeks later...
rosejoy

rosejoy

Posted
Posted
I was reminded this week that a year has passed with no publication date in sight for Bakewise!  :sad:

Anyone have any info?  A Google search turns up nothing, Amazon has no listing, and B&N says it was published in 1924(!).

I made her tunnel of fudge cake the other day for a party.  The Times article and the accompanying recipes are still accessible a year later.  I thought the cake was good but it is absurdly sweet.  (The overwhelming amount of sugar is what keeps the cake from solidifying in the center.)  Mine was pretty loose in the middle, but it didn't run the way Shirley's does in the picture that appears next to the Times article.  I guess I cooked it a couple minutes too long, but I was grateful; it made for easier serving.

I came across and article from the El Paso Times from July, 2005 saying that BakeWise is due out in 2007 :angry:

Here's the link:

http://www.borderlandnews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...mplate=printart

  • 2 years later...
  • 1 month later...
Gingersnap

Gingersnap

Posted
Posted

My copy arrived from Amazon some time last week. I haven't had a chance to do more than flip through it.

There are five chapters (and a hefty bibliography):

Cakes, Lucious Cakes! Muffins, Quick Breads, & More

Puff, The Magic Leavener -- Steam

Pie Marches On & On

As the Cookie Crumbles

Great Breads -- Great Flavours

Lindacakes

Lindacakes

Posted
Posted

Very very interesting. I'm curious about this book. I know a little bit of gossip about it. Apparently Shirley Corriher is not a baker, which is why it took so long to write the book . . .

I like to bake nice things. And then I eat them. Then I can bake some more.

  • 2 weeks later...
ruthcooks

ruthcooks

Posted
Posted
My copy arrived from Amazon some time last week.  I haven't had a chance to do more than flip through it.

There are five chapters (and a hefty bibliography):

Cakes, Lucious Cakes!  Muffins, Quick Breads, & More

Puff, The Magic Leavener -- Steam

Pie Marches On & On

As the Cookie Crumbles

Great Breads -- Great Flavours

Mine came last week too, after I had forgotten I'd put in an advance order. After waiting so long (years), I am trying to save it for Christmas reading, but think Thanksgiving will feature her Crust for Pumpkin pie, which Shirley says will still be crisp after several days in the fridge. Strange little recipe with Wondra flour, butter flavored shortening, corn syrup and vinegar!

Another find, a meringue which is easy to cut, non-weeping and safe against salmonella. Shirley gives credit to others for the originals of both these recipes, and many more.

I don't see too many unique recipes, but you can be sure that Shirley's versions are the most reliable--and probably the richest--around.

Ruth Dondanville aka "ruthcooks"

“Are you making a statement, or are you making dinner?” Mario Batali

prasantrin

prasantrin

Posted
Posted

Like others, I've been looking forward to this book for a long time, but after seeing her recipe for pound cake and reading some of the ingredients for the pumpkin pie crust, I'm not sure how useful the book will be to people living outside the United States. Wondra flour and butter-flavoured shortening certainly aren't easily found where I live (Japan).

Are a lot of the recipe in the book like that?

rickster

rickster

Posted
Posted

So I was suckered in by a 30% off coupon at Borders and picked this up last weekend. I haven't baked anything from it yet, but my take is that there are some interesting tips buried in one of the most confusingly written cookbooks ever. Cheesecake recipes in the pie section. Genoise in the meringue section. Recipes you are not supposed to make. I know there is a logic to the organization, but it is very different to that of the average cookbook. It's probably better to think of this as a Harold McGee type book with some recipes for illustration. My other thought is that baking by nature is more "scientific" than cooking and a lot of baking books already use that perspective, a la Beranbaum and most serious bread books. So Corriher has less unique to offer here than in her Cookwise book. May be why it took so long to finish.

  • 3 weeks later...
joiei

joiei

Posted
Posted
The Cook's Warehouse in Atlanta will be having a book signing:

Midtown 11/17/2008

7:00 PM - 9:00 PM FREE

Shirley lives in Georgia so i guess they get first crack at a book signing with her.

Shirley's background is as a food scientist like Mr McGee. In the course of writing the book she has had some serious health problem to deal with.

To meet her in person, Shirley is a very funny person filled with so much knowledge of food and the science of food. I backed her up for a cooking school class one time and fell in love with her then.

It is good to be a BBQ Judge.  And now it is even gooder to be a Steak Cookoff Association Judge.  Life just got even better.  Woo Hoo!!!

HungryC

HungryC

Posted
Posted
So I was suckered in by a 30% off coupon at Borders and picked this up last weekend. I haven't baked anything from it yet, but my take is that there are some interesting tips buried in one of the most confusingly written cookbooks ever. Cheesecake recipes in the pie section. Genoise in the meringue section. Recipes you are not supposed to make. I know there is a logic to the organization, but it is very different to that of the average cookbook. It's probably better to think of this as a Harold McGee type book with some recipes for illustration. My other thought is that baking by nature is more "scientific" than cooking and a lot of baking books already use that perspective, a la Beranbaum and most serious bread books. So Corriher has less unique to offer here than in her Cookwise book. May be why it took so long to finish.

I agree that the organization is quite confusing. Overall, it is stuffed with fascinating info, but you must plow through lots of cross-referencing, asides, and a fair bit of repetition to squeeze out the good stuff. Did the editor quit mid-stream? A firm reorganization might have increased the flow & clarity. It isn't quite the masterpiece compared to her first book.

One minor quibble: the layout/typesetting/body design appear to have been carried out by a legal secretary only allowed to use the most conservative fonts in MS Word 2000. Times Roman for body copy? Arial Bold for headlines & sub-heads? Part of the confusing nature of the text is caused by the lack of attention to good informational design...too much space between sections, overall weird line spacing. Again, a minor quibble, but if you look at Alford & Duguid's last few books, you'll get a stellar example of good design elevating good material into something extraordinary.

--Celeste

Bouillie: eating in south Louisiana

prasantrin

prasantrin

Posted
Posted
I agree that the organization is quite confusing.  Overall, it is stuffed with fascinating info, but you must plow through lots of cross-referencing, asides, and a fair bit of repetition to squeeze out the good stuff.  Did the editor quit mid-stream?  A firm reorganization might have increased the flow & clarity.  It isn't quite the masterpiece compared to her first book.

One minor quibble:  the layout/typesetting/body design appear to have been carried out by a legal secretary only allowed to use the most conservative fonts in MS Word 2000.  Times Roman for body copy?  Arial Bold for headlines & sub-heads?  Part of the confusing nature of the text is caused by the lack of attention to good informational design...too much space between sections, overall weird line spacing.  Again, a minor quibble, but if you look at Alford & Duguid's last few books, you'll get a stellar example of good design elevating good material into something extraordinary.

Boy, are you going to get slammed for that one! :biggrin:

 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...