The King Arthur Baking School: Lessons and Recipes for Every Baker

The King Arthur Baking School is an off-shoot of a more than 200-year-old flour company in New England which has built its reputation in part on extensive educational programs for both professional and home bakers.

Those efforts have informed many previous books, but The King Arthur Baking School is the first book wholly derived from intensive coursework used in classrooms in Vermont and in Washington state. The organization of the book separates recipe instruction from discussion of technique and ingredients, just as a Baking School teacher might discuss the creation of laminated dough before giving students a recipe for phyllo or puff pastry, and for those before tackling croissants.

As such this is a book for the serious baker seeking overall improvement; it will likely frustrate someone who simply wants a reliable recipe for blueberry muffins without knowing why the recipe works (King Arthur's Baking Companion would be a better choice in that case).

That said, there is a wide range of traditional and modern baked goods here, from baguettes and apple pies to fresh ginger gingerbread and deli-style rye bread.

Measurements are by weight as well as by volume, and there are informative step-by-step photo sequences throughout the book, covering everything from shaping a batard to utilizing the creaming method for cakes.

A book that rewards effort.

Hardcover. Color photographs throughout.