Baking by Flavor (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "the process of baking-part alchemy, part flavor-takes basic components such as butter, flour, sugar, eggs, and leavening and transforms them into doughs and batters by..." (more)
Key Phrases: plain vanilla extract, cake withdraws, add the light brown sugar, Vanilla Whipped Cream, Heath Milk Chocolate English Toffee Bar, Caramel Nut Topping (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Chocolate, caramel, vanilla, and lemon--ingredients like these define baking flavor. Placing such flavor-makers at the forefront of her approach, Lisa Yockelson's Baking by Flavor presents a luscious array of desserts while revealing techniques for highlighting and intensifying their taste. How does it work? Double Chocolate Madeleines, for example, get their punch not only from cocoa, melted chocolate, and chocolate chips but from a final cocoa-sugar dusting. Yockelson's flavor-centric approach also leads her to discoveries that can liberate recipe-bound bakers. Add ground spices to the dry ingredients when preparing a sweet yeast dough, for example, and you get a subtly delicious flavor boost. Bakers at all levels of proficiency should enjoy Yockelson's insights and put them to good use.

Beginning with a section on flavor-baking strategies--a chart shows readers that cinnamon's flavor is, for example, intensified when combined with butter, rum, or caramel--the book then provides useful "component" recipes for the likes of lemon-scented granulated sugar. The 250 recipes, arranged by flavor, offer a wide range of sweets, from Cinnamon Apple Rolls and Butter Spritz Cookies to Spiced Banana Breakfast Loaf and Sour Cream Ginger Keeping Cake. The recipes also include useful sidebars (lightly press rather than compress the dough for some cookies, is one), plus tips, variations and still more flavor-intensifying suggestions. Illustrated with photos, and containing detailed storage information, the book should become a true, better-baking resource. --Arthur Boehm

From Publishers Weekly

This excellent roundup of all kinds of delicious deserts is organized by flavor (chocolate, banana, cinnamon, rum, etc.) rather than type of baked good. Yockelson lays out her flavor theory: "Flavor-layering is accomplished by using a combination of compatible ingredients in one recipe." She also talks specifically about methods for enhancing the flavors of various batters and doughs, and provides several charts illustrating flavor compatibility and flavoring agents. Additional chapters on equipment, key ingredients (with instructions for making Clarified Butter, Coconut Streusel and other components) and techniques are invaluable to the serious baker. After all that preparation, Yockelson thankfully writes solid, inventive recipes that clearly illustrate her theory. In the almond chapter, Fallen Chocolate Almond Cake contains almond liqueur, almond extract and almond flour; the lemon chapter offers Lemon-Lime Cake with Glazed Citrus Threads pumped up with juice and zest, and in the chapter on coffee and mocha, Espresso and Bittersweet Chocolate Chunk Torte has espresso powder, bittersweet chocolate and unsweetened chocolate. Even chapters on butter and vanilla, two flavors that are rarely considered as such, boast such strong selections as Grandma Lilly's Butter Pound Cake, Buttercrunch Flats with toffee, Vanilla Crumb Buns and Vanilla Cream Waffles. Many of the 260 recipes offer variations, which means one could spend many happy days testing Yockelson's theory. (Mar.) Forecast: Joining the recent spate of "big" baking and desert books, this certainly deserves a spot on the dedicated baker's shelf. Yockelson, author of 10 books and frequent contributor to many cooking magazines, has a gimmick, but it's one with substance that should work to push sales.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 656 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (February 20, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471361704
• ISBN-13: 978-0471361701
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #93,345 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Can be complicated - but it's different and worth it, April 10, 2002

By	Heidi Namba (Renton, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I bought Baking by Flavor about three weeks ago and have tried 2 recipes from it. I did not exactly follow the directions though because upon reading it I realize that you have to prepare ingredients in advance. First of all, you find a flavor that you like (that is how the book's chapters are divided ie. lemon, carmel, almond, vanilla etc), then you find an item in the chosen chapter that you want to make (cakes, cookies, muffins, pies, tarts), then you must have concentrated flavored ingredients to put into that recipe. For instance, a lemon pound cake is made with "lemon enhanced sugar". The sugar is simple to make but takes days to make. (Drying lemon peels - then letting them sit in granulated sugar until the sugar is lemon flavored). That is just one example of an ingredient that needs to be prepared in advanced. I used plain white unflavored sugar and it turned out fine. The purpose of the book is to make that lemon flavored poundcake EXTRA lemony. All flavors are supposed to be very enhanced and concentrated. Sounds good but I need to find the time to prepare all of these ingredients so that I can prepare the recipe at a later date. Many people would not have the time or patience for this book but I love to bake so I'm willing to try it out. It is kind of a pricey cookbook but it offers many, many recipes and an opening section that offers alot of helpful hints. It's beautifully laid out and has easy to read directions. If you have extra time to bake and you plan in advance, then I recommend this cookbook.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The only baking book you will ever need!, March 3, 2002

By A Customer

Baking by Flavor has replaced all of my most important baking reference and recipe books. The author begins with the very sound premise that we remember a batch of fudgy brownies because of the flavors that create it: the wonderful combination and flavor intensity of cocoa and bittersweet chocolate.

She helps us create a whole new context for baking. We learn to think about each ingredient and how to build on its presence in a recipe. The author explores 18 flavors in all, from the traditional and simple flavors of butter, lemon, and vanilla to the contemporary and refined flavors of ginger, rum, and sweet cheese. She also has a lot of fun in between with the dynamic and intense flavors of peanut and peanut butter, chocolate, and buttercrunch.

Our favorites will likely be different, but there are nearly 260 recipes from which to choose, and each one that I have tried has been a true crowd pleaser. Nervous about baking for a group of critical taste testers, I made the Truffled Chocolate-Walnut Brownies -- without the walnuts for the children in the crowd. Not only did the author provide an alternative recipe for just such a scenario, but each step of the recipe was so clearly defined that I felt as though Lisa was in my kitchen, standing by my side! Happy about spending a Sunday afternoon with my children, I made the Butter Cookie Cut-Outs with the children. The cookies had the perfect balance of creamy and crunchy. And now I have to keep the dough in the freezer, as these are our cookies of choice.

With the author's help, I now have a fully stocked baking pantry. When I have the frequent urge to bake, I now turn to the only book I need: Baking by Flavor.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Baking Book EVER!, May 15, 2002

By	Donna Sher "dodama" (Texas) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you love baking, know someone who does, or just collect cookbooks, you MUST add Baking by Flavor to your collection! Lisa Yockelson has done a fabulous job of not only bringing you the most scrumptous recipes, but amazing tips and ideas throughout this BEAUTIFUL book. Each recipe is written with attention given to texture, dough consistancy, ingredient characteristics, aroma, and much more. You can almost taste the recipe simply by reading her detailed instructions. There is obviously a great deal of heart that went into each recipe in this book. This would make a wonderful gift for anyone!