OP: Maida Heatter's Book of Great American Desserts

Maida Heatter (1919-2019), whose baking career began during World War II, when she and her mother made hundreds of dozens of cookies to send to the troops overseas, wrote seven great cookbooks between 1974 and 1995. Although there were later spinoffs using some of the earlier material, this concentrated output of creative energy made an epic contribution to the sweet kitchen. 

Heatter’s fifth book, being offered here, is perhaps the most neglected. Different in format (it is a hefty 384-page 8-½” x 11” volume) and overall style, it concentrates on desserts that originated or flourished in America, adding to these some of the inventions that sprang from that tradition. Included are such treats as Savannah fig cake, spiced pecan cookies, peach pan dowdy, Charleston cheesecake bars, and every imaginable kind of grunt, crisp, cobbler, crumble, and shortcake. Heatter’s recipe headnotes and comments are great fun—often personal, anecdotal, frequently humorous, and always helpful, reflecting her increasing comfort as an author after the first few books were published and her reputation fully established.

This is the 1985 first printing. It is in overall Very Good condition, inclusive of the dust jacket. Some shelf wear is evident, particularly on the bottom edge. Nice to have, nice to use.