Review by Booklist Review
In this most recent addition to her collection of baking bibles, which includes collections devoted to cake, pie and pastry, and bread, Berenbaum delivers her signature style of easy-to-follow recipes. This no-nonsense cookbook offers a brief introduction to technique, tools, and staple ingredients, followed by 400 pages of cookie recipes organized by type, such as dropped or piped, shaped by hand, and holiday cookie cutouts. There are recipes for novelties like tahini crisps, churro nuggets, and bone à fidos (for dogs!) alongside classics like chocolate chip, peanut butter, and linzer. Under Beranbaum's direction, even the old standbys promise to be something special. Recipes include measurements in weight and volume (though she swears by weight) and detailed instructions on how to adjust the baking process if using different tools (a food processor, an electric mixer, or a wooden spoon, for example). Precision is Berenbaum's modus operandi, as she not only instructs readers on how to make perfect cookies, but explains why specific ingredients and techniques result in perfection. Indispensable for holiday (and year-round) cookie baking.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
James Beard Award winner Berenbaum (The Baking Bible) revisits her old favorites and shares recipes for new ones in this thoroughly scrumptious collection. She leaves no question unanswered, advising on how to prepare butter before making the dough (it needs to be cut into tablespoon-sized pieces and left on the counter to soften for at least half an hour for her lemon poppy seed cookies, or cubed into half-inch pieces and refrigerated for 30 minutes for the holiday cookie cutouts) and how to set up baking sheets (an aluminum foil--lined sheet is needed for the candied pineapple biscotti, while a plain sheet will suffice for the raspberry Linzer hearts), and she even includes the shelf-life for each cookie after baking (her Dream Chocolate Chip Cookies can be stored in a container at room temperature for two weeks, refrigerated for a month, or frozen for three months). Following every recipe are "baking gems" that provide tips (for the chocolate caramel candy bars, adding cream of tartar to caramel will prevent it from crystallizing) and helpful techniques (to make superfine sugar for dacquoise meringue puffs, process granulated sugar in a food processor, until it's "the consistency of sand"). For home bakers of all levels, this is a no-brainer. (Nov.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
American cake legend and reverse-creaming pioneer Beranbaum (The Cake Bible; The Baking Bible) brings her signature precision and charm to this, the latest in her series of Bible-like baking tomes. As with previous works, this collection goes above and beyond in approaching its titular subject. Following a brief introduction to the "Golden Rules" for baking cookies successfully, readers are treated to over 150 nostalgically unfussy cookie recipes (Lemon Lumpies, Gingerbread Folks, Barcelona Brownies), organized into practical categories such as rolled by hand and dropped or piped. As with all Beranbaum recipes, both ingredients and instructions are unapologetically exact, yet the cookies still come off as friendly to novice bakers thanks to easy weight-to-volume translations, heart-marked "Baking Gems," and unpretentious variation ideas offered throughout. Similar to the baker's previous cookbooks, step-by-step photographs of complicated techniques, such as folding dough, will help instill confidence in new and experienced bakers. The appendix allows home bakers to browse by various dietary restrictions, such as eggless or flourless recipes. VERDICT A worthy addition to the Beranbaum baking oeuvre and a sure-fire hit for bakers of all abilities who love a well-done classic cookie.--Robin Chin Roemer, Univ. of Washington Lib., Seattle
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