Read: "The Art of Fine Baking," by Paula Peck
Why: I like to bake
A detailed guide to making cakes and pastry
Takeaway: I like to bake (see above) but I don't know if I have it in me to make anything in this book. These are the classic recipes for things you love from the bakery; each cake involves four or five complex steps for the cake itself, separating eggs and cooking sugar syrup to 238 degrees on a candy thermometer, and then you can make a buttercream frosting or glaze that involves another three steps and three pans. Making strudel or your own puff pastry would tie up your kitchen all day; it would be a fun project with my sisters but how annoyed would we be when people ate only small slices, or left half the plate uneaten? Reading this made me tense with all the tied-up expectations of making a cake that takes eight hours.