Rage baking The transformative power of flour, fury, and women's voices

Kathy Gunst

Book - 2020

"Rage Baking offers over 50 cookie, cake, tart, and pie recipes as well as inspirational short stories/reflections/interviews with well-known bakers, and impassioned women and activists who have found a voice in and out of the kitchen, such as celebrity, cookbook author and activist Chrissy Teigen, actress and activist Maya Rudolph, Rebecca Traister (author of the bestselling book, Good and Mad), and comedian and political commentator Samantha Bee"--

Saved in:

2nd Floor Show me where

641.815/Gunst
1 / 1 copies available
Location Call Number   Status
2nd Floor 641.815/Gunst Checked In
Subjects
Genres
Cookbooks
Published
New York : Tiller Press 2020.
Language
English
Main Author
Kathy Gunst (author)
Other Authors
Katherine Alford (author)
Edition
First Tiller Press hardcover edition
Item Description
Includes index.
Physical Description
xxv, 181 pages illustrations (some color) ; 24 cm
ISBN
9781982132675
  • Foreword / Stephanie Schriock, President of Emily's List
  • Introduction / Kathy Gunst
  • Raging Ingredients
  • Raging equipment
  • A greener kitchen
  • Sugar and spice and done being nice: cookies, bars, and bites
  • Whisk, fold, knead, rise up: breads
  • Bake down the patriarchy: cakes
  • Comfort with a helping of righteous rage: puddings and custards
  • No more humble pie: Crumbles, pies, and tarts
  • Mail-order rage.
Review by Booklist Review

Strong emotions can lead to good outcomes, especially in the food arena, where anger and rage can be moderated by punching dough or rolling out pie crusts. Such was the reasoning behind this compendium of 50-plus sweet concoctions put together by veteran food writers and recipe developers Gunst and Alford with 39 other contributors. Inspired by women's protests against the country's current state of affairs, the recipes are indeed occasionally punctuated by outrage, whether in their names or within their prologues: impeachment upside-down cake, Maine blueberry brown butter vinegar pie (referring to Senator Collins backing down during the vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh). Inserted in between the confections are conversations with and writing from female chefs, authors, writers, directors, and others, among them Carla Hall, Marti Noxon, and Cecile Richards (former head of Planned Parenthood). Future rage bakers will take away not only some well-regarded recipes, but also a few bons mots to remember: Being mad is American (Rebecca Traister) and Typing is a kind of fury (Osayi Endolyn).--Barbara Jacobs Copyright 2020 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

In this debut cookbook, food writers Gunst and Alford collect solid recipes and passionate essays from women suffering through the #MeToo era. Chapters are traditionally organized but given rousing names (one on breads is "Whisk, Fold, Knead, Rise Up") and illustrated with inspiring photos of women's marches from the 1960s to the 2000s. Recipes are functional and clever: Vallery Lomas, who won The Great American Baking Show in 2017 only to have the show canceled and not air after a judge was accused of sexual harassment, offers simple lemon bars that don't require precooking the curd for the filling. The authors often artfully integrate their subjects: Alford provides an honest look at women's experiences in restaurant kitchens and suggests a maple-walnut pull-apart bread ("what better metaphor for my growing rage as the patriarchy works overtime"), and Katherine Gunst of NPR's Here & Now recalls her dismay over Maine senator Susan Collins's yes vote for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and how baking "temporarily restor my belief in the positive transformation of things" (she offers LGBTQ-inspired rainbow cookies). Attempts to politicize baked goods, including a tenuous connection between red velvet cake and The Handmaid's Tale, can read like a reach, but they serve as a primal scream. This volume of accessible recipes squarely hits the target. (Feb.)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review

Food writer and recipe developer Alford joins James Beard Award winner Gunst (Soup Swap) to create a unique collection of recipes, essays, poems, and photographs. The origins of this passionately conceived book stem from being frustrated with our current political climate and using baking as a therapy of sorts; a way to calm emotions. After the 2016 presidential election, Gunst displayed her baking on Instagram with the hashtag #ragebakers. Expanding on those creations, featured recipes, all beautifully photographed, include rainbow cookies, grape and rosemary focaccia, chocolate raspberry triple-layer cake, and impeachment upside-down cake. Many recipes are ideal for beginner to intermediate bakers, with clear instructions on effectively using equipment. VERDICT This resource will satisfy those looking for an outlet to quell their angst and bake some fantastic treats. An engaging choice for teens and up.--Holly Skir, Broward Cty. Lib., FL

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.