The Wooden Spoon Bread Book: The Secrets of Successful Baking

Moore, whose self-published Baking Your Own: Recipes and Tips for Better Breads (where some of this material previously appeared) became an underground success, offers here an authoritative work that is practical, methodical, meticulously researched and reassuringly down-to-earth. Her collection is wide-ranging: quick, ethnic and presentation breads, pancakes, waffles, muffins, biscuits, etc. She advises patience in breadbaking: if the dough is resistant, cover it with a towel and let it relax. All the recipes are simply written and easy to follow, even complicated ones like those for croissant and brioche. Some of the more intriguing include: sweet-and-spicy Swedish limpa, which incorporates an orange-zest syrup; numerous sourdough varieties; and rich Grand Marnier sugar rolls. This welcome volume will surely become a dog-eared favorite on the home baker's bookshelf. Illustrations not seen by PW. Better Homes and Gardens Book Club and Troll Book Club alternates. (August 18)