Dorie Greenspan is a something of a legend, especially among food bloggers. I never heard of her until I started reading blogs and then I found references to her all over the place. Greenspan knows baking. She wrote the Julia Child book, Baking with Julia and Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme.
Now I truly believe when you are cooking you can fake it, but when you are baking no such luck. Just recently I tried several cookie recipes for upcoming cookie exchanges with miserable results. Frankly the ingredients are too expensive to waste on a recipe that doesn't work well, which is why you need some solid baking books and they don't come much more solid than Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours. The recipes are meticulous and the notes with each recipe are filled with stories and tips to savor. In the book you'll find breakfast sweets, cookies. cakes, pies and tarts, and spoon desserts such as Cherry Rhubarb Cobbler and Lemon Cup Custard.
This year for Thanksgiving I chose to forgo the pumpkin pie and instead made the All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake. Imagine a delicious pumpkin bundt cake studded with nuts, apples and cranberries, spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. It was fantastic and easy to make. I've also gotten a chance to try her World Peace Cookies. You've got to appreciate a recipe that inspired the name "World Peace" due to a fan believing a daily dose of these cookies could ensure peace and happiness. The original recipe is from Pierre Herme and the secret ingredient is a 1/2 teaspoon of fleur de sel. For the committed home baker, this book is a treasure.
Classic Brownies
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional, but really good)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt (according to taste)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts